editorials

The photo attached to this editorial is a prime example of why this needs more education. That is not a proper way to lay a child down to sleep according to the back to sleep protocol. Baby's should not have that type of hood up and around their heads. Yet we see these images all the time, and crib sets are a basic in most registries.

Imichelle- keep in mind that this photo was not necessarily taken at a home day care center.

The photo attached to this article is not only NOT in a daycare home or center, it looks like a newborn in an institutional setting.

I understood that this was not taken at an in-home child care when I first saw it. That is not the point. The point is that images like this are used all the time, showing the depth of the practice to use methods that are outside of the protocol. In this case, I assume the thought process was "here is a picture of the child sleeping on her back, lets put it with the article showing the safe practice" when in fact this is still not correct. It is engrained in our culture to sleep children in a warm and cuddly appearing way, when in fact statistically we know that it causes death. The origin of this picture may be a mystery, but it certainly is not a proper example of the protocol.

The solution is very simple. Stay home with your children and there will be no question in your mind as to the quality of care being received. It can be done but it takes a change in lifestyle, personal focus, and plain old sacrifice.

In home day cares need to be more heavily regulated. It is about safety of children, not the almighty dollar. The biggest reason day care centers are so expensive is they are corporatized and the biggest one is under the control of Bain capital. The workers get minimum wage but your fees go to support some rich guy who takes it to the Cayman Islands. My kids go to a center that is not corporate and it does not cost much more than an in home, and its 2/3 the cost of the one Bain Capital runs.

I have been a home daycare provider for 18 years. I have also worked in centers for about 3 years. One of the most important benefits about home daycare is that we have a much closer relationship with the parents and most importantly the child. Highlighted in the "day care threat" are the few providers who did not put their children first. They way that the articles are written it makes all of us sound incompetent. There are many types of providers out there. Obviously those highlighted are the ones who made bad choices and for that families will suffer forever the loss of their child. I work very hard to maintain a high standard in my child care. I take anywhere from 20 to 70 hours of training per year. I received a 4 star rating in Parent Aware and am currently pursuing Accreditation through the National Association of Family Child Care. To me this is a career, one that I chose to do out of my love for children (I do not have any children of my own), there is nothing I would rather do than watch these precious wonderful children grow up to be happy and healthy. To this day I still have "graduates" come back to visit me and talk about their time and memories from my home. Please keep in mind before you demonize all of us that the majority of us really love what we do. Some have made bad choices, but most of us work to keep positive,happy, healthy kids and environments.

I wonder if at some point the paper will go after the parents whose children have died in their care. The death of a child is tragic but blaming family child care for something that happens to many families will not stop it from happening. Most SIDS deaths occur at home in a families own home with the parents watching over the child. How many parents have crib bumpers? How many parents have their children sleep in bed with them? How many parents swaddle their children just to get a nights sleep or put them purposely on their tummies as they sleep better that way? You don't see Brad and Jeremy going after them. Blaming family child care is not the solution.

I have been in the in home childcare business for almost 13 years and have never had a severe injury or death. I agree with trainings but they need to go after the marketing world and quite selling all the soft plush accessories, bumpers and cribs in the pictures. Why does the marketing world sell products if they are not safe to use! I don't feel making providers get CDA's is going to help. Extra training in safety would be better.

In the 10 year period studied, there were 733 INFANT DEATHS IN PARENT'S HOMES (MN SIDS CENTER DATA) 314/419. In the same period there were 82 deaths in home daycares. So, obviously overcrowding or lack of supervision were not the cause of all these deaths. Wouldn't a compling of facts from the police investigations required for the death of a young child, or unexplained death be more useful to help find a pattern or cause of these deaths? What were the sleep positions in all these deaths--blankets, pillows, soft toys in the cribs--where were they sleeping--in the parent's bed, on a couch, on the floor--were there any risk factors--smoking in the home, respiratory infections? The deaths in these homes were obviously not caused by overcrowding, or lack of supervision as the articles about home daycares are implying.