Special Investigation Report # 2013D0929010
Special Investigation Report # 2013D0929010
Special Investigation Report # 2013D0929010
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RICK SNYDER<br />
GOVERNOR<br />
State of Michigan<br />
DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES<br />
BUREAU OF CHILDREN AND ADULT LICENSING<br />
MAURA D. CORRIGAN<br />
DIRECTOR<br />
August 5, 2013<br />
Melissa Sharp<br />
Assumption Greek Orthodox<br />
21800 Marter Road<br />
St Clair Shores, MI 48080<br />
RE: Lic./Reg. #:<br />
<strong>Investigation</strong> #:<br />
DC500017290<br />
<strong>2013D0929010</strong><br />
Assumption Nursery School<br />
Dear Ms. Sharp:<br />
Attached is the <strong>Special</strong> <strong>Investigation</strong> <strong>Report</strong> for the above referenced facility. Due to<br />
the violations identified in the report, a written corrective action plan is required. The<br />
corrective action plan is due 15 days from the date of this letter and must include the<br />
following:<br />
• How compliance with each rule will be achieved.<br />
• Who is directly responsible for implementing the corrective action for each<br />
violation.<br />
• Specific time frames for each violation as to when the correction will be<br />
completed or implemented.<br />
• How continuing compliance will be maintained once compliance is<br />
achieved.<br />
• The signature of the responsible party and a date.<br />
If you desire technical assistance in addressing these issues, please feel free to contact<br />
me. In any event, the corrective action plan is due within 15 days. Failure to submit an<br />
acceptable corrective action plan will result in disciplinary action.<br />
Please review the enclosed documentation for accuracy and feel free to contact me with<br />
any questions. In the event that I am not available and you need to speak to someone<br />
immediately, please feel free to contact the local office at (248) 975-5053.<br />
P.O. BOX 30650 • LANSING, MICHIGAN 48909-8150<br />
www.michigan.gov • (517) 335-6124
Per MCL 722.113g, this report and any related corrective action plans must be filed in<br />
your licensing notebook.<br />
Sincerely,<br />
LaTonya Kegler, Licensing Consultant<br />
Bureau of Children and Adult Licensing<br />
4th Floor, Suite 4B<br />
51111 Woodward Avenue<br />
Pontiac, MI 48342<br />
(586) 256-1280<br />
Enclosure<br />
P.O. BOX 30650 • LANSING, MICHIGAN 48909-8150<br />
www.michigan.gov • (517) 335-6124
MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES<br />
BUREAU OF CHILDREN AND ADULT LICENSING<br />
SPECIAL INVESTIGATION REPORT<br />
I. IDENTIFYING INFORMATION<br />
License #:<br />
<strong>Investigation</strong> #:<br />
DC500017290<br />
<strong>2013D0929010</strong><br />
Complaint Receipt Date: 05/13/2013<br />
<strong>Investigation</strong> Initiation Date: 05/13/2013<br />
<strong>Report</strong> Due Date: 07/12/2013<br />
Licensee Name:<br />
Licensee Address:<br />
Assumption Greek Orthodox<br />
21800 Marter Road<br />
St Clair Shores, MI 48080<br />
Licensee Telephone #: (586) 772-4477<br />
Administrator:<br />
Licensee Designee:<br />
Name of Facility:<br />
Facility Address:<br />
Melissa Sharp, Designee<br />
Melissa Sharp, Designee<br />
Assumption Nursery School<br />
22150 Marter Road<br />
Saint Clair Shores, MI 48080<br />
Facility Telephone #: (586) 772-4477<br />
Original Issuance Date:<br />
License Status:<br />
N/A<br />
REGULAR<br />
Effective Date: 01/30/2013<br />
Expiration Date: 01/29/2015<br />
Capacity: 240<br />
Program Type:<br />
CHILD CARE CENTER<br />
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II.<br />
ALLEGATION(S)<br />
• Child A (male, age 4) has been repeatedly hurt while in care at the center. A few<br />
months ago Child A received a cut to his arm alleged to be from a sharp object<br />
in the classroom.<br />
• On 5/2/2013 Child A had a bucket of sand dumped on his head by another child.<br />
• On 5/3/2013 Child A was observed with a red mark in between his eyes alleged<br />
from him falling.<br />
• On 5/6/2013 Child A was observed with a knot on his head, scratches on his<br />
