September is baby safety month, and Safety 1st Consumer Safety Expert, Julie Vallese can help with some incredible tips for parents when the leave their baby with a sitter.
Contact Information
Before leaving your child with someone, you and your sitter should always be prepared for any situation.
- Leave contact information available for your babysitter. Provide your sitter with a note that includes your cell phone, the baby’s doctor and a back-up person to contact, such as a friend or neighbor. Put this list in an easy to find spot like the fridge.
- Leave the baby’s insurance card and health information with your sitter. You should also leave a written and signed note authorizing your sitter to use this insurance card if your child needs to be taken to the emergency room for any reason.
- Make sure your cell phone is fully charged and on in case your sitter needs to contact you.
- Most importantly, make sure the sitter knows to contact 911 immediately if there is an emergency. It is also best to have a sitter call from a home phone so emergency responders can pin-point her exact location.
Important Items
Before you leave, walk the sitter through the house, showing her what she’ll need in the kitchen, your child’s room, and play toys.
- Having a monitor on hand will help keep your sitter at ease while the baby is sleeping in another room. Make sure a monitor is set up and the sitter knows how to use it.
- Inform your sitter about the dangers of cords. Never put the infant portion of the monitoring system too close to the crib or play yard. Babies can get strangled in the cords – keep all monitors at least 6 feet away.
- In addition to a monitor, you’ll want to make sure you have a thermometer or a Baby Care Essentials kit handy, just in case.
- The Safety 1st Baby Care Essentials is great for traveling, and also makes it easy for a sitter to have important items, band-aids or alcohol wipes all in one spot – without having to search through a drawer or cabinet.
Rules: Stay on the Same Page
Children are very smart, and toddlers can figure out how to get away with more when the rules are inconsistent.
- If a child is not allowed to eat certain foods make sure you let your sitter know.
- Keep nap and bedtime consistent.
- Keep your sitter aware of the house rules so your child doesn’t try to get away with something.
