Incident investigation·June 9, 2023

On 6/9/2023, Licensing Program Analyst (LPA) Lilli Babcock conducted an unannounced case management inspection. The purpose of this visit was to follow-up on an incident that was filed with the Department on May 8,2023. The incident was reported timely to the Department. Upon arrival LPA met with Director, Maricruz Flores who guided LPA on a tour of the facility. LPA observed 12 children in care with 4 staff. Description of incident: On May 5, 2023, the teachers were getting the kids lined up for a group picture for Cinco De Mayo. Child #1 (C1) ran away from the group and to the kitchen play set. C1 put their foot on a small open shelf a few inches from the ground and attempted to climb onto the play kitchen. C1 lost their balance and fell forward before the teacher was able to reach C1. C1 hit their mouth on the play kitchen and the mouth of C1 was bleeding. Staff #1 (S1) cleaned the wound and staff gave C1 a popsicle and Parent 1 was contacted. Parent 1 picked up C1 and took her to urgent care. The doctor recommended C1 see a pediatric dentist. Per Director, C1 had bruising on her chin from the incident. The parent of C1 stated that the dentist said C1s teeth will be fine, and the teeth were not chipped. All staff interviewed stated they did not think they could have prevented the incident unless they were standing right there. Staff #1 stated, “There was no way to stop C1 unless we were right there. It happened so fast that C1 ran over, tried to climb and fell”. During this inspection LPA interviewed Director, and 2 additional staff that were present in the Toddler room at the time of the incident. LPA also obtained a copy of the doctor’s visit documentation provided Page 1 of 2 by the parent, and a copy of the incident report given to Parent 1. LPA took a photo of the kitchen play set. Per Director, there have been no previous injuries involving the kitchen play set. LPA was unable to interview children due to children not being verbal. Per Director, at the time of the incident there were 12 children with 4 staff members. The incident occurred at 11:35 am on 5/5/23. Based on LPAs observations, record review, and interviews conducted, the incident did not occur due to lack of supervision as there was adequate staff in the classroom when the incident occurred. The facility is found to be in compliance with Title 22 Regulations and no deficiencies are being cited. The Director was reminded to continue to report any unusual incidents to the Department. A notice of site visit was given and must remain posted for 30 days. Failure to comply with posting requirements shall result in an immediate civil penalty of $100. An exit interview was conducted and report was reviewed with Director, Maricruz Flores. The facility is found to be in compliance with Title 22 Regulations and no deficiencies are being cited. The Director was reminded to continue to report any unusual incidents to the Department. A notice of site visit was given and must remain posted for 30 days. Failure to comply with posting requirements shall result in an immediate civil penalty of $100. An exit interview was conducted and report was reviewed with Director, Maricruz Flores. Page 2 of 2