SOP: Post-Lockdown COVID-19
Safety Guidance for Early Childhood Centres
Ensuring a COVID-19-safe environment for Early Intervention Centres, Childcare Centres and Kindergartens.
This COVID-19 hygiene and safety guidance is written to guide early childhood centres to take precautionary measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 disease in the community when the centres reopen for operation as instructed by relevant government authorities. This guideline is written for the context in early childhood centers such as early intervention centers, childcare centers, kindergartens.
This guideline was written by the National Early Childhood Intervention Council, Malaysia, which comprises 26 non-governmental organisations involved in early childhood intervention. This is a ‘living’ document and will be revised as we understand more about the epidemic.
It is important that early childhood centres take hygiene and safe physical distancing measures seriously as the whole of Malaysia, and worldwide, is fighting a long battle – estimated to be at least another year or two. As members of the community, everyone plays an important role to continue good hygiene practices and safe physical distancing to keep the COVID-19 in control, with or without an enforced Movement Control Order (MCO) or some form of lockdown.
The preventive measures recommended in this document are likely to require adjustments to the school and class schedule, for example shorter school hours and learning time to accommodate time for cleaning and staggering use of common areas.
Safety COVID-19 Training for the Whole School Community Early intervention centres, childcare centres and kindergartens must provide safety COVID-19 training to ALL staff, parents and students:
● Communicate with parents and caregivers about the actions your school are taking, through phone or individual messaging. Explain why the school is undertaking these measures and how parents and caregivers can prepare themselves and their children for the change. Consider sharing this SOP for them to read.
● Staff training should be conducted before school reopens to ensure all staff are ready
to adopt the hygiene and safety measures. When children return to centre/school, ALL staff should be familiar with:
○ Good personal hygiene practices
Health checks and screening procedures
○ Using the thermometer correctly (according to manufacturer’s guidelines)
○ Cleaning and disinfection procedures
○ Distancing measures for respective routine and rooms
Staff training should also include an on-site test-run of strategies for sharing information
with children, parents and visitors, as well as ways to communicate in a clear and firm manner.
● Train ALL students, parents and caregivers before school reopens on all hygiene and safety measures that your school is adopting.
○ Retrain parents, caregivers and students on a regular basis (weekly, then by weekly, and then monthly), especially those who display difficulty complying with
the hygiene and safety measures.
○ Be caring and understanding but firm when training students, parents and caregivers. Families that choose NOT to follow the guidelines should be informed
that their child will be suspended or no longer be allowed to attend the centre as they pose a risk to everyone.
○ Communicate in a language that parents, caregivers and students are most comfortable with, whether Bahasa Malaysia or English. If possible, communicate
in their native language, e.g. Tamil, Mandarin, Iban, Dusun, Semai, etc.
● Use a variety of modalities for training: phone calls, messaging apps, video conferencing, visuals/photos, infographics, videos, etc. Information presented should be in simple and clear language and visuals, and be children-friendly and disabilityinclusive.
● Some children may need to be told, in a sensitive way, about the coronavirus outbreak and why the school has changed its operating procedure. Here is a list of COVID-19 Resources for Children that may help adults to talk to children about the coronavirus
outbreak.
Universal (Basic) Prevention Measures – Do at all times Good Personal Hygiene:
1) Handwashing
a) Handwashing steps – See Appendix 1.
b) Sneeze and cough into the elbow or tissue (with proper disposal).
c) Ensure sufficient supply of soap and water or hand sanitiser, and they are easily available within reach.
2) Wear a mask at all times for all staffs
a) Correct way to wear masks – See Appendix 2.
b) 3-ply disposable masks
c) Cloth masks: minimum double layer 100% cotton masks with non-woven fabric as filter
3) No sharing of food, utensils, cups, plates, bowls, towels, etc.
4) Dispose dirty tissues or wipes into covered waste bins.
5) Remove and dispose of disposable masks and gloves in a sealed plastic bag and seal it
properly.
