OCDEL Announces Update to Health and Safety Pre-Service Training and PD Requirements

The Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) has announced updates to health and safety pre-service training and professional development requirements.

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The announcement provides a new two-part Health and Safety Training that must be completed by all child care providers hired on or after January 1, 2025 who have not previously completed an acceptable health and safety training.

This announcement replaces Announcements C-22-02, relating to Updates to Health and Safety Training and Professional Development Requirements, and C-22-06, relating to Updated Health and Safety Pre-Service and One-Hour Training.

Both parts of the new health and safety training will be available in Spanish.

More Details

The update applies to all DHS certified child care facilities, early learning resource centers, and OCDEL and Early Learning staff.

All current child care staff who completed the following Health and Safety Pre-Service training modules currently meet this training requirement and will not need to take the new health and safety training:

• Get Started with Center-Based Care - Revised 2022/Get Started with Home-Based Care - Revised 2022 (10 hours)

• Pennsylvania Health and Safety Update (1 hour), and any of the following courses: Health and Safety Basics: Requirements for Certification (6 hours), Get Started with Center-Based Care: Building Blocks for Quality (10 hours), Get Started with Home-Based Care: Building Blocks for Quality (10 hours)

The last day to enroll in Get Started with Center-Based Care - Revised 2022/ Get Started with Home-Based Care - Revised 2022 will be December 31. After this date, individuals who enrolled in the course prior to the deadline will have until March 31 to complete the course, as it will no longer be available after that date.

Next Steps

All DHS certified child care providers must: 

• Develop, communicate, and implement policies and procedures to adhere to regulations regarding professional development in health and safety topics

• Ensure all staff have completed and documented pre-service trainings within 90 days of employment and prior to caring for children unsupervised

• Ensure all staff have completed and documented updated Pediatric First Aid and CPR training and Mandated Reporter training prior to expiration

• For all staff, appropriate documentation and verification of pre-service and ongoing professional development training of all child care staff is retained in the facility person’s file or maintained in an electronic PD Registry

For information, read the announcement on the Pennsylvania Key website.