Childcare Hygiene & Infection Control: A Practical Guide for Australian Centres

How germs spread in a childcare centre

Infection needs a chain: a source (an infected person), a way out (droplets, faeces, vomit, skin contact), a way across (hands, surfaces, toys, air) and a way in (mouth, nose, eyes, broken skin). Every hygiene routine in a centre breaks one of those links.

The five key practices from Staying Healthy

1. 1

   Hand hygiene — regularly, for everyone

   Soap and running water for at least 20 seconds, or alcohol-based hand rub (60–80% alcohol) when hands are not visibly dirty. On arrival, before and after eating, after toileting and nappy changes, after nose-wiping and after outdoor play.

2. 2

   Infection-control nappy changing

   A set procedure every time: prepare, gloves, change, clean the child, dispose, clean the surface, hand hygiene. See the nappy change cleaning checklist.

3. 3

   Routine environmental cleaning — daily

   Detergent and water, then rinse and dry, every day and whenever surfaces are visibly dirty. Our daily checklist lists every task.

4. 4

   Specific cleaning after body-fluid spills

   Urine, faeces, vomit, blood, mucus and breastmilk: remove, clean with detergent, then disinfect with a hospital-grade disinfectant or bleach.

5. 5

   Exclusion of unwell children and staff

   Follow the minimum exclusion periods (in Victoria, the Public Health and Wellbeing Regulations exclusion table). In a gastro outbreak, people stay away until 48 hours after the last vomit or loose stool.

Cleaning vs sanitising vs disinfecting

Over-using disinfectant does not make a centre safer. It adds chemical exposure for children and staff, can irritate airways and skin, damages surfaces and still fails if the surface was not cleaned first. Staying Healthy is explicit that you do not need bleach for routine disinfection.

In Australia, hard-surface disinfectants are regulated by the Therapeutic Goods Administration and labelled as hospital, household or commercial grade. Products that make specific claims such as “kills viruses” must be listed on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods. Choose products with a clear label dilution and contact time, and keep the safety data sheet on file. More in childcare cleaning products and safe practices.

Body-fluid spill procedure

1. 1

   Keep children away

   Move children out of the area and put out a sign if the spill is large.

2. 2

   Protect yourself

   Disposable gloves; add a plastic apron and eye protection if there is splashing risk or you are using bleach.

3. 3

   Remove the spill

   Soak up with paper towel or absorbent granules. Do not vacuum vomit.

4. 4

   Clean

   Clean the area with detergent and warm water, then rinse and dry.

5. 5

   Disinfect

   Apply a hospital-grade disinfectant or freshly diluted bleach at the label concentration and leave it on for the stated contact time.

6. 6

   Dispose and wash

   Bag all waste, remove gloves, wash hands thoroughly. Launder contaminated fabrics on a hot cycle.

High-risk zones and what they need

Ventilation and indoor air

The 6th edition of Staying Healthy added stronger guidance on ventilation after the COVID-19 pandemic. Open windows and doors when weather allows, run outdoor programs where possible, keep air-conditioning and heating systems serviced, and clean vent covers and filters on schedule — dusty grilles recirculate allergens and settle on surfaces children touch.

When illness becomes an outbreak

In Victoria, two or more related cases of vomiting or diarrhoea among children or staff is a suspected gastro outbreak. The Department of Health’s guide for children’s centres asks services to notify the department, then step up cleaning and controls straight away:

The complete cleaning protocol, including terminal cleaning once the outbreak is declared over, is in childcare cleaning after an outbreak.

Policies, training and records

• A written hygiene and infection-control policy that references Staying Healthy and your state health department
• Induction and annual refreshers for educators and cleaners on hand hygiene, nappy changing and spill response
• A chemical register with current safety data sheets for every product on site
• Daily cleaning logs and an incident/illness register — see our cleaning log template
• A contractor scope that spells out infection-control tasks and escalation during outbreaks

Our childcare cleaning teams in Melbourne work to a written infection-control checklist, use colour-coded equipment and can step up to outbreak cleaning at short notice.