Emergency Contacts

Babysitting Co-op Basics: Emergency Contacts

When you have your initial start-up meeting for your co-op, you should collect emergency contact information from each parent. If there's an emergency while your child is at someone's house, the person in charge of that babysitting shift needs someone to reach if you're not accessible via your home phone or cell phone.

If your co-op has been operating for a while, it may be time to update your emergency contact information. Next time you have a calendaring meeting, have everyone update that information. Neighbors and friends come and go, and some of that emergency contact information may no longer be valid.

It's best to let your emergency contact person know that you're using them as your emergency contact. This probably goes without saying, but you don't want your sister or neighbor to be utterly shocked when they get a call saying your child is on the way to the emergency room.

In all the years we've been involved with babysitting co-op, we've never had an incident where medical attention was required, but it's best to be prepared for anything.