July Newsletter 2023
Teri Ann Cox
Executive Director of The Children’s Center
Dear Center Families,
While July is all about summer fun (and National Ice Cream Month!), The Children’s Center has heightened awareness during this time of year with a variety of safety precautions for your children. Not only are we vigilant about doing our part in preventing the spread of illnesses in our little community, but we are also diligent when it comes to ticks, sunscreen, and heat stroke.
In past years, I have written about the serious tickborne diseases that ticks carry. The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services has shared information about at least five infections in our state carried by the blacklegged tick. In addition to Lyme disease, they include Anaplasmosis, Babesia, Powassan virus, and Borrelia miyamotoi. NH has one of the highest rates of Lyme disease in the nation, and cases of Anaplasmosis have doubled since 2017, along with new cases of Babesia, and even the more rarely found Powassan virus and Borrelia miyamotoi.
Our staff has been educated about the importance of tick checks. We are trained to promptly remove the tick using tweezers or tick removers and then save the tick in scotch tape if it has attached. Parents are notified and provided an incident report with the tick that was found. The Center has the grounds treated for ticks throughout the spring and summer to reduce the quantity of ticks on the property. Moreover, with your signed permission, we apply insect repellent to protect your child. You have our commitment to be watchful for ticks and we encourage you to do the same in the months ahead. For more information, please visit: https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/index.html
Sun safety is also crucial with all the time we spend outside. Our teachers apply sunscreen (again with your approval) at least two times a day before we go outside. We recognize just a few serious sunburns can increase a child’s risk of skin cancer later in life. We encourage you to send a hat and/or sunglasses for your child to protect their face, scalp, ears, and eyes from UV rays. For more, basic sun safety info, go to the CDC website: https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/skin/basic_info/sun-safety.htm
And finally, I was reminded by our Child Care Aware friends that heat stroke continues to be the number one summer killer of children, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. In 2022, 33 children died due to pediatric vehicular heatstroke. In the span of 10 minutes, a car can heat up by 20 degrees, enough to kill a child left alone. Never leave your child in your vehicle unattended, even if the windows are open or the air conditioning is on. If you see a child alone in a locked car, call 911 to get them out immediately. For more important statistics and prevention tips, please see: https://www.nhtsa.gov/campaign/heatstroke
Here’s to a SAFE and HEALTHY July!
Sincerely,
Teri Ann
