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On October 3, 2023, the Office of Childhood (OOC) received an allegation that parents were not notified on October 2, 2023, when Child A (3-year-old) fell off of the jungle gym and had marks to his face. They also received no notification in September of 2023 when their son had a bite mark. After conducting an investigation, Compliance Inspector (CI) Ian Fyfe has found this allegation to be substantiated based on the following evidence:
5 CSR 25-500.192(5)(A), which states the following: "In case of accident or injury to a child, the provider shall notify the parent(s) immediately. If the child requires emergency medical care, the provider shall follow the parent's(s') written instructions."
On October 16, 2023, CI Fyfe conducted an unannounced inspection to Missouri Ozarks Community Action, Inc. and interviewed staff members Ashley Clark, Crystal Becker, Amanda Pryor, and Arianna Maldonado. All four staff members were familiar with the reported concerns and provided consistent information. Ms. Becker, Ms. Pryor, and Ms. Maldonado were Child A's caregivers while he attended the facility. On October 2, 2023, Ms. Becker and Ms. Pryor were on the playground with Child A's classroom. Ms. Maldonado was inside of the building when the reported concerns happened. While on the playground, Ms. Becker saw Child A trip and fall while he was running, resulting in injuries to his face. Ms. Becker washed Child A's face and provided him with an ice pack. Due to the facility's internet and phones being down, Ms. Becker was unable to notify Parent A (parent of Child A) until he came to pick up Child A. Ms. Becker did not complete an accident report for the incident until the following day. Child A did not return to the facility after leaving on October 2. Ms. Becker, Ms. Pryor, and Ms. Maldonado all received write-ups for failing to follow proper accident reporting procedures following the incident. None of the staff members interviewed were aware of Child A being involved in any biting incidents in September of 2023.
On October 16, 2023, and on November 3, 2023, CI Fyfe attempted to interview Parent A via phone call. Parent A did not answer the phone and did not have a voicemail set up for CI Fyfe to leave a message on. Parent B was not contacted as she instructed OOC staff to contact Parent A regarding the incident.
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