By David Wolf, Attorney
Published by Child Injury Lawyer Network
Parents rely upon day care centers for the supervision and education of their children. Day care is a necessity in order to allow parents to fulfill their work commitments and provide for their families. A quality day care center focuses on the needs, safety, and the best interests of the children. At times, children are injured while under the supevision of a day care center which then presents a whole host of challenges for the parents.
It can be quite frightening for a parent to arrive at the day care center and see his or her child with visible personal injuries. It is even more frightening when a parent has to rush a child to an emergency room in the aftermath of an incident at a day care center. Of course, the most important thing to do up front is get the child the medical care and tension make sure the needs of the child the physical and medical needs of the child. Yes, get the child stablized and get the necessary medical care in place as needed.
Once the up front medical care is taken care of, a parent is often faced with a dilemma what to do next. Here are some of the issues or challenges facing a parent dealing with the needs of an injured child:
How should the injuries be documented? Photographs? Videotape? Medical Records?
Where should the child get follow up medical care?
What should a parent do if there is no health insurance in place for the child?
Is the day care center going to automatically pay for the child’s medical care?
What if the day care center has liability insurance?
What if the day care center does not have liability insurance?
Should the child return to the day care center for child care?
Should the State agency licensing day care centers be contacted?
Should the Police be contacted about the day care center injuries?
Should the worker involved with the incidnt be suspended? fired?
Should the parent contact an attorney for advice and / or representation?
A Child Injury Lawyer can help the parent figure out the facts or investigate the situation further. A Child Injury Lawyer can help explain the legal process involved with any pending or potential civil, criminal, and / or adminstrative matter.
When a child is injured, what is the next step that a parent should take? Well, that is a simple question but not one that can easily be answered across the board. Every case should be evaluated on its own facts and merits. The next step to take will also depend on the extent of the injuries and the goals and comfort level of the parents.
The book titled – The ABCs of Child Injury – Legal Rights of the Injured Child – What Every Parent Should Know – has chapters on Day Care Center Injuries, School Injuries, Playground Injuries, and other topics. You can get this book for free at The ABCs of Child Injury.