Advice on nanny looking after infectious DC

[GCM]

We have a live out nanny for our 5 yr old, who has got chicken pox. DS is rather poorly today and is wanting mum all the time, so I've decided to take tomorrow off so I can be at home with him.

His nanny tells me she's never had chicken pox, so I told her she may as well stay away. (I will obviously pay her as usual).

On Wed my diary is pretty light, so I'm intending to work from home. Hopefully DS will be a bit better by then.

Thurs is my last work day of the week, but I have stuff I really need to go in for. I hope by then DS will be getting over it a bit, but I assume he will still be infectious.

Is it fair to expect my nanny to look after him on Thurs, even though she might catch it? (Both DH and I had it when we were kids).

Does anyone have any idea how infectious it is? The web sites say very... nightmare scenario would be nanny is off sick next week with chicken pox - though obviously don't want her to get it either!

Should I hire a agency nanny whose already had chicken pox for Thursday? On the other hand, am relunctant to leave DS with a new nanny when he is off colour...

Help! Advice appreciated!

Of course it's not fair on her to be exposed if she's not had it before, what on earth are you thinking??

It can get very bad in adults. She can get a vaccination for chicken pox from her GP if she asks.

It's highly infectious, there's also an incubation period before the spots appear so sha may already have it. It's no longer infectious when the last spot scabs over.

If your nanny has really never had the pox and catches it, I think there's a good chance she'll be off for more than a week. I would pay agency nanny for Thursday. Not ideal for DS, but certainly better than nanny catching pox for first time as adult. And if your nanny has half a brain she'll go get a vax NOW. Who in their right mind would work with kids and not consider the consequences of CP/shingles?

Thanks for the replies ladies.

Strix When you say, has she really never had it... does that mean you doubt her word?

Just wondering, as my DH is suspicious - this nanny has a knack of getting all sorts of extra days off, so I must admit it did cross my (suspicious) mind.

As I said, there's an incubation period of about 7 days so she's probably already got it.

You need a new nanny if she's a bit of a skiver, you are her employer and you don't need this.

If it helps as a CM I will take CP mindees when the spots have scabbed over, this is generally the time considered to be passed infection although pre- spots they can be infectious 7-14dys, so chances are your nanny has caught it already anyway.

One of my mindees has just had it for the second time, poor thing was quite poorly

I found putting Bicarbonate of Soda in DD's bath water really helped when she had it, it dries the spots out, making them less itchy.

She was on annual leave Easter week, so she hasn't been exposed.

I suppose I am feeling grumpy and stressed, and not in a good place to be fair, as have been up for the last 3 nights with DS, and after being off for a week on hols, will miss work tomorrow.

It's really very annoying. Part of me wonders if she really hasn't had it ( as most people have) - bad relationship with my nanny, I suppose, at rhe root of the grumble.

The other things is that looking after sick childdren is part of the job description. If I tell her to stay away, I obviously have to pay twice on Thurs. If she comes to work, gets it and is off sick for 3 weeks, technically she is only entitled to Statutory sick - though in practice we've have always paid for reasonable absence.

Worst case scenario of course is that I pay for an agency on Thursday - then nanny gets it off sometone elses' DC next week - (after all, DS picked it up somewhere) and then goes off sick for 3 weeks...

NHS: Chickenpox
"Chickenpox is most infectious from one to two days before the rash starts until around five days after the rash starts."
HPA: Guidance on Infection Control - Schools & Childcare Settings Period to keep away from School/Nursery "Five days from the onset of rash"
The incubation period is fairly long, 2 to 3 weeks.

Your nanny is bound to get chickenpox at some point given their occupation. It is supposed to be worse when caught as an adult, so if it can be avoided then it should be.

Thurs is my last work day of the week but I have stuff I really need to go in for. I hope by then DS will be getting over it a bit, but I assume he will still be infectious.

Yes, he will be highly infectious... until the spots have crusted over. What about DH, could he take the day off?

