Family Style Meals Head Start!!

[kwagner_51]

I work as a nurse for Head Start. This year we have started to allow 3 to 5 year olds to pass food. I personally find this disgusting and very unsanitary.

This is how we do it. We put fruit, bread, and sometimes pasta on the table with a serving spoon. The children are supposed to take a small amount and then pass the dish to the next child.

Between the sneezing, coughing and general fingers in the dish, by the time it gets to me, I refuse to take any food. I am REQUIRED to eat what the children eat, but I just can't make myself eat after them.

I have tried to get my food first, but most of the time I am serving milk or the hot food and don't get the opportunity.

In one center we had an outbreak of Rotavirus and I instructed the cooks and the teachers on NOT allowing the children to pass anything at the table. Plus I had each child use hand sanitizer after washing their hands. I also used clorox wipes and wiped down EVERY surface in the building.

My questions are:

1. How do I present the dangers of this practice to my Director?

2. What kinds of illnesses should I prepare for next year?

3. How long do you think it will take before the centers are shut down due to food borne illness?

The thought of eating after the children is enough to make me look for another job!

Please advise!

Thanks!!

____________________________________

In His Grace,

Karen RN

Failure is NOT an option!!

[kwagner_51]

PLEASE!! I have a meeting with the Director on May 3, and need to present a profession reason why we shouldn't be doing this!!

I fear that what will happen is this: :barf01: :barf01:

Thanks!!

______________________________________

In His Grace,

Karen RN

Failure is NOT an option!!

[suzanne4, RN]

And if you go to the restaurant with your family, and it is family-style, it is no different. You can focus on teaching the children good hand hygiene as a nurse so that it makes a difference in their family life as well.

There is no reason that these centers should be closed down, they have done nothing wrong that is any different from the kids even being in their own homes. This is where good hand washing comes in, and your responsibility to teach them as the nurse there.

[suzanne4, RN]

PLEASE!! I have a meeting with the Director on May 3, and need to present a profession reason why we shouldn't be doing this!!

I fear that what will happen is this: :barf01: :barf01:

Thanks!!

______________________________________

In His Grace,

Karen RN

Failure is NOT an option!!

There is no reason that you can give that will make sense. As the nurse there, it is your responsibility to teach them to do things correctly. Remember that this program is called "Head Start" and these are the kids that really need help at this time.

Children have always passed food around at lunch, and that does not matter the age. They usually share food with friends as well. You can have them wash their hands before sitting at the table, and if they are sneezing or wiping their face, then have them wash again. You can also have hand wipes at the table. But this is something that the nurse needs to do the teaching with, not just sitting back and complaining about it.

Teach them the correct way to do things. That is why you are there and why you have gone thru school. You are getting paid to be there as the nurse.

[kwagner_51]

There is no reason that you can give that will make sense. As the nurse there, it is your responsibility to teach them to do things correctly. Remember that this program is called "Head Start" and these are the kids that really need help at this time.

Children have always passed food around at lunch, and that does not matter the age. They usually share food with friends as well. You can have them wash their hands before sitting at the table, and if they are sneezing or wiping their face, then have them wash again. You can also have hand wipes at the table. But this is something that the nurse needs to do the teaching with, not just sitting back and complaining about it.

Teach them the correct way to do things. That is why you are there and why you have gone thru school. You are getting paid to be there as the nurse.

Maybe I didn't make myself clear enough...I am afarid the centers will be shut down due to illness caused by lack of hygiene. I am NOT in the classrooms every day. I KNOW the children wash their hands but they also play with the serving spoons, put them in their mouths, pick up food an then put it back. They have 30 minutes to eat in the classroom not in a seperate room.

I have 80 children and can't supervise all of them for every meal!!

Isn't there something about certified food handler or something?

Thanks!!

Will clarify more if needed later.

___________________

In His Grace,

Karen RN

Failure is NOT an option!!

[Snugglibumkins]

I would imagine that if you went to the director complaining about the family style meal - you wouldn't like what they have to say.

Many early child care centers teach family style meals. Part of your job sitting at the table with them is to teach them to keep their hands out of the bowl. They should be taught to wash thier hands before coming to the table. You should not be preoccupied with other things when the kids are serving themselves, you need to be setting up the meal while the other provider is engaging the kids in handwashing. When you all sit down, it should be together and you should be encouraging the kids to do it the right way.

I've been in your situation before and once you take the time to organize and teach the kids how to do it, it will go smoother. Years later, I now have 3 kids under the age of 5 and my 4 year old and 3 year old set the table every night. We serve all of our meals family style and the kids serve themselves (even the 20 month old is in the learning stage of this) the 4 year old has advanced to being able to pour everyone's cups full of milk from the container.

It's part of teaching them. Germs are everywhere, you need to teach handwashing and to know which kids are too sick to be there. Teach sneezing into their elbows instead of on their hands.

