INCIDENT, INJURY, BITING & PARENT NOTIFICATION

Protect the health and safety of children.
Ensure incidents and injuries are handled promptly and consistently.
Ensure parents are informed appropriately.
Maintain the confidentiality and privacy of all children and families.
Maintain documentation required by Capstone Preschool and California Community Care Licensing.

Immediately intervene and separate children when necessary to ensure safety.
Assess the child for injury.
Provide appropriate first aid, such as cleaning the affected area, applying a cold compress, or providing other appropriate care.
Comfort the child and monitor the child’s condition.
Seek additional medical assistance when the nature or severity of the injury requires it.
Notify administration promptly of any injury that may be serious or may require Licensing reporting.

Staff will immediately separate the children and assess the child who was bitten.
Staff will check for redness, swelling, bruising, broken skin, bleeding, or other injury.
Appropriate first aid will be provided.
The child will be monitored after the incident.
Staff will also appropriately address and supervise the child who engaged in biting.
Staff should consider possible contributing factors such as frustration, communication difficulties, sharing conflicts, transitions, fatigue, teething, overstimulation, or environmental circumstances.
Children will not be labeled as a “biter,” “aggressive child,” or similar terminology.

Staff will complete a Child Incident/Injury Report for routine injuries such as bites, scratches, bumps, falls, minor cuts, bruises, and similar incidents.
Documentation should include:
- Child’s name
- Date and time of incident
- Location
- Objective description of what occurred
- Injury or physical condition observed
- First aid or care provided
- Child’s condition afterward
- Staff involved
- Time and method of parent notification
- Follow-up information when appropriate
Reports must contain factual observations rather than assumptions, blame, or speculation.
Another child involved in an incident should not be identified by name in the injured child’s parent-facing report.

California Title 22 provides that less serious injuries, including “minor cuts, scratches and bites from other children,” are documented in the child’s record and the authorized representative is notified of the nature of the injury when the child is picked up from the center.
As a Capstone Preschool best practice, staff should not routinely wait until pickup to communicate a biting incident.
After the child has been assessed, cared for, and the immediate situation is under control, Capstone should notify the parent as soon as reasonably practical during the same day.
The time and method of notification must be documented.
If immediate care of children or supervision responsibilities temporarily prevent staff from contacting the parent, staff should notify the parent as soon as those immediate responsibilities are addressed.

For injuries requiring medical treatment or otherwise considered serious, the child’s authorized representative will be contacted immediately in accordance with applicable requirements.
Emergency medical services will be contacted when appropriate.
Administration will determine whether the incident also requires notification to Community Care Licensing or another agency.

A routine Incident/Injury Report is different from an LIC 624 Unusual Incident/Injury Report.
Not every minor bite, scratch, bump, or routine childhood injury requires an LIC 624.
When an incident meets California’s unusual-incident/injury reporting requirements, administration will notify Community Care Licensing by the next working day.
The required written report will be submitted within seven days of the occurrence.
When it is unclear whether an incident is reportable, administration should consult the assigned Licensing Program Analyst or appropriate Licensing office.

Staff must protect the privacy of every child and family involved.
Staff should not disclose another child’s:
- Name or identifying information
- Parent or family identity
- Contact information
- Behavior history
- Developmental information
- Disciplinary or behavioral interventions
- Other confidential information
Staff should use neutral wording such as “another child” when discussing an incident with a family.
Staff should not confirm a parent’s guess about the identity of another child involved in an incident.

A parent may request an apology from another child or family.
Staff may document that request.
Administration may communicate the request to the other family in a neutral and appropriate manner.
Capstone will not promise that an apology will occur.
Capstone will not pressure a child or family to provide an apology.
Communicating the request does not authorize staff to disclose confidential information about either child or family.
Capstone will not provide one family with another family’s telephone number, email address, or other contact information without appropriate consent.
If families independently wish to communicate directly, administration should obtain appropriate consent before facilitating an exchange of contact information.