Is it fair to expect my nanny to look after him on Thurs, even though she might catch it?

You can ask, though she could refuse. She may not want to take the risk and thus you could let her take it as an annual leave day.

Should I hire a agency nanny whose already had chicken pox for Thursday?

DS will probably prefer you or DH to be around. If there really is no other option then you could try an agency... but the agency may refuse to provide a nanny to care for a child with an infectious disease.

I just meant that sometimes people forget what childhood diseases they have had. I had chicken pox when I was 8. I remember it. But my kids had chicken pox when they were 2 and 4 and I doubt they will remember it. But, judging from your reaction to my post, there is some real distrust here.

If I were you, and I thought she was taking the mick, I would say it is her choice whether to come in or not. If she chose not to, it would be annual. If she did come in and got chicken pos I would remind her that SSP is on offer. Let it be her choice, and not you telling her not to come in.

You are right that looking after a sick child is in the contract she should be prepared for chicken pox. I would be annoyed about this. Surely every nanny considers the possibility of his/her charges having chicken pox.

Thursday will actually be day 6, so maybe I should ask.

DH is away in London all week, I'm afraid - hence my stroppy, highly stressed state.

She has had all the annual and public holiday allowance already (yes, I know it is only April!). So it would have to be no pay

Strix - I don't expect many nannies consider looking after a child with chickenpox. It's not something I've given prior thought to... until reading this thread. Even now, not sure what I would do... think I would care for the child, as I've been in contact with chickenpox before many times and I would have thought I would have had it as a child.

Nannynick good plan - what are you doing on Thursday?

Ok, have decided - will find a previously infected family member, or take Thursday off myself. I can't take the guilt of infecting my nanny

And I thought having a nanny was supposed to make life easier!

Haaa! I think that depends on the nanny GCM!!

You obviously have some nanny issues which need tackling.

Nick, really? If you signed a contract that said you looked after sick child it wouldn't cross your mind that chicken pox was a likely occurance? Seems a bit unprepared to me. Sort of like if I wanted to be a pilot but didn't think about the fact that I was afraid of hights.

I am allergic cats. I'm thinking of opening a pet grooming service which also provides boarding for cats... Do you think I might encouter any occupational hazards?

GCM - I'm on holiday this week. Not planning on doing much at all, apart from going to the gym most days. For the past three days I've been doing Theme Parks (Chessington, then 2 days at Alton Towers). Thorpe Park is open all wekk, hmm... may have to visit there.

You nanny may already be infected. It's one of the things that happens when working with children.

Having a nanny should make some things easier... ill children alas is not really one of those things, unless it's just a mild illness like a cold, sore thought, don't-want-to-go-to-school-itis.

GCm, of course a nanny is there to make your life easier. That IS the whole point. When that fails to be the case, it is time to sort out a new one.

Nick, you can't be serious. Ill children are not one of those things? The fact that he/she will look after ill children is one of the reasons for choosing a nanny. If we were talking about some tropical contageous disease I could understand why the nanny might not be prepared for it. But, chickenpox is surely to be expected.

Strix - it's not something I would have considered... but then I've not had a contract which has specifically said that I was to care for a sick child. Is caring for a sick child standard in a contract? I've never had it in any of my contracts.

I'm sure I have read many a thread on here that lists looking after sick children as one of the benefits of having a nanny. But, now that I think about it, I don't think it is actually in my contract. Although current nanny would never suggest she couldn't look after them and since she lives in our house she couldn't really get away from it anyway.

Where I personally draw the line is if they need to go to the doctor. I do doctors. But, if me being home doesn't actually do anything for them then I usually let the nanny do it. Or, if one is ill and the other needs to go to school, I'l work from home while she does the school run. So, it's give and take. But, I would be a bit miffed if nanny refused to look after my child because he/she had the flu or whatever.

