Emergency info for babysitters: we'll need to do this and, like, post it on fridge.

[azurelunatic]

LF's full name, birthday, SSN, weight (~60 lbs), height, school, immunizations, current meds if any.
Parents' names & so forth. (just votania at moment but also us as we are, you know, Family.)
Doctor info -- name, phone number, address.
Hospital name, phone numbers, address.
Parents' medical preferences for kid
Allergies, phobias, etc.
Parents' medical info.
Pets' medical info (like if shammash or eris_raven gets badly hurt while a babysitter was on watch)

Edit: This is because I was thinking that my household needs to collect all this info and put it in a prominent place where a babysitter can find it. Heck, where *I* can find it, because I don't know all that stuff.

'Cause last night, amberfox's son had to go to the ER because he got one of his grandma's blood pressure pills instead of his own meds. His mom was the one who had to call Poison Control, because she was the only one who knew what meds he was on, what he weighed, and so forth -- and there are like 3 other adults in that household. What if she hadn't been there?

Comments

[azurelunatic]

Yeah. Regular doctor number, emergency doctor number, poison control center number...

[dawn-again.livejournal.com]

I was a long-term 'sitter in my early teens (closer to an au pair or nanny really, I did daily jobs, overnights, weekends. Usually infants through pre-schoolers) and I used to actually have a FORM I gave parents to fill out with all that information.

One thing to include if you're talking about sitters, is the name and phone number of the physically closest nearest legal relative, in case (gods forbid) a true medical emergency happens. I never needed to use that bit of info, but it was good to have. Something to check on is the local laws regarding authorising emergency medical care by non-relations if there is a non-relative in a primary care position.

The other item was the schedule. Oh yes. Must have the child's schedule. Bedtime, homework-time, game-time, approved snacks... as well as detailed info on the form of discipline prefered in the household, whether the time-out or the spanking.

It was probably very anal of me, but it got me more work than I could handle, being able to go meet a parent and say, ok this is the info I need to have before you leave your child with me, please fill these out. I always treated it like a job interview, which in retrospect, it is. People respected that, and it showed my level of responsibility. So even at thirteen I was pretty well sought after.

Heee! I still have a file somewhere in my Gramma's house with my 'sitter's references.

[noveldevice.livejournal.com]

This is a great idea.

You've inspired an article

[mama-hogswatch.livejournal.com]

You've brought up an extremely important point. I'm putting this in Easy Way Out, maybe on the OLQ site to get the word out faster. This is CRUCIAL in poly families where things like that are not memorized by everyone. Mind if I comment that you were the one who brought it up?

Re: You've inspired an article

[azurelunatic]

No problem.

[kayre]

I'd agree with everything except possibly the SSN. It's really not necessary for medical treatment, and too much bad stuff can happen if that number is too easily available.

[azurelunatic]

Good point.

[apollo2516.livejournal.com]

Interesting point, but I know because of all the stuff about Elizabeth Smart (or whatever her name was...) and because of all of the fear of identity theft, that is all very personal information, and I doubt that a family is going to hand that over to a baby sitter, unless the baby sitter happened to be a friend of the family......

[azurelunatic]

All our babysitters to date have been friends of the family.