nose and his top lip alleged from him pushing a toy and the toy stopped, which<br />
caused him to fall and hit the concrete.<br />
III.<br />
METHODOLOGY<br />
05/13/2013 <strong>Special</strong> <strong>Investigation</strong> Intake<br />
<strong>2013D0929010</strong><br />
05/13/2013 <strong>Special</strong> <strong>Investigation</strong> Initiated - Telephone<br />
Interview w/ Child A's mother<br />
05/13/2013 Contact - Telephone call made<br />
Call to A. Lawrence, DHS supv.<br />
05/14/2013 Inspection Completed On-site<br />
Interview w/ director Michelle Sharp and caregivers<br />
(12:00 p.m. - 2:45 p.m.)<br />
05/14/2013 Contact Document received - pictures of Child A’s injuries<br />
05/22/2013 Contact Telephone call made- vmessage left for Child A’s mother<br />
06/03/2013 Contact Telephone call received-vmessage from Child A’s mother<br />
06/05/2013 Contact Telephone call made- interview with Child A’s mother<br />
07/23/2013 Contact Telephone call made-message for Ms. Sharp<br />
07/24/2013 Exit Conference w/ Ms. Sharp via telephone<br />
2
ALLEGATION: Child A (male, age 4) has been repeatedly hurt while in care at<br />
the center. A few months ago Child A received a cut to his arm alleged to be<br />
from a sharp object in the classroom.<br />
INVESTIGATION:<br />
On May 13, 2013, I interviewed Child A’s mother regarding this incident. She stated<br />
that sometime in March of 2013 when she arrived at the center to pick up Child A at<br />
3:30 p.m., she observed a linear cut near Child A’s wrist area which vertically<br />
extended halfway up his arm. She was given an incident report which stated that at<br />
10:15 a.m. Child A scraped his right arm on a sharp edge of a plastic container of<br />
blocks. Child A’s mother was upset that the center did not call her to report the<br />
injury to her child. When she questioned the caregiver about the injury and<br />
requested to see what he cut his wrist on, she was told that they had already thrown<br />
it out. Child A’s mother stated that his arm was not bleeding when she arrived, and<br />
she did not seek any medical treatment for his arm, but the cut left a permanent<br />
mark on his arm.<br />
Child A’s mother stated that she did not question Child A about the injury and stated<br />
that he has a speech delay and probably wouldn’t have been able to make a<br />
complete sentence to explain what happened to him.<br />
On May 14, 2013, I interviewed Melissa Sharp, program director, regarding the<br />
allegation. Ms. Sharp stated that she was aware of the injury, but Child A’s<br />
caregiver was Mary Tomlinson who could provide more detailed information<br />
pertaining to the injury.<br />
Ms. Sharp provided the accident report which indicated that the injury occurred on<br />
February 19, 2013 at 10:15 a.m. The report stated Child A scraped his right arm on<br />
a sharp edge of a plastic container holding building blocks. The scratch was<br />
approximately 6 inches long, and the container was immediately discarded. There is<br />
a section on the form entitled, “Parent Notification”, which was left blank. Ms. Sharp<br />
confirmed that the parent was not verbally notified for this incident and stated that<br />
the center has a policy to only notify parents by phone when there is an injury to the<br />
face or head. If the injury is not severe parents are notified at pick-up time. Child A’s<br />
mother usually arrives at 3:00 p.m.<br />
Ms. Sharp denied any issues or concerns with the level of supervision that is<br />
provided by Ms. Tomlinson. She denied that the center has ever had any staffing<br />
issues that would interfere with supervision of children. Ms. Sharp stated that there<br />
is always an extra caregiver in each room.<br />
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On May 14, 2013, I interviewed caregiver Ms. Tomlinson regarding the injury. Ms.<br />
Tomlinson was unable to recall the number of children in the room during the injury<br />
in February but stated that there is always an assistant caregiver in the room with<br />
her at all times. Attendance records for February were not immediately available<br />