As a nanny I've always assumed that one of the ways i am of benefit to employers is they have childcare cover regardless of illness/infection/disease. It would never occur to me to question coming in to work if a child was ill, be it a cold or the plague!

HOWEVER if i became ill as a direct result of caring for said child and was given ssp instead of full wages I would be mightily unimpressed. Yes - I know that legally it would be correct, but it would feel like I was being penalised for doing my job, and quite frankly a bit unfair! (NB, I do also realise that sometimes parents have no other choice financially, or nannies take the mick and don't deserve any extra leeway)

While a nanny will care for a sick child, they will only do so if the risk to themselves is minimal - in my view. Whereas a Nursery or Childminder has to consider other users (children, parents & staff), thus will refuse to provide care when the child may just have a raised temperature but not other symptoms.

In my case, I would care for a child with chickenpox as I am sure I've already had that.
However if I wasn't sure that I had already had chickenpox, I might be more concerned about it... don't know for sure, as that isn't my situation.

While I will agree with you Strix that parents may choose a nanny because a nanny will care for a child with a raised temperature, or who has vomited during the past 24-hours, I do not agree with you that a nanny will care for a child with any illness (are you saying that a nanny should care for a child with any illness? Or are you just meaning chickenpox?). Each case I feel needs to be accessed on an individual basis.

Chickenpox shouldn't normally pose a problem for a healthy adult who has had it as a child. In GCM's case, the nanny hasn't already had it, so if nanny does catch it, their symptoms may be worse. Though I do wonder if the nanny has had it before (looking on the NHS site, it says that around 90% of adults who grew up in the UK have had chickenpox as a child - so did this nanny grow up in the UK?) and the nanny could catch it at any time, from being in contact with children who are infectious.

Yes - nanny grew up in UK, and has worked here ever since - now in her 50s.. so she has probably had it..

That makes it doubly frustrating!

I think it is reasonable to ask her to come in. When i was a nanny i always looked after the children when they were ill. I see it as part of the parcel. When you choose to become a nanny you take this into account.

However it is a risk for you, if she gets it, it will cause you more distruction next week.

A nanny who never had chicken pox and no vaccine? Hmm

the BIG advantage of employing a nanny is that they WILL look afer an ill child compared to a cm/nursery

cant beleive this nanny hasnt had cp, yet has been prob exposed to it for years

i will always look after ill/sick children, though obv never had to look after a child that has had something that i havent

agree with drinkyourmilk - IF we caught whatever the child has, would we get paid for time off? I would as have 4weeks sick pay in my contract - but many of my friends have ssp - may be worth for next job to put something in contract saying if nanny is ill due to result of illness charge has had that nanny gets paid in full for time off

stix - lol at cattery - same here, blondes is very allergic to cats and would be a huge hint if mb gets a cat

Hi Nick, I think that normal childhood illnesses are fair game. But, if I took the kids off on an exotic holiday and they picked up something contageous, then I would not expect nanny to work. I'm just amazed that someone who works as a nanny has not prepared herself for exposure to chicken pox, which is certainly a forseeable circumstance -- especially in a country where children are not routinely immunised for CP.

In OP's situation, and if nanny was not suspected of taking the mick, I would just pay her. But, I would probably ask her to go get a CP vaccine (although obviously she could refuse).

Out of curiosity Nick, what if you caught the flu in the course of your nanny duties, but not actually from the child you look after?

Can see annoyance because very unlikely that she has not had exposure to it already. We had a friend who was PG and panicked when there was a large outbreak where I live a couple of years ago but she turned out to be immune already and her GP said very unlikley to catch it as a UK adult because it is so widespread here.

BUT another friend I know who grew up in SA caught it after they came to UK and they were dreadfully ill, so I can understand nanny reluctance too.

I would personally let my nanny have day off, and would also pay for this - just as I used to pay for nursery fees even when my DC were ill. I would possibly ask nanny to spend day doing child-related chores such as going shopping for summer stuff for the kids or researching holiday stuff or something.