If you go to the director, maybe you could suggest getting more people in their to help with the kids during lunchtime to teach them how to do it the right way. It would be a great advantage if you are going to complain about the system to at least have some idea of a solution.

[justme1972]

You are correct...someone is off their rocker to let 3 and 4 year olds pass their own food...and it's a sanitation issue for the other children.

They are not a "family" they are children, and children should have a right to proper sanitation.

They wouldn't allow the general public to do that in a restaurant...therefore it shouldn't be allowed in a public school.

Some lessons need to be taught at home.

I TOTALLY agree with you.

[TazziRN, RN]

I also agree. It's not the same as in a restaurant because in restaurants the food is delivered already on plates. Diners usually do not serve themselves.

However, I think that rather than doing away with the family style eating, the kids need to be taught manners. 3 years old is not too young to learn that you do not put the serving spoon in your mouth. Unfortunately the coughing and sneezing will have to be tolerated, they can't help that.

Snuggli is right, you should not be setting up while the kids are already starting. The set up should be done first, then everyone sits down together.

[P_RN, ADN, RN]

I was a headstart nurse, "health, nutrition and handicap coordinator" actually and we did this back in 1975. Our kids came from homes that had no heat, no indoor plumbing, no clean clothes for a week at a time. School was the only CLEAN place some of these tots ever SAW. The first few weeks of school was dedicated to making sure we had a clothing bank, making sure the bathrooms were introduced to the children and how to use them. We had a bathtub installed so some of the kids could clean up before classes. 4 year olds aren't dumb, they just need to be introduced to the finer things in life. Soap, toilet paper, kleenex, clean underwear etc. The teachers devoted the first hour of the day to "manners." And I don't mean yes maam no maam. I mean don't pick up dirt and then put it in your mouth. Ask before you touch. That sort of thing. We were fortunate that our place was a former elementary school that did have a cafeteria and a cafeteria manager-also a parent of a handicapped child.

And BTW the only illness I remember was the hangover the maintenance man came in with and a child reported he was vomiting in the bushes and recommended he go home to get well. I had 126 kids. Two are physicians that I know of, there are bunches of teachers, there are lots of mommies and daddies and last year headstart only had 44 children, not because of budgets but because something went RIGHT in the program 30 or so years ago. Teach a child the way he should go and when he grows old he will not depart from it. Somebody wise said that and it wasn't me, but mine.

[kwagner_51]

Here is a part of the situation I am facing right now. In one of the class rooms there are 5 chidren who do not mind, do not listen, do what ever they want to, and are not on any meds. The parents refuse to acknowledge that the children have problems.

The other 15 kids are pretty well behaved but they tend to cause problems/do things they wouldn't ordinarily do because we [teacher, teacher assistant and me] are distracted with the 5 who are hyper.

We have tried to explain and demonstrate the correct way to use the serving spoons, how much is a serving [2 peach slices], to sneeze in their elbow, but they don't listen. They grab the food with their hands.

We had one little girl when we started the year who used her fingers to eat EVERYTHING! I sat next to her, and ended up with food all over my uniform. Not a major problem, and she has improved to using her fork and a napkin. We would sit down as a "family" after we put the food on their plates and talk. We eplained how to use forks,napkins, etc. Now with them serving themselves, they aren't getting the teaching. Instead we are busy supervising to make sure they aren't putting the serving spoons in their mouths.

One of the problems is they can't manipulate the tongs [even though they are small]. They can't pour milk. We can't put the hot food on the table so we have to get up to get the hot food and they play with the food on the table. I think we need alot more help. Maybe that is what I can tell the director.

When we started the year, the cooks would bring the food into the classroom, put it on the kids plates, and we would all sit down and eat. To me, this is family style dining. I didn't let my kids serve themselves until they were 7. They have impecable table manners now...so it has nothing to do with teaching them at 3, 4 or 5 how to pass food.

I do not want to eat after any kids [other than my own] and if you were honest you wouldn't either.

______________________________________

In His Grace,

Karen RN

Failure is NOT an option!!

[suzanne4, RN]

A few things to think about:

I am sure that every one of you has eaten as a salad bar restaurant, or from some type of buffet. Whether it is at a wedding, or just a local restaurant, or even your hospital at work. Have you even wondered about the person that was touching the utensil that you use to take your food with, and where their hands were before they came into that facility?

[TazziRN, RN]

I don't let my little one serve herself either, but the food is on the table. If I were distracted she could easily reach for something.

Maybe bring it up to the director that way, that children that small, while they can learn manners, are not normally expected to serve themselves at home (not just the serving spoon problem, how many have the dexterity to get the food from the bowl to their plates without spilling?), so for it to truly be family style, the parent figure should fill the plates.