during my onsite inspection. During my onsite inspection there were six preschoolage<br />
children with two caregivers.<br />
Ms. Tomlinson acknowledged that she was Child A’s caregiver when he was injured.<br />
Child A was playing with a bucket of blocks during free play time. The bucket had a<br />
crack in the container which had a sharp edge that Child A scraped his arm on. She<br />
was walking around the room and was interacting with the children when the injury<br />
occurred. She described the injury as a long vertical scrape that crossed his inner<br />
wrist area and extended up most of his forearm area. Ms. Tomlinson cleaned up the<br />
scrape and applied a cool cloth. She denied that the scrape ever bled. Ms.<br />
Tomlinson stated that they were not aware that the container was cracked, but they<br />
immediately discarded it after Child A’s injury.<br />
Ms. Tomlinson confirmed that Child A’s mother was not verbally contacted after this<br />
injury. I asked Ms. Tomlinson what the center’s policy is for reporting injuries to<br />
parents. She stated that a written report must be completed and it is her<br />
understanding that the center’s policy is to notify parents by phone only when an<br />
injury occurs involving the face/head.<br />
I provided technical assistance to Ms. Sharp regarding notification of injuries to<br />
parents, and I explained that the center complied with the licensing rules. However,<br />
it would have been a better business practice to verbally notify the parent of this<br />
injury due to him receiving a long scrape which extended from his wrist through most<br />
of his forearm area, which the parent viewed as a serious injury. I provided<br />
consultation suggesting that they consider revising their verbal notification criteria for<br />
injuries to children.<br />
APPLICABLE RULE<br />
R 400.5105 Supervision and ratio requirements.<br />
ANALYSIS:<br />
CONCLUSION:<br />
(1) The center shall provide appropriate care and supervision of<br />
children at all times.<br />
The center provided appropriate care and supervision of Child A<br />
when he scraped his arm on the container.<br />
VIOLATION NOT ESTABLISHED<br />
4
Allegation: On 5/2/2013 Child A had a bucket of sand dumped on his head by<br />
by another child.<br />
INVESTIGATION:<br />
Child A’s mother stated that she received a phone call from Ms. Tomlinson who<br />
reported that a new student dumped sand on Child A’s head, and she tried to wash it<br />
out of his hair. Child A’s mother stated that the incident occurred sometime in the<br />
afternoon. Child A’s mother was concerned with the supervision of Child A and<br />
didn’t know why she didn’t receive an incident report regarding this situation. Child<br />
A was only able to tell her that he got sand in his hair.<br />
I interviewed Ms. Tomlinson regarding this incident and confirmed that the incident<br />
occurred in the afternoon. She stated that the room was in compliance with adult to<br />
child ratios. Attendance records confirm that there were 8 preschool-age children<br />
present during the time of the incident.<br />
The children were engaged in free choice activity time. Ms. Tomlinson was standing<br />
near the sand table and was observing Child A and Child B (male, age 3) who were<br />
both playing at the sand table. I observed the sand pail that was involved during the<br />
incident. The pail was small, approximately pint- sized. Child A was bent over, and<br />
Child B threw the pail which had sand inside. The sand got on the clothes and head<br />
of Child A. Ms. Tomlinson stated that Child B was a new student to the program and<br />
didn’t know the rules regarding appropriate behavior at the sand table. Child B was<br />
redirected to another area while Ms. Tomlinson took Child A to the restroom to<br />
wipe/wash the sand out of Child A’s hair with water. Child A appeared fine, and<br />
didn’t appear to have any issues with breathing or injuries of any kind, which was the<br />
reason an accident report was not completed. Ms. Tomlinson stated that although a<br />
written report was not completed, she called Child A’s mother to verbally report the<br />
