Child Injury Lawyer Blog
By David A. Wolf, Attorney – Child Injury Lawyer Blog
In Utah and other states, day care centers have a duty to provide a reasonably safe educational environment for the children enrolled in the program. It is important that the day care center follow all licensing requirements and have trained staff in place to meet the needs of the children. Supervision and attentiveness are vital to the safety and welfare of the children. The level of supervision will depend on the type of facility, number of children, age of the children, special needs of the children, time of the day, activity and other factors. There are dangers lurking at all times that an infant or toddler is being cared for in a day care center. It is vital for staff members to be aware of the dangers and remove or prevent all such dangerous situations to the best of the ability and foresight of the day care center.
A recent tragedy was reported in at a West Jordan, Utah day care center. It as reported that a toddler – Leonardo “Leo” Sanchez – crawled under a bean bag and ultimately suffocated. A seemingly simple object – a bean bag chair – turned out to be a very dangerous object in a day care center for a small child like Leo Sanchez. It is well known that small children are curious and will crawl into or go into areas which can be quite dangerous. Another dangerous situation or object for a toddler or infant in a day care center is an unanchored dresser or TV stand. There have been a number of reports of children being injured or even dying as a result of a dresser, TV stand, or TV that has fallen over on top of a child. Sleeping and napping time can also present dangers as well to infants. A stuffed animal or blanket can cause a child to suffocate during this otherwise seemingly safe part of a day care center.