coronavirus in connecticut

New Research Shows Lack of COVID-19 Cases Tied to In-Person Child Care

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New research is coming out of Yale University that’s taking a look at the correlation of COVID-19 cases and in-person child care.

"I was a little surprised," Dr. Walter Gilliam, professor of Child Psychiatry & Psychology at Yale Child Studies Center, said of the finding.

The surprise comes from a survey he and a group of Yale University researchers conducted with 57,000 child care providers across the country in relation to the impact of COVID-19.

"We found that when we compared child care providers who stayed home during the pandemic versus those who continued to go into work and came into close contact with children in child care there was no difference in the likelihood of whether or not they contracted COVID-19 or hospitalized for COVID-19," Gilliam said.

The results of the survey doesn't mean the child care workers weren't impacted.

"Again that doesn’t mean the child care providers didn’t get sick it just means they didn’t get sick because of child care."

 Gilliam said the survey reported over 75% of the facilities conducted multiple temperature screenings a day, along with constant sanitizing which he believes contributed to their success. He wants these findings to be a message to society.

"If we really believe and value our children then we’ll make sure those who take care of them will have what they need to succeed," he said.

Jill Marini is the director of Early Learning at YWCA of Hartford and she described the steps that are taken to ensure safety.

"The children are brought to the door by the parents we give them five screening questions about their health, we take their temperature."

Marini said in her experience, kids have been adapting easier to the changes the pandemic has brought to the world and than adults.

"To be honest with you I feel like early childhood has more control on their environments than some environments because although we have 10-16 children in a classroom we maintain and manage everything they do."

The early learning expert said that even though the positivity rate has risen in Connecticut, she isn’t worried, as she said the facilities will just double down on the policies and procedures they been following throughout the pandemic.

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