incident and to let her know that she would need to shampoo Child A’s hair. Ms.<br />
Tomlinson stated that her shift ends prior to Child A’s pick-up time and wanted to<br />
ensure Child A’s mother was made aware of the incident.<br />
APPLICABLE RULE<br />
R 400.5105 Supervision and ratio requirements.<br />
ANALYSIS:<br />
CONCLUSION:<br />
(1) The center shall provide appropriate care and supervision of<br />
children at all times.<br />
The center provided appropriate care and supervision of Child A<br />
when he got sand in his hair.<br />
VIOLATION NOT ESTABLISHED<br />
5
Allegation: On 5/3/2013 Child A was observed with a red mark in between his<br />
eyes alleged from him falling.<br />
INVESTIGATION:<br />
Child A’s mother stated that on May 3, 2013, at pick-up time she was given an<br />
incident report which stated that Child A fell outside at 1:50pm. Child A’s mother<br />
observed her child to have a bump on his head and scrapes in between his eyes<br />
near his nose. She usually arrives between 2:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. and is unsure if this<br />
is the reason they did not notify her by phone.<br />
I interviewed Ms. Sharp regarding this injury. She was aware of the injury and<br />
stated that Ms. Tomlinson was Child A’s caregiver during the injury. Ms. Sharp was<br />
unable to locate the accident report for Child A during my onsite inspection and<br />
indicated that the report was located at another office. Ms. Sharp confirmed that<br />
Child A’s mother was not verbally notified during this injury to Child A’s face. Ms.<br />
Sharp deemed that Child A’s injury was not serious, and according to the center’s<br />
policy verbal and written notification is only completed for head injuries and severe<br />
face injuries. Otherwise, parents are informed at pick-up time.<br />
Child A’s mother provided a copy of the accident report. I reviewed the accident<br />
report for this injury which stated that on May 3, 2013 at 1:50 p.m., Child A was<br />
hopping from log to log when he lost his balance and fell, bumping the bridge of his<br />
nose on the edge of the log. There was a red mark on his nose between his eyes<br />
with some swelling to the nose despite icing the area. The parent notification<br />
section was left blank on the accident report. The incident report does not indicate<br />
any bump on Child A’s head which is inconsistent with information provided by Child<br />
A’s mother.<br />
I interviewed Ms. Tomlinson regarding the injury. She estimated that there were<br />
seven to eight children total on the playground. Attendance records confirm that<br />
there were eight children with Ms. Tomlinson and assistant caregiver Kristy<br />
Poznanski. The eight children were separated into two groups. Ms. Tomlinson’s<br />
group was playing in the natural playground area consisting of tree stumps of<br />
various sizes. The children were going from stump to stump in a circle. Ms.<br />
Tomlinson had her back turned to Child A as she was assisting another child with<br />
the stump activity. She didn’t actually witness the fall but heard him crying and<br />
assumed he lost his balance going from stump to stump. She assisted in helping<br />
Child A stand up and began caring for him. She observed a mark located on the<br />
bridge of his nose between his eyes. She applied ice to the area to reduce the<br />
swelling.<br />
I interviewed Ms. Poznanski who confirmed that she was the assistant caregiver with<br />
Mary during this incident. There were approximately eight children outside, and they<br />
6
were divided into two groups. Her group of children was by the cement area using<br />
sidewalk chalk located on the opposite side of the outdoor play area. She did not<br />
witness Child A fall, and she was unable to provide any additional information<br />
regarding the injury.<br />
I inspected the outdoor play area and observed the tree stumps which were sturdy<br />
and in a circular pattern. I did not observe any areas that appeared to be hazardous<br />
or unsafe for large muscle activities.<br />
I reviewed Child A’s physical exam which indicated that he has been diagnosed with<br />
