Education of staff - a key factor for a safe environment in day care

In order to create a safe environment in day-care settings, an understandin g of factors within the organization of day care, factors which influence s afety, is essential. Day-care directors in 83 day-care centres completed a snail-in survey that contained questions about professional experience, the day-care centre's organization of child safety measures and a battery of q uestions designed to evaluate the directors' perceptions and beliefs about child safety. The day-care directors also carried out a safety inspection a t their centre. The results were analysed using the multivariate logistic r egression technique. The existence of a continuing plan for continued staff education in child safety was shown to be the strongest predictor of few s afety hazards in day-care centres. The day-care directors' perceptions and beliefs about injury prevention were of less importance. This study indicates that in order to promote safety in day-care settings, an on-going plan for continued staff education in child safety should be a matter of routine. The introduction of such a plan should be the concern of the individual day-care directors, policy-makers and managers at the local and national level, and health professionals working in this field.