CHILDCARE DILEMMA

By Dr James Dobson

Imagine the shock one single mum felt when she walked into her daughter's day care facility and found her wearing her soiled underwear on top of her head, a punishment the provider imposed when the child had an "accident".

We've all heard horror stories of day-care facilities that abuse or neglect children when parents are not watching. This unnerves every loving parent who must rely on others to care for their children during the day.

If you're one of them, you must learn to evaluate the people you entrust your most precious possession to five days a week. You can begin by checking to see what your country's licencing laws are and what criteria a caregiver must meet. Before you leave your little one, you should observe the caregiver interacting with children for a minimum of two hours. Most importantly, drop in unannounced to check what the care is like when you're not around. And keep your ears open to what your child says.

There are many wonderful caregivers out there who truly love children. With careful attention, I'm sure you'll make a good choice for your family.

From TODAY, Voices – Friday, 29-May-2009

Related articles by Zemanta

• Siberian child 'raised by dogs' (news.bbc.co.uk)
• Child abuse cases up during stressful economy (king5.com)
• More Alzheimer's Parenting Resources (blisstree.com)
• Hospitals fail to provide children with adequate care, says watchdog (guardian.co.uk)
• Stop the Department of Children and Family Services From selling our children for profit (thepetitionsite.com)
• Cierra's Law (thepetitionsite.com)
• Aunt that Threw Her Nephew is Arrested (blisstree.com)
• Arguing in Front of the Children (dailystrength.org)
• Couple guilty of child abuse after pet python attacked son (telegraph.co.uk)
• No Comment (mneylon.com)