Helping Seniors Live Healthier Lives

How To Deal With A Medical Emergency Of Your Foster Child

Taking care of foster children can mean that you have children for a short time and on a long term basis. If you have long-term foster children, you may need to take them to their medical appointments. There is always the risk of a foster child having a medical emergency while they are at your home. If one of your foster children needs to go to the hospital immediately, here are some ways to deal with it. 

Transport them to the hospital yourself

When you have foster kids in your care, you should be acting as a parent to them. They will be under your legal care and are your responsibility. For this reason, you will need to go with them as they are transported to the hospital. Secure a babysitter for any other children that you may have in the home or take them with you if possible. Assess whether you need to call for an ambulance or if you can drive up the emergency room yourself with your child. 

Call the 24-hour case manager

All foster children will have a case manager who is handling their transition to and during foster care. Get in touch with their case manager to let them know about the medical emergency once the doctors have updated on the issue. If their case manager is not available, call the office to speak with a 24-hour case manager. Social services will need to know as soon as possible to add to the foster child's medical file. Letting them know quickly can also help the agency take care of the medical bills. 

Get documentation from the doctors and nurses

It is important that your foster kid's medical files are kept up to date. As children are growing medical issues such as allergies, internal problems, and possible diseases will be found out. These are vital to have inside of the child's records so that everyone will know their allergies, medications, and possible limitations. Medical records for one sibling can also help further siblings get tested for disorders that could be genetic. Request proper documentation from the hospital after your foster child is discharged. But these together in a folder and hand them over to the case worker. If the child is older, go over the medical information with them so that they know if they will need to stay away from certain items or so that they can watch for disease symptoms. 

It isn't always easy to know how to handle difficult situations, which is why you should consider talking with a professional at Accu-Care Nursing Service Inc.   


Share