to be upset with Nursery for letting my 18 month old play out in this weather when she's been in hospital 3 times this year with pneumonia and breathing difficulties

[designergirl]

I just went to pick my daughter up, it's really windy, cold and starting to rain and she was playing outside as were all the other children her age. She has been in hospital 3 times this year with pneumonia and breathing difficulties, in February,July and September. I wouldn't let her play out in this weather at home and I was so upset with the staff that I shouted at them. I wrote in her book that she has a hat, mittens and scarf but she didn't have any of them on, and I saw her fall over. I think the wind blew her over but she might have just fallen over.Am I being unreasonable?
I know OFSTED require them to play outside and generally I don't mind her playing out. I just think it's a bit lacking in common sense to let her play out in this awful weather. The wind is so strong it's just blown an empty hanging basket all the way down our street.

Seriously? Do you have to be a mind reader to know that if a child has been seriously ill she needs t be wrapped up warm to play outside? That is common sense, not being a mind reader

She had a coat on didn't she?

Did she feel cold when you picked her up?

Did you explain to the staff that she shouldn't play outside/must be wrapped up?

I wonder if nursery is the right environment for a sick child - there will be lots of bugs, outside play, water play etc.

Maybe it's being explicitly clear that you will only want her out there if she's wrapped up. I think that's a fair point. My son has a suppressed immune system but he still goes to school. He is well enough to go to school. But if there's some infectious disease going around and he gets it, he'll take much longer to recover. School knows this. Doesn't stop me sending him to school.

I have friends who send their kids to nursery and instruct nursery not to let them have sweets (puddings or chocolate or ice cream). So they have a plain biscuit. It's not a diet related issue. Just a parental preference. And nursery is fine with that. And they follow instructions.

Oh, so now she wasn't wrapped up warmly? Didn't she have a coat and a cardigan/jumper on?

If you don't want her playing outside then you need to tell the staff, not get indignant about it after the event.

OP - I used to live in a country where it was -20 C during the day outside. All the children were encouraged to play outside.

Yes of course they should be properly dressed, but if she has a good coat and is running around, then actually the hat and scarf may not be necessary. There is also a big difference between running around when you stay warm from the exercise and standing around where you might get very cold. As to the wind, well it is great fun to be out in the wind feeling it push against you and feeling as if you could fly if it picked you up.

She is more likely to get ill cooped up inside with all the cold bugs going round.

I really do understand your concerns. My youngest dd has had some big health issues and spent a lot of time in hospital. But she isn't going to get pneumonis from a short time running around in the wind

Yanbu. I had a similar situation. Just told the nursery to keep her in in cold or wet weather. I wdn,t send my kids out to play in bad weather. Conversely if it was good weather i,d have them out more. Talk to your gp

Of course you want to protect her! I understand that. And I expect you are feeling unconfortable that you got emotional about it and ended up shouting.

I'm a hugely over protective parent and I live in Scandinavia where kids play outdoors in all westhers. Consensus here is that it reduces the spread of bugs at nursery/preschool not to have them cooped up indoors.

I think appropriate clothing might be the key. Toddlers are terrible for taking things off, so try and send her with layers.

I do think it's staff's job to ensure she is weather-appropriately dressed if you provide the right gear.

Could you go through her wardrobe at the weekend and see that she has good stuff, then call the manager on Monday morning and make a plan together about your DD's outdoor time.

Apologise to the staff. Even if you feel you're just doing it to be the bigger person. You want things to be smooth and happy for your DD there.

I'm sure you can sort it out!

You are massively over reacting. Children should be outside as much as possible and it is not yet that cold. You can't expect the nursery to think they should be wrapping your child up like she's going on an arctic expedition just becasue she was ill weeks ago. If you really are that fussy you should give clearer instructions to the nursery or keep her at home.

I have apologised

What are you going to do in Winter when they go out to play in the snow? Or on a cold morning?

I have complete sympathy with the OP. The nursery staff should make sure that she is dressed properly for going outside.

I would not be happy with my children going outside in the rain and they are older than 18 months.

Not having mittens and a scarf isn't going to make that much difference. I've already told you that my own dd2 suffered several bouts of pneumonia (she has cerebral palsy due to birth injury and has a history of respiratory issues) which were scary, and that ds2 had rsv and double pneumonia (he was 10 weeks old).

Coat is fine. You're in the UK. It ain't that cold.

Yes, it's natural to have heightened concern, but you need to look at it sensibly. A bit of playing in the fresh air with a coat on but no mittens is fine, however windy it is. She was probably having a whale of a time.

If she isn't well enough to take part in the normal nursery curriculum, you need to get that team of yours to come up with a care plan that includes a modified curriculum (ie no outdoors play) and to consider a different method of childcare - nurseries are absolute hotbeds of germs, not the place for a kid with immune issues.

But anyway, nice of you to point out the oozing sarcasm, and not the functional part of my post, which was the considered cause of her pneumonia.

Sooooooo, back to swallowing then. Any chance she is aspirating? Or is this just bog standard nursery germs?