Child Care Nurse Consultant Program
Healthy Child Care Iowa and Johnson County Empowerment/Early Childhood Iowa support the Child Care Nurse Consultant (CCNC) program. CCNC's are registered nurses who are experts in child health, child care, and child safety. CCNC's assist and support child care and early education providers to meet Iowa and national health and safety standards by providing on-site and virtual visits, technical assistance, training and care planning for children with special health needs. Providers may call or email questions to a CCNC about health and safety policies, health records, health resources and specific child health or safety concerns. Contact the Johnson County Child Care Nurse Consultant at 319-688-5878
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Services provided by Child Care Nurse Consultants (CCNC) are FREE to providers in Iowa. CCNCs provide consultation, technical assistance, training, information, referral, and care planning for children with special health needs. CCNC services are voluntary and non-regulatory. The following CCNC services are available by request to support healthy and safe early learning environments:
- Direct observation and assessment of learning environments indoors and outdoors
- Observation of practices carried out by personnel (example: diapering, feeding, sanitizing, supervision)
- Iowa Quality for Kids (IQ4K) tools (Health & Safety Checklist; Medication Administration Skills Competency)
- Review of health and safety written policies
- Review of medication record forms
- Review of child injury/incident report forms
- Review of parent consent forms pertaining to health and safety of children
- Review of care plans and consultation for children with special health needs
- Review and assessment of child and personnel immunization certificates
- Review and assessment of child health physical exam forms and parent statements
- Review and assessment of employee, substitutes, and volunteers health forms
- Assist with obtaining Iowa immunization certificates
Child care providers can register for FREE virtual and in-person health and safety classes offered by the child care nurse consultant through the iPower Training Registry at https://ccmis.dhs.state.ia.us/trainingregistry/TrainingRegistry/Public/. Trainings can also be provided at your location with five or more participants.
Available trainings include:
- Back to Sleep -Tummy to Play: Reducing the Risk of SIDS & Promoting Active Tummy Time
- Breastfeeding Basics for the Childcare Provider
- Caring For Children with Allergies, Anaphylaxis and Seizures
- Caring for Children with Asthma: The Young and the Breathless
- Immunizations and Child Care
- Injury Prevention
- Medication Administration Skills
- Period of PURPLE Crying
- Playground Supervision and Sun Safety
- Save A Baby, Needle A Provider (adult immunizations)
- CPR/First Aid (hybrid with online classroom/in-person skills test) [A fee is charged for the online portion and for the CPR/First Aid card]
- C3 De-escalation for early childhood professionals
- Emergency Planning
More Information about Iowa Child Care Nurse Consultant Programs and Resources:
- For more information on Healthy Child Care Iowa (HCCI), visit the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services website here.
- More information about Johnson County Empowerment/Early Childhood Iowa (JCE/ECI) can be found here: https://www.johnsoncountyiowa.gov/empowerment-early-childhood-iowa-area
- For information on how to contact the Child Care Nurse Consultant (CCNC) nearest to you, click here
- A toll-free talk line for families and child care providers is available at 800-369-2229. Child care providers may call the talkline for health related questions or be connected with one of Iowa's child care nurse consultants (PDF). Child care providers are encouraged to inform families about the talkline. Families may use the talkline for confidential health information and referral. Multiple language interpretations are available. More information can be found at https://iowaccrr.org/providers/ccnc/
- The Caring for Our Children National Childcare Health and Safety Standards are used to determine best practices for childcare settings. This resource is available at https://nrckids.org/CFOC
Communicable Disease Guidance for Childcare:
- JCPH Childcare Facility Infection Prevention Guidance (PDF)
- Additional childcare, early education and K-12 guidance can be found at https://www.johnsoncountyiowa.gov/public-health/childcare-early-education-and-k-12-guidance
