Pandemic flu- Scottish Executive advice
The Scottish Executive has recently issued advice to schools and group childcare providers about action they should take in the event of an outbreak of pandemic flu.
The Guidance for group Childcare Providers is reproduced here - originals can be found on the Scottish Executive website.
"Guidance to Group Childcare Providers in Scotland
Note: This brief guidance - in Q+A form - is to assist group childcare providers,
including nurseries, playgroups and childminders, in planning for a human flu pandemic.
It should be read in conjunction with the more detailed guidance for local authorities,
schools and other providers of children's services at
www.scottishexecutive.gov.uk/Publications/2006/07/05121544/0 and any relevant
material prepared by the local authority. Where we speak of 'nurseries' here, the term
covers all group childcare settings except childminders.
Is there a serious risk of a flu pandemic, and what impact could it have?
Experts advise that a further flu pandemic is inevitable, but cannot say when it will
happen. When it happens, we would expect it to affect all areas of the UK and have a
very significant impact. Depending on the severity of the pandemic, 25-50% of the
population may be infected at some stage, and 50,000 - 700,000 more people than usual
may die over the course of a pandemic.
Why is the Scottish Executive issuing guidance now?
Following the publication of an overall UK Government contingency plan in 2005, the
Executive is working with local government and other key stakeholders to develop and
refine contingency plans.
All organisations are being encouraged to plan for a flu pandemic. The general advice is
to continue operating as normally as possible during a pandemic. Schools and group
childcare settings are potentially different.
What are the roles of the Scottish Executive, local authorities, nurseries and
childminders?
The Scottish Executive has overall responsibility for contingency planning in Scotland,
and is responsible for national policy decisions (and communicating those to relevant
partners) and the overall co-ordination of activities during a pandemic.
Local authorities and other front-line emergency responders (e.g. police, NHS) must
work in partnership to build their local preparedness; in a pandemic they would work
together in Strategic Co-ordinating Groups to co-ordinate activities in an area. Local
authorities would also communicate information from the Scottish Executive to nurseries
(public, voluntary and private sector), childminders and other children's services,
including schools.
Nurseries and childcare providers should plan for a flu pandemic as part of their general
emergency planning and in the context of their local authority's contingency and
communication planning. Managers (normally at local authority or employer level)
would make the final decision on when to close (and re-open) their setting during a
pandemic taking account of national advice. Childminders should also plan for the flu
pandemic.
Do you expect nurseries to have to close during a pandemic? What about
childminders?
The general advice to all businesses and services is that they should seek to continue
operating as normally as possible during a pandemic - and should plan for much higher
than usual levels of staff absence and other possible disruption arising from the
pandemic.
However, nurseries (and schools) are potentially different from other settings. Children
are highly efficient 'spreaders' of respiratory infections, both among themselves and to
adults in their families. There is some evidence that such infections spread less among
children in holiday periods than in term-time. So, closing schools and nurseries for a
period might significantly reduce the number of children infected.
We will not know until nearer the time, when we know more about the nature of a
pandemic strain of virus, and children's vulnerability to it, whether the Scottish Executive
will advise schools and nurseries to close to children for a period during a pandemic, but
it is a possibility. Any such closure would likely be advised by local authority area, based
on national guidance about whether and when to close and re-open. It is very likely that
all areas would be affected at some stage. Nurseries should therefore plan both for
remaining open during a pandemic and for possible closure.
Because they will generally be looking after fewer children, the position for childminders
is different, and we do not anticipate general advice for them to stop looking after
children. They may however have to close in the event of illness in their own families.
Childminders
There are some things you should do now:
• Read the NHS Scotland leaflet for families available on
http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/sehd/pandemicflu/Pages/PanFluFamLeaflet.htm
• Have supplies of cleaning materials, soap, hot water, tissues, tissue-disposal
• Be clear what your responsibilities are if there is a flu pandemic - check with your
local authority, SCMA development officer and parents
• Have up to date contact details for parents so that you can let them know whether
you can care for children or not, and if their child falls ill while with you and
needs to be collected before the usual time
Your local authority or Childcare Information Service will tell you when the pandemic is
in your area. Childminders should only look after children if they themselves and their
own children are well, and should not look after children who are infected with pandemic
flu. If you and your own children are well you should carry on as normal, but you must:
• follow the infection control guidance
• arrange for parents to be told if any children in your care show signs of having flu
and for the child to be sent home. Let parents of any other children you care for
know what has happened but so long as the children and you are well you
should continue to care for them as normal
• make sure that any child you care for who has been unwell is fully recovered
before they return to your care;
If you or anyone else in your household feel unwell with flu symptoms you should:
• Not look after other people's children and take sensible precautions for the care of
any children of your own;
• Inform the parents of all the children you care for and ask them to make
alternative arrangements for childcare;
• Not agree to care for any children until you (or if appropriate anyone else in your
household) are fully recovered.
Make sure you have followed the infection control guidance and that you carry on
following that guidance until the pandemic is over.
Nurseries
What do staff do if nurseries close to children?
It will be for employers to decide whether staff would be expected to come into work.
However, staff should not come to work if they are ill, and employers will need to take
account of the fact that some staff are likely to be caring for dependents in the event of a
pandemic.
What does my nursery have to do now, during a pandemic and in between?
Your or your local authority's current emergency planning may already cover some or all
of these points, but you should now ensure that:
• Written plans make clear who would take the decision whether to close the
nursery - either because of Scottish Executive advice that nurseries in an area
should close, or because of reasons specific to the nursery (i.e. too many staff off
ill);
• you have up-to-date contact details for staff and parents;
• you have arrangements to keep a sick child separate from other children (and
minimise their contact with staff) until you can get him or her home or collected
by parents;
• you are able to remain open, if appropriate - your plans should include systems to
minimise the spread of infection if the nursery remains open during a pandemic,
e.g. hand-washing, disposal of tissues etc.
Between now and a pandemic you should review plans regularly, and in the light of any
further advice from the Scottish Executive or your local authority.
Your local authority will tell you when the World Health Organization considers a
pandemic is imminent. At that stage you should work with the local authority to review
plans again, check that you have necessary supplies, and remind staff of key information
- such as that they should not come into work if they have any virus-like symptoms.
In a pandemic, while your nursery remains open, you should
• Take hygiene measures to reduce the risk of infection;
• Ensure that staff showing any signs of infection go home;
• Ensure that children showing signs of infection are taken home or collected by
parents
• Provide any information requested by your local authority (e.g. absence rates).
Who will take decisions on what and how will we be told?
The Scottish Executive will on the basis of medical advice make the decision in principle
whether to advise nurseries in affected areas to close. If this decision is taken, local
authorities will communicate it to nurseries, but they would not necessarily close at that
point. Local authorities - acting on national and local health information - would inform
nurseries when their local area is affected and the advice to close applies.
The decision on closure remains with the nursery owner (for the private sector),
management committee (for the voluntary sector) or local authority (for the public
sector). However, if there is general advice to close childcare settings, employers would
be expected to follow this. They will also decide whether a nursery should close for other
reasons (i.e. lack of staff).
If there is advice to close all nurseries in an area, the local authority would tell nurseries
when this advice will be reviewed; after such a review, the local authority would advise
nurseries whether to remain closed or to re-open and, if they are to re-open, whether any
specific conditions should apply.
Can we expect more guidance from the Scottish Executive
We will review this guidance, and the fuller guidance at
www.scotland.gsi.gov.uk/pandemicfluadvice regularly, and advise you of any changes.
We also expect to issue guidance on infection control later in 2006."