Work-Related Child-Care Centres in Canada - 2001 : Chapter III

Chapter III : A Study of 14 Workplace Child-Care Centres in Canada

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Little Ones’ Corner - Au coin des copains
Hôpital régional de Sudbury Regional Hospital
Sudbury, Ontario

The Little One’s Corner - Au coin des copains was selected as an example of innovative child-care programming that combines the provision of child-care services with participation in the hospital’s children’s program for in-patients and out-patients.

The Employer

The Hôpital régional de Sudbury Regional Hospital (HRSRH) is one of the largest bilingual tertiary referral centres in the province of Ontario and serves as the regional resource and referral centre for approximately 690,000 residents throughout Northeastern Ontario. It has more than 600 beds, 17 surgical operating rooms, and employs close to 3,000 people.

Incorporated in 1997, the HRSRH is the result of the amalgamation of three hospitals: Sudbury General Hospital, Laurentian Hospital and Sudbury Memorial Hospital. The HRSRH provides the people in the Sudbury region and Northeastern Ontario with comprehensive and co-ordinated health care and supports them in attaining optimal health within an integrated regional health care system.

As an employer, the hospital promotes the same high health standards among its workforce. Thus, employees have programs available to them that encourage health, well-being and positive stress management. Also, to help employees juggle the responsibilities of work and personal life, HRSRH offers a variety of work arrangements: flexible work schedules, telework, job sharing and part-time work. Along with these arrangements, an on-site child-care centre, the Little One’s Corner - Au coin des copains, is available for hospital employees.

The Child-Care Centre

History

In 1985, a committee was set up to arrange for the establishment of a child-care centre within the hospital. The purposes of the project were to offer parents quality child care, to help parents juggle their dual responsibilities as workers and parents and to reduce absenteeism due to family-related responsibilities. The work of the committee was suspended at one point, but it resumed in 1987. After four years of planning and consultation, the Little Ones’ Corner - Au coin des copains opened its doors in 1991.

Some 80% of the child-care centre’s start-up costs of about $778,000 was covered by the Ministry of Community and Social Services. A contribution from the hospital took care of the rest.

Operation of the Centre

The child-care centre is bilingual. All through the day, children are spoken to in both English and French. For 20 minutes each day, the francophone preschoolers join a separate circle where they interact in French and learn French songs. This group also eats lunch together. The Little Ones’ Corner - Au coin des copains is located across the street from the hospital, and it serves primarily the children of hospital employees and other workers who have some kind of affiliation with the hospital. The services of the centre are also available to members of the community, although children of hospital staff and of workers who are affiliated with the hospital have priority.

The child-care centre’s operational costs are primarily covered by the fees parents pay. The regional government contributes through a wage enhancement subsidy of $7,000 per year for each staff member, along with subsidies for low-income families. Fund-raising organized by a parents’ advisory committee provides additional revenue.

In the centre, children are divided into four groups: infants, toddlers, preschool children and school-age children up to nine years old who come to the centre before and after school. The centre offers many enrolment options: full-time, part-time, varying schedule, shared space and temporary care. The hours of operation are from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

The parent advisory committee consists of eight parents who meet with the child-care supervisor each month. This committee makes decisions on programming, outings, fund-raising and social events and discusses parents’ concerns or suggestions.

All parents can participate in outings and social events such as the Parent/Teacher Night, which happens twice each year. They are also encouraged to attend workshops held by the child-care centre on a variety of subjects relating to parenting and parenting skills. These workshops can be initiated by the parents or the centre’s staff.

The Relationship Between the Child-Care Centre and the Employer

As a result of a recent restructuring of the hospital’s departments, the Little One’s Corner - Au coin des copains was administratively linked to the In-patient Paediatric Unit, the Regional Children’s Treatment Centre and the Regional Infant Development Program to form the HRSRH’s Family and Child Program. The In patient Paediatric Unit is supported by a wide range of speciality children’s clinics, including a cystic fibrosis and a rheumatology clinic. The Regional Children’s Treatment Centre offers a wide range of rehabilitation services to physically challenged children. The Regional Infant Development Program offers in-home visits, developmental assessments, individual program plans and training to parents and caregivers.

The rationale behind the regrouping of all these services was to treat children in a holistic way. Thus, the child-care centre provides not only regular care to preschool and school-aged children, but also special services to children with disabilities. In-patient children visit the centre, accompanied by qualified staff. These visits allow doctors to monitor a child’s health while he or she is interacting with other children.

On one occasion, a child who was lacking in motor skills needed the help of a walker and a special sign-language teacher. A program assistant from the Regional Child Care Resources — an umbrella agency bringing together child-care centres in the Sudbury Manitoulin region — worked with the child-care staff to teach them the skills necessary to care for her. The staff designed a special book with pictures of the child’s daily activities, which allowed her to express her needs by pointing to various images.

The centre also has a close relationship with many of the hospital’s other departments such as Human Resources.

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