Let’s be vigilant against cold, flu and COVID-19

Hello Umbrella Families,

November is just around the corner, making now the perfect time to talk about keeping our children and each other safe during COVID-19 resurgences and cold/flu season.

As a reminder, although many COVID restrictions lifted, all children who attend Umbrella Family & Child Centres are expected to follow the Ontario COVID-19 self-assessment /screening tool. Find the tool here.

This tool provides direction on whether you should be sending your child to child care or not. The tool also outlines any next steps should they need to stay home due to COVID symptoms or other illnesses. While the screening tool was developed in response to COVID-19, it also screens for many other illnesses. It still requires isolation and/or masking requirements when individuals present symptoms.

If your child is feeling sick or if they have new or worsening symptoms of illness, including those not listed in the online screening tool:  Your child should stay home until their symptoms are improving for at least 24 hours (or 48 hours for nausea, vomiting, and/or diarrhea) and they do not have a fever.  It is recommended you seek assessment from your health care provider if needed. The presence of symptoms, particularly respiratory symptoms, increases the risk of transmitting to others.

If the screening tool advises you to keep your child home, notify your Umbrella centre right away. Contact details for all centres can be found here.

If a child exhibits symptoms while at child care:

Staff may be required to screen the child using the online screening tool.  If the child does not pass the screen, they will need to be picked up. They can return to care following the same guidelines as above. Depending on the symptoms and when they began, pick-up may occur at regular time (end of day), however families will be advised of next steps as it relates to the screening tool.

The screening tool can be found on the upper right hand corner of our website.

If you have any questions, please contact your centre Supervisor.

Kind Regards,

Umbrella Family Team