Germs can spread rapidly in group settings such as a childcare centre. Prevention, timely detection, and management of outbreaks are key to reducing the impact of the illness in these settings.
Understanding the Spread of Infection.
What is it?
An outbreak may be occurring when you have a greater than usual number of persons ill with the same symptoms (e.g., fever, diarrhea, vomiting, cough, and/or rash) in a specific period of time.
Gastroenteritis outbreaks
Symptoms of infectious gastroenteritis include vomiting and/or diarrhea. It is also known as the "stomach flu". Gastroenteritis can be caused by several different viruses, including rotaviruses and noroviruses, bacteria, or parasites.
A gastroenteritis outbreak exists when you have two or more cases of infectious gastroenteritis within a 48-hour period.
To be considered a case, one of the following must be met:
- Two or more unexplained episodes of diarrhea within a 24-hour period.
- Two or more unexplained episodes of vomiting within a 24-hour period.
- One episode of diarrhea and one episode of vomiting within a 24-hour period, not explained by another cause.
Respiratory outbreaks
Symptoms of respiratory illness may include fever, headache, cough, sore throat, runny nose, sore muscles, or tiredness. Children can have as many as 8 to 10 colds per year. Illness is typically mild and often caused by a virus.
Since children are exposed to many viral illnesses circulating in the community and within families, increased respiratory illness at a childcare centre does not necessarily result in an outbreak being declared. However, infection prevention and control (IPAC) measures should be put in place to limit the spread of illness at the centre.
Please call the Health Unit's Communicable Disease Control (CDC) program if there are a large number of children and or staff affected with respiratory symptoms, they are experiencing severe illness (i.e., hospitalizations), or unusual symptoms. Some diseases (i.e., measles) should be treated like an outbreak even if there is only one case. Please call the CDC program to report any cases of a disease of public health significance.
What is the childcare centre required to do?
Report suspected outbreaks to the CDC program at 705-474-1400 or toll free at 1-800-563-2808, ext. 5229 or by email at cdc@healthunit.ca.
Start to fill out a separate line listing for ill children and staff. If multiple rooms are affected, use a separate line listing for each room.
What questions should we expect to be asked?
- When did the children become ill?
- What symptoms are the ill children experiencing?
- When did the ill children last attend the centre?
- Are there any staff members with similar illness?
- What is the total population of children and staff and how are they distributed in the centre?
- Have there been any special events at the childcare centre or field trips?
- Have the children had any contact with animals?
What will happen next?
Recommendations will be provided by the CDC program to help limit the spread of the illness. An outbreak may be declared.
