What types of forms should we ask friends to sign when we bring their son on vacation with us - in case he needs emergency medical treatment. Does it need to be notarized?

My son is currently skiing with his friend's family and sure enough, he fell and needed medical treatment. He's is fine - I still have to worry for two more days! I thought about this medical release issue but didn't really know what needed to be done. I want to make sure we address this in the future. Thanks!

I believe that his parents would just need to sign a piece of paper that says that they authorize you to seek medical attention for their son in their absence. It can even just be written on a scratch piece of paper as long as it is signed.

I think you can pick up a release form from your local hospital. I don't think that one has to be notarized.

And if you ever take a kid out of the country without both parents present, you need a note for that as well. That one may have to be notarized. I'm not sure.

I would imagine that the best way to get a definitive answer to this would be to call the major hospital in the area you will be traveling to. They can tell you exactly what you need, and may even have their own form for you to fill out.

Of course it's good to have a general consent letter in case something happens elsewhere and you end up at a different hospital. I would err on the side of caution and have it notarized. These days most bank officers are notaries, so it's not that big a deal, and why not be sure?

As a final thought, if you're going to outside the US, you will also need a letter authorizing you to take the child out of the country.

Below is a form I found for my sister:


http://singleparents.about.com/libra...MedRelease.pdf

When we leave our son with our family, we always type a letter saying something like: we (our names) hereby appoint (their names) as the health care agents for our son (his name) to make any and all health care decisions for him.
We'll also add their relationship to him, their address and their phone number.
We also say for how long this designation is for (4/20/06-4/25/06 for example).
Both my husband and I will sign the letter and get it notarized. Our son's doctor is alerted and also gets a copy (but your situation is different).
Don't forget to get his medical card and make sure you have all his parents numbers. And presumably his parents would want all your info (hotel and phone numbers).
Good luck.

AustinTraveler: I love your form. It's even better than my letter. I think I'll start using that version. Thanks!

You're welcome! I don't know what I would do without Google!!

Thank you all for your speedy responses. I should have asked before the ski trip. Austintraveler - I printed out several forms and will use them in the future.

I used to worry about this too when I took my son's friends on vacation.

I'd really think for any hospital or doctor to accept any release it would have to be notarized at a minimum. I cannot picture any corporation, especially one already paying high liability insurance rates accepting a handwritten note on a scratch of paper.
IMHO.

austintraveler,
Thanks for the form! We keep our grandchildren frequently, and their parents always type out a little form, but this seems better.

I'll send it along to them.

Byrd

That is a great form, thanks!

I have always written out the same info and just signed it, without it being notarized. This last summer, one of our children needed medical care while visiting grandparents out of state. My form worked fine and there was no issue about it not being notarized. This was a very large hospital in CA and my parents said it was very easy to get the care needed.

Any child will receive immediate treatment in life-threatening situation, with our without authorization. I think a notarized piece of paper is helpful, as is a copy of medical insurance card.

That said, as an RN, informed consent forms are specific to medical treatment - they spell out what is going to be done and what the risks and benefits are likely to be. For example, a consent for an appendectomy will be very different than a consent to surgically repair a leg.

In the world of cell phone, faxes, emails most of us are not unreachable for long - so I would also make sure you have a way to reach parents in case of emergency.