Clean Environment
Perform routine cleaning and disinfection of surfaces and objects that are frequently touched. Cleaning and disinfecting surfaces and objects
1) Frequently touched surfaces include: door knobs/handles, light switches, tables,
chairs/stools, handrails, classroom sink handles, mats, countertops
2) Frequently touched objects include: toys, learning equipment/apparatus, stationeries, toy/utility baskets, computer (keyboard, mouse), etc.
● Clean objects after every session by child or staff
3) Effective disinfecting solution against coronavirus:
● Household bleach diluted with water at 1:100 ratio, e.g. 10ml bleach to 1 litre water
● Refer to this cleaning and disinfecting guideline from CDC USA.
Maintain Physical (Social) Distancing
- General rules
a. Maintain 1-meter distance with other people.
b. No handshaking, hugging, high-fives or touching another person. - Limit nonessential visitors in school
a. Limit nonessential visits from parents, caregivers and contract workers.
b. Parents are allowed to pick up and drop off their children. - Only visitors who are needed to support the running of the centers/schools are allowed entry, such as therapists, itinerant support teachers, early intervention teachers and inclusion facilitators.
- Obtain travel declarations for any new visitors to the school.
- When there are new prospective parents who want to enroll their children, do not allow entry to the centre or school during operating hours. Conduct an online assessment and offer virtual tours (videos, photos) instead.
- When there are essential repair works or inspection from authorities to be done in the school:
- arrange to visit at a time when children are not present,
- practice good personal hygiene and physical distancing at all times,
clean and disinfect contact areas after the visit.
- Where physical distancing cannot be avoided:
- There are situations were physical support is required, such as during physiotherapy,
occupational therapy, sensory play, handwriting; or when supporting children with physical
disabilities and limitations to perform basic tasks, including eating, toileting, changing clothes, wearing shoes, etc. In these circumstances, adults (teachers, parents) must wear a mask and gloves, and wash their hands frequently. - Do not allow gloves to create false sense of security. Health Checks and Screening
- There are situations were physical support is required, such as during physiotherapy,
- Perform health checks, temperature screening, and hand sanitisation at the school entrance for ALL staff, students, and visitors. Failure to declare truthfully may result in suspension or dismissal of the child/family from the centre/school. The family may be reported to the authorities.
- Identify a space that can be used to temporarily isolate students and staff who suddenly become sick, before they are sent home.
- Do not allow anyone to enter the school, including staff and students, that have the
following situations:
● Unwell
○ Fever or flu-like symptoms (runny nose, cough, sore throat, shortness of breath)
○ They must go home and rest, and only return when they have recovered fully.
● Have been in close contact with COVID-19 positive person
○ Mandatory 14-day Leave of Absence
○ Staff, parents and caregivers should inform the school immediately if they or their
child has had close contact with a COVID-19 positive person.
● Returning from overseas
○ All staff and students who just returned from overseas to be given a mandatory 14-
day Leave of Absence - Increase frequency of temperature taking for all staff and students. Following are some general guidelines:
- Half-day programme: 2 times a day – at arrival and dismissal
- Full-day programme: 3 times a day – at arrival, afternoon (lunch/nap), dismissal
- Temperature reading
- Average temperature for fever: 37.5°C and above
- Note: Check the thermometer’s manual for its proper use, range of normal temperature readings, and cleaning instructions. Do not use any oral thermometers.
- Suggest using non-contact thermometers or temperature scans.
- If a child is unwell while attending the centre, separate the child from other children to the isolation room/area. Inform parents immediately to bring him/her back home or for medical treatment.
- Put Up Signs
- Put up posters and visuals to remind staff, visitors, and children to practice new preventive measures. Posters and visuals should be clear, child-friendly, and visible to children (at eye level). Recommended signs include but are not limited to:
- Hand washing steps
- Hand hygiene (sneeze/cough into their elbow, put used tissues in a waste receptacle and to wash hands immediately after using tissues)
- No sharing of food, utensils and toys
- Safe Physical (Social) Distancing
- Guidelines when entering and leaving school
- Centers and schools are also advised to put up guidelines for maintaining a hygienic environment as reminders for staff, such as:
- Disinfecting surfaces and objects (refer Cleaning and Disinfecting Surfaces and Objects
- Waste management
- Toileting / Showering / Changing diapers
NEESA HALIM ELEGANT 