Current daycare costs far exceed the income of parents, leading them to resort to alternative care providers. The introduction of a pilot program may resolve space shortages, but may also hold potential as revealed in McLaren, Zarrabi, Dutton, Auld, & Emery’s 2012 article regarding the association between care type and change in childhood obesity. With slight adjustments, the pilot project could influence greater health outcomes than initially anticipated.
In November 2016, Albertan Premier, Rachel Notley, announced a new pilot project aimed to amend current child care issues; financial costs and space shortages. The $10-million program will involve 18 Alberta daycare centers offering $25-a-day care (Bellefontaine, 2016). Centers participating in the program will receive $500, 000 or more in grants in the first year, and be eligible to receive two more years of funding. In addition, the program boasts creating up to 1,000 new child spaces and 230 jobs. The program is intended to cater towards …show more content…
(2012) support a program which would increase accessibility to formal daycare. Although Notley’s program’s directive is to provide more affordable daycare for shift workers, it inadvertently endorses better health outcomes for children. Currently, many families resort to informal care programs; relatives, neighbors, or babysitters, as daycare costs exceed their income. As demonstrated by McLaren and colleagues, non-relative care increases changes in obesity percentile for boys and low SES girls. By making child care more affordable, boys and low SES girls especially benefit as placement in formal daycare lowers the possibility of becoming obese. McLaren et al. (2012) mentions how the absence of an adverse effect in formal care is a “potentially under-exploited opportunity for health promotion”. Notley’s program shows promise, but could be expanded to increase effectiveness beyond affordability and transition towards a health promotion
In November 2016, Albertan Premier, Rachel Notley, announced a new pilot project aimed to amend current child care issues; financial costs and space shortages. The $10-million program will involve 18 Alberta daycare centers offering $25-a-day care (Bellefontaine, 2016). Centers participating in the program will receive $500, 000 or more in grants in the first year, and be eligible to receive two more years of funding. In addition, the program boasts creating up to 1,000 new child spaces and 230 jobs. The program is intended to cater towards …show more content…
(2012) support a program which would increase accessibility to formal daycare. Although Notley’s program’s directive is to provide more affordable daycare for shift workers, it inadvertently endorses better health outcomes for children. Currently, many families resort to informal care programs; relatives, neighbors, or babysitters, as daycare costs exceed their income. As demonstrated by McLaren and colleagues, non-relative care increases changes in obesity percentile for boys and low SES girls. By making child care more affordable, boys and low SES girls especially benefit as placement in formal daycare lowers the possibility of becoming obese. McLaren et al. (2012) mentions how the absence of an adverse effect in formal care is a “potentially under-exploited opportunity for health promotion”. Notley’s program shows promise, but could be expanded to increase effectiveness beyond affordability and transition towards a health promotion