For kids with special needs

Emergency care plans for children with special health care needs

Thanks to new and advanced technology, more children with special health care needs are living at home than ever before, enabling them to participate more fully at school and in their communities. With this new independence comes a need to be well prepared for prompt, safe, specialized care in the event of a medical emergency. Families, caregivers, school officials, and community leaders all need to share and collaborate in this responsibility.

The Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMSC) Program encourages parents (or guardians) and caregivers of children with special health care needs to develop a written emergency care plan and have it in plain sight, ready to go. This way, if and when an emergency occurs, family members, caregivers, bystanders, school nurses, teachers, and emergency medical services (EMS) providers will have the information they need to ffectively initiate care — and possibly save a life. An emergency care plan is also a valuable resource for other health care providers, such as emergency room doctors and nurses and rehabilitation specialists.

Developing an emergency care plan is very important

Written emergency care plans should include brief but specific information about the child's medical condition, including physical and mental state. Parents and caregivers should work with their primary care physician, specialists, and case manager to develop a written emergency care plan that includes the following key information:

• Age
• Allergies (medications and food)
• Medical condition (diagnoses and relevant past medical history)
• Medications currently taking and medications to avoid
• Baseline findings (pulse and respiratory rates, blood pressure, orientation, etc.)
• Emergency intervention strategies (emergency procedures that best address your child's unique needs)
• Parent/caregiver information (names, phone numbers, addresses, etc.)
• Insurance information
• Primary care physician and specialists information (names, phone numbers, etc.)

The plan needs to be verified and signed by the child's parent or legal caregiver and primary or specialty physician. Copies of this document should be placed in several locations (e.g., near the kitchen telephone, in the child's bedroom, in the car, and at work). It also is important that parents and caregivers work with school nurses and local EMS personnel to ensure that this confidential information is quickly and easily available at school, child care, and recreation programs. If a child is active and independent at school and away from home, he or she may want to carry the plan in his or her backpack, wallet, or purse.