a medical condition, but the medical condition would not restrict Child A from any<br />
activities. Ms. Tomlinson described Child A’s large muscle development as not fully<br />
coordinated and stated that at times he has erratic movements, but did not feel that<br />
this limited his abilities to run or jump…etc. Ms. Sharp stated that Child A’s delays in<br />
development were mostly due to his speech and not his large muscle abilities. She<br />
described his motor development as more reserved in that he was not as active as<br />
some of the other boys.<br />
I interviewed Child A’s mother who denied that Child A has any coordination delays.<br />
She stated that he runs fast and is not limited in any way physically by his medical<br />
condition. She denied that the log activity would be something that he was unable to<br />
do developmentally.<br />
APPLICABLE RULE<br />
R 400.5105 Supervision and ratio requirements.<br />
ANALYSIS:<br />
CONCLUSION:<br />
(1) The center shall provide appropriate care and supervision of<br />
children at all times.<br />
The center provided appropriate supervision of Child A when he<br />
fell during the tree stump activity.<br />
VIOLATION NOT ESTABLISHED<br />
7
Allegation: On 5/6/2013 Child A was observed with a knot on his head,<br />
scratches on his nose and his top lip alleged from him pushing a toy and the<br />
toy stopped, which caused him to fall and hit the concrete.<br />
INVESTIGATION:<br />
Child A’s mother stated that she received a telephone call from Ms. Tomlinson who<br />
reported that Child A fell while pushing a toy. He fell and hit his face on the cement.<br />
When Child A was picked up from the center he had scratches from the middle to<br />
the left side of his face, scratches on his nose and surrounding the nose area, and a<br />
bump on his forehead. She also noticed woodchips on his clothes. Child A’s mother<br />
took him to an urgent care in Grosse Pointe Woods for treatment the same day.<br />
They checked his vision which was fine. She was told to monitor him for 24 hours<br />
and was told what signs to look for if a concussion has occurred. Child A’s mother<br />
stated she met with Ms. Sharp the next day and the director appeared nonchalant<br />
after she reported that she took Child A to urgent care. Child A’s mother stated<br />
that she liked Ms. Tomlinson as her child’s caregiver and didn’t think that Ms.<br />
Tomlinson was intentionally allowing things to happen to her child, but felt she could<br />
no longer trust them to care for her child.<br />
I interviewed Ms. Sharp regarding the injury. She stated that he was outside playing<br />
with a bull dozer truck. The scoop at the end of the truck got caught on the cement<br />
and the momentum pitched him forward. His face slid on the ground. She stated<br />
that Child A didn’t appear upset. She observed that his forehead, nose and upper lip<br />
were all scraped. She also observed a goose egg bump on his head. Ms. Sharp<br />
was not able to locate the accident report for this injury during the onsite inspection.<br />
Ms. Sharp confirmed that she met with Child A’s mother the following day, and she<br />
withdrew him from the program. She was informed at the meeting that Child A was<br />
taken to his pediatrician. I asked Ms. Sharp if she reported the injury to her<br />
consultant Jennifer DeMunyck. She stated that she didn’t report the injury to the<br />
consultant, “they only applied antibiotic ointment. I didn’t think this was something<br />
that needed to be reported”. Ms. Sharp was informed that any medical treatment<br />
that a child receives as a result of an injury that occurs while in care is considered a<br />
serious accident.<br />
I interviewed Ms. Tomlinson who confirmed that this accident occurred on the<br />
outdoor playground area. She was on the playground with her assistant Ms.<br />
Poznanski and estimated that they had approximately seven to eight preschool-age<br />
children at the time of the incident. She was re-entering the outdoor play area after<br />
taking a child indoors to the restroom. As she stepped out of the door she witnessed<br />
