Feeling incredibly angry right now

[Opalpearl]

I work in a pre school as a TA.
Yesterday a parent brought their child in who was clearly very snotty and coughing a lot. Not unwell as such, still full of energy etc.
She said she’d tested him in the morning and it was negative so she brought him in. Obviously she was meaning an LFT test…which isn’t what you do if someone is showing symptoms, she should be getting a PCR and self isolating.
Before the teacher could say anything she rushed off saying she’d be late for work if she didn’t leave now.
So I spent the whole day in a classroom with a child coughing constantly and having to wipe said child’s nose every 10 minutes.

I’m sooooo upset and angry. Why can’t parents/people take responsibility and do the right thing?! Selfish selfish selfish.

If child is negative on LFT then the parent has acted reasonably. Even if they'd had it recently it means they prob not infectious

I'd have done the exact same as that parent.
My toddler is always snotty and has the odd cough. I can't PCR test her every single time or she'd never be there.

You're overreacting.

OP is not overreacting, a PCR should be done and the child should not attend pre-school unless the PCR is negative. A new continuous cough is a Covid symptom that requires a PCR. These people on here who are saying the child should attend, do they have professional experience and a qualification in Early Years Care and Education? Have they had first hand experience of dealing with Ofsted? Have they had health and safety/risk assessment training? Have they been/acted as a Manager of an Early Years setting? Have they read the rules for requirement of PCR testing?

Where we live, if the child has a cough I need to present a PCR PHYSICALLY SIGNED BY A DOCTOR before they can return.

YABU, have a policy and enforce it. If your policy is no cough don't let the parent leave or if they do, call them and make them come back.

If that isn't your policy the parent is not obliged to keep their child at home to make you feel better.

It's hard enough trying to work when you have (constantly, mildly) sick kids as it is, child care centers need to be clear and consistent.

I don't work, pretty much because of covid, a toddler and a husband who is mostly not in the country or permanently working. My little one goes to nursery three afternoons a week to play with other children his age and there were two months last year where he needed a PCR every week due to normal childhood illness, he's not had covid. If I did work I would have been sacked because I could not have sent him for childcare all this time. I feel lucky that my family have the option of me staying at home to cover everything and feel empathy for anyone trying to manage it in different circumstances. With no fever I think a lateral flow is fine isn't it? I think if mine had a cough I would PCR though. Saying that my teen didn't have a positive lateral flow for 5 days after becoming unwell and then got a positive PCR (she never had a cough) but then she didn't pass it to me and my son and we had spent hours in the car with her. 🤷🏻‍♀️

@Disneyblueeyes

Bet you work from home!

Very shocked at a lot of the attitudes here. A child with a cough should be isolating and getting a PCR. That is the actual law?? My daughter's Nursery wouldn't take her if she was coughing. They have a policy that if a child at nursery shows symptoms, they are taken outside to quarantine with a member of staff in fill PPE and await parent to collect!!

YABU

Hallohello - yes, that is how it should be.

The pre-schools would have a sick child policy. This would have been updated to include Covid, symptoms, need for PCR etc. This should have been communicated from the pre-school to each parent/carer, so that parents/carers understand the action they need to take should their child develop a Covid symptom. It seems quite a few parents are not understanding this, so perhaps the pre-schools are not explaining it clearly enough?

Well regardless, when March comes there will be no testing if there is no requirement to isolate when you have covid 🤷‍♀️

@guardiansofthegalaxychocs

I work with children and I think you are overreacting. You will be in contact with the virus, that's a certainty given the prevalence and the fact that many people who pass it on are asymptomatic. The only thing in your control is being tripple jabbed so it doesn't make you very unwell.

This... Teachers are naive if they think dodge this if only people kept to the rules. It's unfortunate, but true, and there's no point kidding yourselves.