The holiday season is fast approaching and the long-awaited Winter Break is nearly upon us. Families often plan vacations around this time to take a much needed reset for the second half of the school year. If you are vacationing with your children, as parents, you always ensure that your kids’ medical needs are taken care of, whether that be refilling needed prescriptions or going to urgent care when a medical concern should arise. As the parent or guardian, you have the inherent legal authority to get your kids the medical treatment they need at any point in time, whether you are in town or whether you are in another state or country.
But what if you are going on a trip without your kids? What if you are sending your child on a ski trip with his or her friend’s family? What if you are going to be leaving your loved ones in the hands of a relative or friend while you and your spouse or significant other go on that ski trip? Do you know what might happen if your child breaks a leg playing on the playground or ski hill without you? What if he or she has a medical emergency and needs their appendix removed while in the care of that person? What if your child misplaces his prescription medication and you need an emergency refill? The possibilities are endless which may necessitate medical care for your child while you are not around.
You might be surprised to find out that some medical providers will not be able to render care without the explicit consent of the child’s parent or guardian. This could mean a delay in your injured child receiving necessary and immediate care because the hospital will need to reach you, the parents, to get authorization to render such care. And if you, the parent, are out of the country or “off the grid” on some remote beach where cell phone service is not dependable, that authorization might be significantly delayed. All the while, your child is in the hospital waiting area wondering why his broken arm is not being reset or why she cannot get a refill for her inhaler.
No need to worry because there IS a quick and easy solution to put your mind at ease while you enjoy your much needed adult time! You can complete a short statutory form appointing a trusted caregiver as a temporary attorney-in-fact for your children for the time you are away. This form, when presented to healthcare providers, proves that a certain caregiver is legally authorized to make all necessary medical decisions for your children.
Contact our office to complete a Power of Attorney for Childcare to leave with each caregiver being tasked with looking after your children while you are away so that they may present it to any medical provider if the unfortunate situation should arise where urgent medical care is needed. Please call our office at (218) 481-7181 so we can help you complete the form and allow you to enjoy your vacation with the comfort of knowing your kids will be able to get the medical care they need in your absence.