How Safe Sleep Practices Can Prevent Daycare Tragedies

What Safe Sleep Practices Do The Minimum Standards Require in Texas Daycare Centers?

Texas daycare laws, also known as minimum standards, have very clear rules regarding safe sleep practices at licensed daycare centers across the state. These regulations are based on a child’s age and needs, so it is important that caregivers receive the proper training to ensure compliance.

For example, infants require more sleep than older children, so daycare centers with infant nurseries should:

• Create a safe sleep environment by removing all loose items from a crib, such as blankets, pillows, stuffed animals, or bumper pads
• Ensure safe sleep placement by placing infants on their backs
• Only use a crib or bassinet for a baby’s sleep environment
• Provide ongoing supervision every 15 minutes while the babies are asleep

In daycare toddler rooms that cater to children 18 months or older, the minimum standards state:

• Caregivers cannot force a child to sleep with physical force or medication
• Children who are not tired must be provided with a quiet activity like drawing
• Naptime may not exceed three hours

Learn more about sleep requirements for children at daycare centers, including details on how classrooms should be set-up for naptime in this article.

What Common Sleep Standard Violations Do Our Daycare Injury Lawyers See Most?

When daycare centers do not comply with safe sleep practices outlined in the minimum standards, this is considered a type of daycare neglect. (This means any sleep injury a child suffers, such as rebreathing, could have been prevented had the center followed the standards.)

In more than a decade of helping families across Texas with daycare injury cases, we have seen firsthand how some daycare centers endanger children when they fail to follow the minimum standards focused on safe sleep. The most common violations we see are:

• Caregivers without proper training: Daycare directors do not ensure all caregivers who assist little ones with naptime know and understand safe sleep practices before allowing them to supervise infants.
• Children sleeping in unsafe environments: Sometimes babies fall asleep in highchairs or inclined sleepers. When that happens, some inexperienced caregivers choose not to move them for fear of waking them up. That decision can be dangerous. Inclined sleepers have been linked to over 100 infant deaths and have since been recalled. The incline can restrict a baby’s airway, making it hard for them to breathe. And if the child isn’t properly strapped in, they risk falling out and suffering serious injuries, like a head or brain injury.
• Giving children sleep aids: We have seen an uptick in incidents where unqualified caregivers provide toddlers with over-the-counter sleep aids such as melatonin gummies or stickers, or even administering Benadryl for the unapproved use of making kids sleepy, thus making them easier to control.
• Leaving loose items in cribs: Some caregivers may try to make a child’s sleep environment cozy with stuffed animals and blankets, which can be choking hazards.
• Operating a center “out of ratio”: Caregivers are required to check on sleeping babies every 15 minutes. When daycare centers do not have enough caregivers in a nursery or classroom to ensure they are in the proper position and safe during naptime, this violates the standards and endangers the babies' lives. Toddlers who are not properly supervised at naptime can easily wander unnoticed out of a classroom and leave the center’s premises.
• Placing infants in the wrong sleep position: Caregivers placing infants on their stomachs or sides increase the risk of suffocation.

Watch this video to learn more about common improper sleep practices at daycare centers in Texas.

How Can You Protect Your Child From Sleep Injuries at a Daycare Center?

While the state has minimum standards in place to protect little ones from sleep injuries, you can still be proactive to help prevent your child from being harmed during naptime at a daycare center.

Our experienced daycare injury lawyers recommend you:

• Ask to see the center’s safe sleep policy when touring the daycare center.
• Check out the center’s ratings and reviews online, such as Google or Yelp, and ask questions about the center and its naptime policies in your community’s parenting groups on Facebook.
• Research the center’s cited violations and past state-led investigations to see if the daycare center has a history or pattern of unsafe sleep practices.
• Select a daycare center that uses surveillance cameras with a livestream capability so that you can easily check on your child in real time to ensure the center follows safe sleep practices.
• Speak to other parents with children who attend the daycare center to understand any issues about naptime or concerns they had about sleep practices at the center, either in the past or recently.

Even after your child is enrolled at the daycare, we encourage you to make an unannounced visit during naptime to see what environment your child and their classmates are sleeping in.

What Should I Do If My Child Suffered a Sleep Injury at a Daycare Center in Texas?

If your child suffered a sleep injury because a daycare center or its caregivers failed to comply with sleep practices outlined in the minimum standards, reach out to our experienced daycare injury lawyers by calling us at 214-699-4409 or emailing us at [email protected]. We can help you navigate this overwhelming situation, explain your legal options, and help you decide on the best path to help your family move forward. 

If a daycare injury lawsuit is the best solution, our team will guide you every step of the way, and strive to secure compensation, also known as damages, to cover:

• Any medical bills for treating your child’s health emergency caused by unsafe sleep practices
• Disruption to a family’s life caused by the daycare injury
• Pain and suffering
• Trauma and emotional hardships

In the tragic event that your child passed because of a daycare center’s unsafe sleep practices, you may have the option to file a wrongful death of a child lawsuit to hold the center and any relevant caregivers accountable for your child’s untimely death.

Read more about your legal rights as a parent following your child’s sleep injury at a daycare center in this article.

More Free Resources If Your Child Was Injured at a Daycare Center During Naptime

We encourage you to explore more of our free resources if your child suffered an injury during naptime at a daycare center:

• 5-Step Guide for Parents Dealing with a Daycare Injury
• Can I Take My Child Back to the Daycare Where They Were Injured?
• Can Parents Still Sue a Daycare Center After They Sign a Liability Waiver?

Was Your Child Harmed Because of Unsafe Sleep Practices? Contact The Button Law Firm.

If your child was seriously injured or harmed because of negligent sleep practices at a daycare center anywhere in Texas, contact our experienced Texas daycare injury lawyers at The Button Law Firm. With lawyers in Dallas, Houston, and Midland, we are ready to listen, fight for your family, and help your family move forward. Our lawyers at The Button Law Firm are recognized on the prestigious Texas Super Lawyers list, and we can help guide you after a traumatizing incident involving your child. We work on contingency, meaning we don’t charge you or collect any upfront fees to get started on your case. Call us at 214-699-4409, email us at [email protected], or fill out a contact form for a free case evaluation.