How Common Are Child Injuries at Daycare Centers?

We entrust daycare facilities and their staff to care for our most vulnerable loved ones, our young children. Unfortunately, injuries to children at daycare centers are a fairly common occurrence. Whether the result of negligence, accidents, child-on-child violence, or abuse at the hands of an adult, the injuries are cause for concern for your parents and other family members who thought their trust in a daycare center was well placed.

According to a recent academic review on unintentional child injuries in childcare facilities and environments, these injuries are far more commonplace than any of us would like to think. There are nearly four injuries per child for every 2,000 exposure hours in a childcare setting. Another study found that only 10% of child injuries in childcare settings were found to be moderate to severe in nature. The majority of child injuries occurred on the playground.

Common causes of child injuries at daycare centers include:

  •         Animal bites.
  •         Burn injuries.
  •         Car seat injuries.
  •         Child abuse.
  •         Choking.
  •         Defective products and product liability injuries.
  •         Failure to complete a thorough background check on staff and volunteers.
  •         Failure to ensure that medications and toxic chemicals are secured and away from children.
  •         Failure to obtain the child’s medical history, resulting in an emergency.
  •         Falling objects.
  •         Lack of adequate supervision at the facility.
  •         Leaving a child unattended in a vehicle.
  •         Neglecting visible signs of injuries or illness.
  •         Playground injuries.
  •         Slip and fall accidents.

Are You Concerned About Child Abuse or Neglect?

Perhaps the worst fear of every parent who sends their child to daycare is that their young child will be the victim of abuse or negligence.

Warning signs that may indicate some form of abuse include the following:

  •         Bedwetting.
  •         Flinching away from a daycare provider.
  •         Long-lasting diaper rashes and frequently soiled diapers or underwear.
  •         New thumb-sucking habit.
  •         Recurring nightmares.
  •         Severe separation anxiety.
  •         Sudden mood swings.
  •         Unexplained aggressive behavior.
  •         Unexplained cuts, scratches, bruises, burns, and other injuries.
  •         Unusually withdrawn behavior.
  •         Visible signs of fear, depression, anxiety, or reluctance about the idea of going to childcare.

Any unexplained injuries or behavior without an accompanying report may be considered a warning sign of child abuse or child neglect. There are four main types of child abuse that children suffer at daycare centers, and they include physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, and emotional or verbal abuse.

What Are Common Injuries Children Suffer at Daycare?

Common injuries suffered by children at daycare facilities include the following:

  •         Broken bones.
  •         Bumps and bruises.
  •         Burns of all severities.
  •         Choking.
  •         Drowning.
  •         Internal bleeding and organ damage.
  •         Poisoning.
  •         Soft tissue injuries like cuts, lacerations, and torn ligaments.
  •         Spinal cord injuries.
  •         Traumatic brain injuries.

What Should You Do if Your Child is Injured at a Daycare Facility?

When you become aware of an injury to your child, the first thing you should do is immediately try to be at their side. If they’ve already been taken to the hospital, meet them there. Even if the injuries are not severe enough that others take the child to the emergency room, you should still collect your children and then take them in for professional medical attention by your chosen pediatrician. Make sure that you get it on the official record with medical staff that your child’s injuries were sustained at daycare.

Take photographs and videos of your child’s injuries. If possible, get these photographic pieces of evidence as soon as the injury occurs. Continue to take photographs as the injuries heal.

Seek out witness statements from anyone who was at the daycare facility or within the vicinity at the time of the injury.

If you believe that your child has suffered harm through the fault of the daycare providers, you must establish some form of negligence on the part of the accused. To do this, it is highly recommended that you work with professional personal injury attorneys with experience in handling child injury cases. Contact our law firm for more information.

Who Can Be Held Accountable for Injuries to Children at a Daycare Center?

It is possible to file a childcare abuse or neglect lawsuit against private daycare facilities, private schools, in-home daycare services, individual employees, and religious institutions, provided they were negligent in some way in terms of providing adequate care to your family member.

However, determining liability in a child injury case can be a complicated process. If your child suffered injuries at a daycare facility, it is possible that the daycare staff member and the facility itself may share some level of responsibility.

With that said, most daycares and other childcare centers have airtight liability clauses included in their contracts. This liability clause may clear the daycare of all liability in instances of injury or even death. However, when these clauses make it to court, most judges deem the parents’ signatures as admissible evidence of them signing away their child’s rights. This means that if a child suffers an injury at a daycare center, an experienced personal injury lawyer can help you hold the daycare center liable for those injuries and other losses.

Can You File a Lawsuit Even if You Have Signed a Liability Waiver?

Most daycare providers ask parents to sign a liability waiver when they begin caring for their children. While these clauses may provide some protection to the daycare center, in most cases, they do not prevent the parents from seeking financial compensation after a daycare injury. In fact, some of these daycare parent consent and release forms aren’t even legally binding.

You can speak to an experienced attorney at our law office to help determine your legal liability and the validity of your case.

Can Personal Injury Lawyers Help Maximize Your Settlement?

It may prove difficult to pursue compensation without the help of experienced personal injury lawyers representing your interest. Additionally, it has been found that the plaintiffs who retain legal representation stand to recover more in terms of a financial settlement than those who go it alone.

With experienced legal counsel, we can help you pursue economic and non-economic damages, including the following:

  •         Disability, dismemberment, or disfigurement.
  •         Past medical bills and future medical expenses.
  •         Loss of earning potential.
  •         Pain and suffering.
  •         Wrongful death.

Schedule a Free Case Review with an Experienced Personal Injury Attorney Today

If your child has suffered injuries at a daycare center, you must seek legal representation if you hope to hold at-fault parties accountable for negligence and wrongdoing. Our law firm has years of experience in personal injury law, and we would be proud to represent your interests in your pursuit of financial recovery. Contact our law firm for a free consultation today at 225-240-4053.