Child A scooting/pushing a toy tow truck on the cement trike area. The tow truck<br />
had a scooper attached to the front of it that got caught on a crack in the sidewalk.<br />
She witnessed Child A fall over the top of the truck but was unable to get to him<br />
before his face hit the ground.<br />
8
Ms. Tomlinson stated that Child A had a huge abrasion on his forehead, nose, and<br />
above his lip. She observed a “goose-egg” sized bump on his forehead. Child A<br />
had very little bleeding according to Ms. Tomlinson. She put ice on his head and<br />
called his mother approximately 10 to 15 minutes after the injury when she finished<br />
caring for Child A. Ms. Tomlinson stated that she felt horrible that this injury<br />
happened, but she understood the mother’s decision to withdraw him from the<br />
center.<br />
I interviewed Ms. Poznanski, who was the other caregiver on the playground when<br />
the incident occurred. There were approximately eight to nine children on the<br />
playground at the time of the injury. She confirmed that Ms. Tomlinson went inside<br />
the building to get Kleenex for a child and was re-entering the outdoor play area<br />
when the injury occurred. Ms. Poznanski stated there were a few boys including<br />
Child A playing with the trucks in the wood chips. Child A left the wood chip area<br />
and began pushing his truck on the cement area. As he was pushing the truck the<br />
scoop of the truck got caught in the cement crack and he fell forward scraping his<br />
face.<br />
On May 14, 2013 Child A’s mother emailed pictures of Child A’s injuries, which were<br />
consistent with his face being scraped. I observed a long and deep horizontal<br />
scrape, which removed skin on his forehead that extended from the middle of his<br />
forehead to the end of his left eyebrow. There was also a deep scrape that<br />
extended vertically from the bridge of the nose and extended just above the lip area.<br />
APPLICABLE RULE<br />
R 400.5105 Supervision and ratio requirements.<br />
ANALYSIS:<br />
CONCLUSION:<br />
(1) The center shall provide appropriate care and supervision of<br />
children at all times.<br />
The center provided appropriate care and supervision of Child A<br />
when a toy he was pushing got caught on a crack in the cement,<br />
and he fell onto the cement.<br />
VIOLATION NOT ESTABLISHED<br />
9
APPLICABLE RULE<br />
R 400.5111a(1)<br />
Accident, injury, illness, death reporting.<br />
(1) The center shall make a verbal report to the department<br />
within 24 hours of a serious injury, or accident, or a serious<br />
illness or medical condition occurring while a child is in care that<br />
results in emergency medical treatment at a health facility or<br />
hospitalization, or death.<br />
ANALYSIS:<br />
CONCLUSION:<br />
The center did not make a verbal report to the department<br />
within 24 hours to report a serious injury to Child A’s face which<br />
required medical treatment.<br />
VIOLATION ESTABLISHED<br />
R 400.5111a(2)<br />
ANALYSIS:<br />
CONCLUSION:<br />
Accident, injury, illness, death reporting.<br />
(2) The center shall submit a written report in a format provided<br />
by the department within 72 hours of a serious injury or<br />
accident, or a serious or medical condition which results in<br />
emergency medical treatment at a health facility or<br />
hospitalization, or death. A copy of the report shall be kept on<br />
file at the center.<br />
The center did not submit a written report to the department<br />
within 72 hours of Child A having a serious injury while in care<br />
that required treatment at a health facility.<br />
VIOLATION ESTABLISHED<br />
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IV.<br />
RECOMMENDATION<br />
Upon receipt of an acceptable corrective action plan, I recommend continuation of<br />
the current status of the license of this child care center.<br />
LaTonya Kegler<br />
Licensing Consultant<br />
08/05/2013<br />
Date<br />
Approved By:<br />
08/06/2013<br />
________________________________________<br />
Jacquelin Sharkey<br />
Date<br />
Area Manager<br />
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