In out-of-home child care, children are typically very young and are still in the early stages of learning and practicing a variety of habits. As children in child care are in close proximity to one another for long periods of time during the day, the spread of illness is inevitable in some cases. Modeling and reinforcing practices which will aid in preventing the spread of illness are crucial. All illness prevention routines must be consistently reinforced on a daily basis and implemented by all Child Care Center staff. Information about child care infection prevention and control can be found on the website of Toronto Public Health (City of Toronto, 2026a). This information is intended to support child care centers in the city of Toronto. Many diseases spread quickly in early childhood environments because children are still learning how to cover their mouths when they cough and often do not wash their hands after using the bathroom, after being around someone who is sick, or before eating.

Written policies and procedures for a child care center include how the center will monitor for illness, how staff will recognize signs and symptoms of illness in children and staff, what steps the center will take when a child or staff member is found to be ill, and what steps the center will take during an outbreak of a communicable disease. The center’s policies also need to include information about how to report cases of communicable diseases to Toronto Public Health by both the center and individual staff (City of Toronto, 2026b). In order to prevent the spread of illness in child care environments, staff must complete health and safety practices on a daily basis in order to create a clean and safe environment for children to grow and develop (Pimento & Kernested, 2025).

A healthy approach to illness in child care is not a singular action, but a daily approach of observation, hand washing, cleaning and disinfecting, being sick at home, documenting children’s and staff’s symptoms, and communicating with families and Toronto Public Health quickly.