COVID-19
Safe & Healthy Workplace Policy

Home-Based Services – Notice for Families

As always, we are putting safety first to protect our families and staff.

As we continue to provide home-based treatment service, all staff will go through training on health and safety practices we’ve developed to maintain a high standard of safe care.

Please note the following:

  • Handwashing and sanitizing. Therapist will be asked to wash their hands when arriving onsite, and we’ll continue to integrate handwashing into the curriculum. Each therapist will have hand sanitizer to use at the start of the session and throughout.
  • Follow CDC travel guidance. As states and countries lift their restrictions, please pay close attention to CDC guidance around travel to specific regions. If you, your child or any household member travels to these regions, you will need to follow CDC guidance for quarantining yourself and your family before Kaleidoscope ABA service can continue in your house.
  • Cancel when sick. If you or your child has been sick, we ask that you cancel services until they’ve been symptom-free without medication for at least 72 hours. Our therapists will provide treatment to well individuals only.
  • Protective equipment. All staff will be required to wear masks.
  • Health screening and temperature checks. All staff will be asked to monitor their temperature each day and must be fever-free before arriving at a family’s home. We ask parents to take their child’s temperature before the start of a session with Kaleidoscope ABA. When our therapist arrives, they will need to confirm their child is well before they begin treatment. Our staff will monitor children’s health throughout the day and alert the family if anything changes. The session will end if a child shows symptoms.
  • Social distancing. We’ll continue to practice social distancing as much as possible to reduce risk. To minimize potential exposure, therapists will continue to keep distance from other household members.
  • Treatment Area Cleanliness. Toys, equipment, and other high-touch surfaces will be disinfected after each home-based session.

Online Resources for Families

RE: Potential Exposure and Health Check

The health and well-being of our families and staff are our highest priorities. In the interest of limiting the opportunity for transmission to our vulnerable community, we are taking the following precautionary measures:

Family Potential Exposure

Our therapist will not provide home-based service to your child if any member of your household* has (or has been in close-contact** with anyone who has):

(a) A suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19 (for example – close contact at school, work, religious service, social gathering); or

(b) Traveled:

  • internationally; or domestically,
  • from any area which is the subject of travel restrictions under applicable state and local guidance.

14 days after the last potential exposure, home services may resume provided these three things have happened:

(a) At least 10 days have passed since any household member first experienced symptoms; and

(b) Symptoms have improved for any household member that experienced symptoms (for example, cough or shortness of breath has improved); and

(c) The household has been fever-free for at least 72 hours without the use of fever-reducing medicines.

Please note, depending on the circumstances we may require you to obtain medical clearance before services can be resumed.

*HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS:  include individuals who may not live in the household but may be staying there or are otherwise present in the household on a regular basis (e.g. nannies, caregivers, home health workers, contractors, etc.).

**CLOSE CONTACT:  is defined by the CDC as (1) being within approximately 6 feet (2 meters) of a COVID-19 case for a prolonged period of time and can occur while caring for, living with, visiting, or sharing a health care waiting area or room with a COVID-19 case, or (2) having direct contact with infectious secretions of a COVID-19 case (e.g., being coughed on). Considerations when assessing close contact include the duration of exposure and the clinical symptoms of the person with COVID-19.

FOR MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS: If close-contact occurs while wearing recommended personal protective equipment or PPE (e.g., gowns, gloves, NIOSH-certified disposable N95 respirator, eye protection), that contact will NOT be considered “close contact” for purposes of this policy.

Family Health Check and Illness

ALL FAMILIES, CHILDREN AND THEIR HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS MUST CONDUCT A DAILY HEALTH CHECK BEFORE COMING TO THE CENTER.

  • Should you or any household member have any of the following symptoms, we ask that you notify the office and cancel any scheduled treatments.
  • Fever of 100.4 F or higher, now or in the preceding 72 hours
  • Cough
  • Sore Throat
  • Muscle Aches
  • Difficulty Breathing
  • Consistent with our COVID-19 Policy, the household will be required to pause home-based treatment for 14 days unless medical clearance is provided by a physician indicating that the presenting symptoms are associated with a known non-COVID-19 illness.  The physician’s note must not be from a family member.
  • Pausing home-based treatment is sometimes necessary to reduce the transmission of illness.

How to Protect Yourself/Your Household

Please see the CDC guidelines for current guidance on best practices for protecting yourself and your household during this pandemic:

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html

Health and Hygiene Practices

Our regular health and hygiene practices provide some of the best defenses against the spread of most contagious illnesses. Toys, equipment, and other high-touch surfaces will be disinfected after each home-based session, ensuring that children and staff take important precautions against the spread of germs.

You can work with your children to practice some of these same steps at home:

  • Wash hands often with soap and water – use this step-by-step guide to help
  • Sneeze or cough into your elbow; or cover mouth and nose with a tissue before sneezing or coughing, then immediately discard the tissue. Print out this handy visual to show children how.
  • Avoid touching eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands
  • Avoid kissing, hugging, and sharing cups or eating utensils with people who are ill
  • Disinfect frequently touched surfaces, especially if someone is sick

Online Resources for Families