The House Manual App Caregiver Series
Does Your Babysitter Know Where The Fire Extinguisher Is?
Learn how to give caregivers all the resources they need to successfully meet your expectations and be perfectly prepared for emergencies
Managing caregivers can be an exceptionally difficult task. Maintaining the delicate balance of providing everything needed in an up-to-date package that can be easily referenced is an ongoing challenge. The basic information is easy to get across. But giving them all the resources they need to truly succeed and meet your expectations is tough. And what if the worst happens?
My wife and I have two young kids and I often think about preventing emergencies when we hire a baby sitter. If well equipped, a babysitter can handle most issues without a problem. But there are so many obscure things that can come up, how can you cover them all?
If well equipped, a babysitter can handle most issues without a problem. But there are so many obscure things that can come up, how can you cover them all?
Writing instructions down in a notebook can get out of date quickly and likely isn’t going to get read. It is also useless if the babysitter and the kids are out. Emails are an option, but they often become long and cumbersome, aren’t searchable, and it can feel a little insecure to share that much information in such a permanent way.
We’ve often told ourselves that should an issue occur, that we’re just a call away. But the truth is, it’s easy to miss a call in a movie or a loud restaurant. Plus even if you did hear the call, time-sensitive issues would better be served by a perfectly prepared caregiver, not someone who needs verbal guidance on how to find the epi-pen.
Fortunately, we have been creating the ultimate caregiver resource in the House Manual app. It makes it so that all the information you document for yourselves can be privately selected and shared with caregivers as well. Think home safety information, kids’ medical records, emergency water and gas shutoffs, phone numbers, activity schedules, routines and more all documented in one place and temporarily sharable with anyone.
The beauty is that with House Manual, a caregiver doesn’t have to read everything at once, they can simply use it as a reference and search for the item they need when they need it. It works on any device, including every smartphone (iOS, Android, or anything else), and is available wherever they are. It is updated in real-time. So if a soccer practice pickup time is changed, or information about your outing is updated, you can post it in real-time for the caregiver to see.
One time we had the carbon monoxide alarm malfunction while on a date night and screech through the house non-stop. It wasn’t a serious emergency, but it did require me to come home…and for the baby sitter and kids to wait outside while I sorted it out. We could have easily written it down in the babysitter email, but that level of detail could lead to a pretty long read! Plus it is so obscure that we just didn’t think of it. But the truth was that our whole household should know what the alarm means for one and how to manage it if it malfunctions again, as they tend to do.
So now you can leave your babysitter or any other caregiver with as much information as they’ll ever need in just a few taps. Any House Manual Posts (your notes about a specific item) can be shared as a group and then viewed on any device securely and privately. You can send the link through email, text, WhatsApp or any other communication channel you use. The recipient will have instant access free without having to download an app or create an account.
Once you decide you no longer want to share that information with the recipient, simply delete the private sharing group and they instantly lose access. It is the perfect way to be organized, save time and protect the things that you love.
So go have that stress free date night. You deserve it!
Jamie
Written by James Copeland who flies planes and designed awesome apps for a living (founder of SwiftHarbour.com and HouseManual.app)
Private sharing in House Manual is a perfect way to quickly and temporarily provide caregivers, house guests, contractors and more the information they need about your household and home in a safe and easy to use way. The new version of House Manual, including the highly anticipated private sharing feature, will be launching soon. Stay up to date at https://www.housemanual.app/v1-1. You can download the current version of the House Manual app (for iOS) from the app store here.
Great Articles on what information to leave for a babysitter
- What Info do you Leave for a Babysitter? (Parent Checklist) (kidsit.com) — Give your babysitter all the information they need by printing out our handy parent details form. Never forget important instructions.
- Follow This Checklist For Your Nanny’s First Day On The Job — Care … (care.com) — Once you’ve found the perfect nanny for your family, you know it. It’s an exciting time, and sometimes important tasks can get lost in the mix. It’s easy enough to remember background checks and pay negotiations, but have you explained all the specific rules, like screen time guidelines, or showed her …
- This Is Information to Leave for Babysitter When You Go Out (mommybites.com) — Concerned mothers often wonder what information to leave for a babysitter. See what this parenting expert puts in her notes for her babysitter.
- Emergency Contact Lists: What Information Do Babysitters And … (care.com) — As a babysitter or nanny, your ultimate priority is the children’s safety. Here’s what to ask families to include on their emergency lists. Emergency lists are needed for just that — an emergency. As a babysitter or nanny, it’s your responsibility to be prepared for emergency situations, so if a …
- This is How a Nanny Share Actually Works! — Nanny Counsel (nannycounsel.com) — Here’s the deal, I love the idea of a nanny share in concept, however, I have never accepted a nanny share job offer because the parents and I have always differed on what exactly that concept is. I have yet to meet a parent who fully understands how a nanny share should work. I know that there are amazing parents out there who know the true definition of a nanny share and do it correctly, but they are few and far between.
- Babysitter information checklist (babycenter.com) — Use BabyCenter’s checklist to find out the essential information every babysitter should have.
- Nanny Sharing: Pros, Cons, & How-To — The CanadianNanny.ca Blog (canadiannanny.ca) — Childcare can be expensive; many daycares across the country charge hefty fees that pose a challenge to families. While nannies can often offer the same care services for less, many families may not require a full-time care provider. This is where…
- 13 Qualities All Good Babysitters Share (Do You Have What It Takes?) (kidsit.com) — We look at some of the key qualities that parents look for, and you should have if you want to be a successful babysitter!
- Babysitter Checklist: What Info Do You Leave for a Sitter? (sittercity.com) — What should you leave for a babysitter? Our babysitter checklist for parents will give you ideas from the basics to full reports. Read more.
- 10 Steps to a Successful Nanny Share — The CanadianNanny.ca Blog (canadiannanny.ca) — At CanadianNanny.ca, we have seen an increase in families looking to nanny share as their childcare solution. Using our service, registered families are able to use our Nanny Share section for free. They can post an ad for other families to see;…
- Nanny Shares — Childcare.co.uk (childcare.co.uk) — Childcare.co.uk is the UK’s leading childcare platform. Search over a million Babysitters, Nannies, Registered Childminders and Childcare Jobs. Find a local Babysitter, Nanny, or Childminder and view thousands of Nanny Jobs online.
- Social Media Guidelines You Should Share with Your Babysitter … (govloop.com) — In the age of evolving digital technology, social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and countless other outlets have become a mode of communication among people. Through these social media platforms, sharing information has become practically instantaneous. Sharing your own information about your family is perfectly acceptable, but not when you are not around them… Read more »
- Macdonald Headingley Recreation District • Program Information … (mhrd.ca) -
- Macdonald Headingley Recreation District • Program Information … (mhrd.ca) -
- Macdonald Headingley Recreation District • Program Information … (mhrd.ca) -
- Don’t Ask Me For My Babysitter’s Name. DON’T. — Keeper of the Fruit … (keeperofthefruitloops.com) — I keep the name of our babysitter a closely guarded secret. I can’t take the chance our sitter will choose you, your higher pay and your better cable.
Topics
- Caregiver
- House Manual
- Baby sitter
- Phone numbers
- emergency phone numbers
- contact information
- cell phone
- house rules
- poison control
- medical conditions
- Medical information
- phone call
- food allergies
- Nanny Share
- home address
- important course
- online registration window
- calendar program
- close friend
- parenting
- Parenting Styles
- beginning babysitter
- Bedtime Routine
- favorite toys
- family member
- power outage
- water bottle
- contact list
- Social Media Guidelines
- child care
- extra clothes
