| Shop our Mom-Tastic Bookshelf
|
| Blog about Mom Business at The MomTini Lounge
|
Mom-Tastic Magazines and Websites
|
|
Safety First
Medical Issues
Recalls
Even though most moms aren’t
doctors, we sure feel like medical pros at times when cleaning, bandaging,
medicating. Here’s a quick primer on
some of the important areas.
|
Safety First
Safety is such an important and often overlooked area of our job, probably because it’s uncomfortable to think about. Here are some quick tips:
- Take CPR classes at various stages & refresh your skills (infant, toddler, etc.).
- Maintain and update important information, and make sure babysitters know where to find it. Check out our Emergency Numbers Chart that includes information such as 911, non-emergency police, poison control, pediatrician, dentist and hospital.
- Ask your local police department or baby store when the next car seat installations are taking place. An astonishing number of car seats are improperly installed.
- As uncomfortable as it is, parents should think in advance about the unthinkable. We won’t dwell on this, but do want to give parents some tips on how to protect their children in advance so that important information will be stored in the event of a kidnapping.
- Fingerprinting – Local police departments offer an official profile questionnaire for parents to fill out with identification information on each child (hair and eye color, height and weight, birthmarks or physical traits).
- DNA collection. Free kits now are available to parents and are easy to do at home.
- Video updates. Photographs alone are not enough to give the authorities a good picture of your child. Record a video update of your child each year using our Video Interview Template. This is also a great way to create a movie “baby book” through the years, tracking the kids’ favorite toys and friends, as well as their speech patterns and mannerisms.
- Essentials - Again, we could write an entire website on safety, but two items you absolutely must have and maintain are fire detectors and carbon monoxide detectors. A good rule of thumb is to always change batteries even if they’re not due when you change the clocks twice of year. Carbon monoxide poisoning is getting a lot of play in the news as the “silent killer.” More information available at the EPA’s website. Detectors are available at your local home improvement or household store. A Business of Motherhood Tip: If your detector shows elevated levels, protocol, believe it or not, is to call 911. Yes, they’ll bring sirens & fire trucks (the kids love this), but most importantly, they bring special meters which can find the source.
[back to top]
|
|
Medical Issues - Getting the Prescription Right
We’re certainly not doctors, but we can be good at managing the important information in this area of our life:
- Check-up checklist – Children need to visit a pediatrician annually. Schedule 2-3 months in advance to get the best appointment time, and find a place to keep track of questions you have in advance so you’re prepared and make the best use of the pediatrician’s valuable time.
- Keeping track of important information – Check out one of my favorite charts is the Medical History chart. Here, you keep an internal medical history including blood type and major illness/medication. This is extremely helpful and has many applications:
- First, when kids are young, they tend to get more than one occurrence of certain types of illnesses. For example, ear infections can hit multiple times, and keeping track of the dates & medication used is very helpful, especially when you’re sitting in a doctor’s office with a miserable child trying to figure out what to use next. Our doctors love this chart, because it gives us all immediate access to the major medical history and has helped determine which antibiotic to move to next.
- Next, as you know, kids’ medical charts are thick – even with the computer age, it’s not easy to quickly find the major medical events. This is your quick, easy reference.
- When to call the doctor – Typically, if a child has a fever, rash, or a marked change in any area, I like to call the doctor! Certainly, you know your child best, but my philosophy is that your family pediatrician is best suited to walk you through medical issues vs. waiting in an emergency room full of sick adults!
- Medicine Tips - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research published a very useful article with a host of helpful tips on over-the-counter medicines, titled, “Kids Aren't Just Small Adults; Medicines, Children and the Care Every Child Deserves”
- Temperatures - how to read/adjust underarm, oral, and rectal numbers. The website, Kid's Health, has a great description, along with the following guide to what constitutes a fever:
- 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) measured rectally (in the bottom)
- 99.5 degrees Fahrenheit (37.5 degrees Celsius) measured orally (in the mouth)
- 99 degrees Fahrenheit (37.2 degrees Celsius) measured in an axillary position (under the arm)
I also like Tylenol’s website, which has excellent information on how to take temperatures.
- First Aid Kit for Car – Buy one, put it in your trunk, and keep it filled! Any drug store or home store sells this. Tip: I like to add the super large bandages and a tube of Neosporin ointment for skinned knees or elbows. Also, a tube of plain toothpaste or some Baking soda are good to take the ouch out of bee stings.
- Check out MommyDocs, a fantastic interactive website written by two Mommy Pediatricians. There's a chance to "Ask the MDs,"; listen to Podcasts about medical issues; and more.
- Also online, Parenting Magazine’s website has lots of great articles posted on Health issues.
|
|
It seems overwhelming to keep up with it all, but check out the following useful links:
|
Disclaimer: The content presented in this website is intended to provide ideas and resources. Expert sources have been consulted in certain areas (medical, legal, i.e.), but the author of this website is not a doctor or lawyer, and readers are encouraged to seek professional assistance whenever needed.
|
|
