Wisconsin Department of Children and Families - Division of Early Care and Education
Bureau of Early Care Regulation
Child Care Certification Policy Manual
DCF 202.08(1)(b)2. States:
Training: 2. Department−approved training on shaken baby syndrome, abusive head trauma, and appropriate ways to manage crying, fussing, or distraught children is required, as follows:
a. Prior to certification for each child care operator.
b. Prior to beginning to work with children in care for each provider, including volunteers, substitutes, and emergency back-up providers, or any other person who provides care and supervision for children under 5 years of age.
The requirement for SBS Prevention Training went into effect in April 2007 to comply with the Wisconsin Legislature’s 2006 Prevent Violence Against Children Act. The Act required that all child care providers working with children under age 5 years receive training in Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) Prevention and how to manage crying, fussing or distraught children. SBS Prevention training materials were developed jointly by the former Children's Trust Fund and other state agencies.
In 2020 Shaken Baby Syndrome Prevention Training for Child Care Providers has been updated and renamed Abusive Head Trauma Prevention Training for Child Care Providers. The new Abusive Head Trauma Prevention Training was developed by the Wisconsin Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Board (CANPB) and the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF), in consultation with the National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome. It includes a lot of important new information.
Shaken Baby Syndrome is one form of Abusive Head Trauma (AHT). AHT also includes injury, not only to the brain but also the skull and spinal cord, which can result from shaking or from inflicting trauma on the head by other means such as throwing, intentionally dropping, striking or other forms of impact. Abusive Head Trauma Prevention Training for Child Care Providers addresses the latest information on:
Abusive Head Trauma (AHT)
The Period of Purple Crying
Strategies and challenges of soothing
Coping with frustration
Having a plan and educating others
Participants completing the class will be issued a new AHT Prevention Certificate of Completion, with one exception: When AHT training is given as part of the department-approved, entry-level classes Introduction to the Child Care Profession and Fundamentals of Infant and Toddler Care, a Registry Certificate or an individual’s learning record from the Wisconsin Registry will be accepted as verification.
Please note the AHT Prevention Certificate of Completion will have a new look. Any trainings conducted on or after September 1, 2020, that use the old SBS curriculum or result in an old SBS Certificate of Completion will not be accepted as meeting the Child Care Certification and Licensing training requirements.
In October 2020, the Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Board and DCF developed an online AHT Prevention Training for Child Care Providers. The online training is free, takes approximately 30-45 minutes to complete and results in a certificate of completion. Instructions for completing the training and a link to the online training are available on the department’s AHT Prevention Training for Child Care Providers web page.
3.2 AHT/SBS Pre-Training Video
3.3 AHT/SBS in Department-Approved Entry Level Training
3.4 AHT/SBS in High School Curriculum
3.5 SBS Information Provided to Parents by Hospitals/Physicians
3.6 Documentation of AHT/SBS Training
3.6.1 AHT/SBS Backdating Certificate Approval
3.7 AHT/SBS Requirements for Substitutes and Other Providers
This page last updated 11/2021.