I was cleaning the other day when I stumbled across a relic from Mini Meerkat's infancy. It was a single page printed out titled "The Care and Keeping of Mini Meerkat" in a novelty font. It was a timeline of when she needed to be catheteterized and medicated that I had put together after her first surgery. Mini Meerkat had trouble with her incision not healing after her first surgery, and we had a home care nurse who came to check on her after we were discharged, who thought my care and keeping sheet was a great idea.
Adjusting to a baby as a first time parent is hard, but it can be especially overwhelming when that baby has special needs. In a haze of new baby sleep deprivation, it can be tricky to keep track of cathing and meds on top of diapers and feeds. It especially comes in handy if there are multiple caregivers that need to be on the same page. We also had a complicated wound care regimen on top of her normal care, and I didn't want to forget anything!
I put together a sample page, that I hope will be helpful for new parents. I think it can be useful at any age to have a way to keep track of everything if you are feeling like there is too much to remember. I keep track of Mini Meerkat's caths and meds electronically now (more on that another day!), but I liked having a simple poster to reference. I hung one at the changing pad and one in the kitchen so that they would be in view while I went about our day.
The following is just a sample and not our actual schedule:
Adjusting to a baby as a first time parent is hard, but it can be especially overwhelming when that baby has special needs. In a haze of new baby sleep deprivation, it can be tricky to keep track of cathing and meds on top of diapers and feeds. It especially comes in handy if there are multiple caregivers that need to be on the same page. We also had a complicated wound care regimen on top of her normal care, and I didn't want to forget anything!
I put together a sample page, that I hope will be helpful for new parents. I think it can be useful at any age to have a way to keep track of everything if you are feeling like there is too much to remember. I keep track of Mini Meerkat's caths and meds electronically now (more on that another day!), but I liked having a simple poster to reference. I hung one at the changing pad and one in the kitchen so that they would be in view while I went about our day.
The following is just a sample and not our actual schedule:
Even though the med doses are on the bottles and the hospital numbers are on my phone, I like including them so that they are easily and quickly referenced in an emergency or if another caregiver needs to know. I like to have all the information together in one quick place.
I don't have a current Care and Keeping of Mini Meerkat sheet, but I really liked having it when she was an infant. Catheterizing can seem really intimidating when you are just learning, but it quickly becomes routine. I could see the Care and Keeping of Mini Meerkat making a return when Mini Meerkat is older and starts taking a more active role in her catheterizing and medicating, because it would be helpful for her to have a reminder that she could read as well as having me around to remind her.
You're so right that there's something different about writing it down and having the info in front of you. I do the same thing...although my son's info is in my phone and on my computer, I always write a note about therapies, etc. on a calendar. Sometimes, it's just easier!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I like having everything written down and easy to access! I make notes on my phone too, but I like having a paper back up in case I need to look at something while I'm on the phone with another doctor or something... I know I can look at stuff on my phone and talk at the same time, but it always seems harder that way!
DeleteI am such a note girl myself. It just allows the brain to be free instead of me thinking I need to remember this, I need to remember, over and over in my brain. ~ Jamie
ReplyDeleteI love to do lists for exactly the same reason!
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