“It’s important for parents to be partners with healthcare providers to ensure delivery of safe care for their child,” says Judy Conedera, cochair of the Patient Safety Council at Children’s Medical Center Dallas. “Parents know more about their child than anyone else. The information a parent provides will help healthcare providers make safe choices for the child when prescribing medications or other treatments.”

Parents should ask questions and educate themselves about their child’s conditions and treatments:

• Learn about your child’s illnesses, especially chronic conditions like asthma.
• Find a pediatrician or family physician you trust. Seek recommendations from friends and coworkers who are on your health plan.
• Mention your child’s drug allergies and medical problems every time a new medication is prescribed in a doctor’s office or hospital. Ask if the medication is OK to take with the child’s other prescriptions, over-the-counter (OTC) drugs and alternative remedies.
• Make sure all your child’s doctors know all the medications he takes. This includes prescription and OTC medicines, vitamins, minerals, herbs and alternative remedies.
• When your child’s doctor writes a prescription, make sure you can read it.
• When you pick up your child’s medicine from the pharmacy, ask if it’s the correct medicine and dosage.
• Ask to get information about your child’s medicines in terms you can understand when the medicines are prescribed and when you get them.
• Seek a second opinion on your child’s diagnosis and treatment if you think your child isn’t getting the right care.
• Ask the doctor if the child’s treatment is based on the latest scientific evidence.
• Make sure you know who is in charge of your child’s care. This is vital if your child has many health problems or is in the hospital.
• If your child is having surgery, make sure you, the child’s doctor and the surgeon agree on exactly what will be done.
• Choose a hospital where many children have the same surgery, since the medical and clinical staff will have more experience. Make sure your child wears an identification bracelet while hospitalized.
• When your child is being discharged from the hospital, ask the doctor to explain how to care for him at home.
• Make sure all health professionals involved in your child’s care have important information, such as whether the child has drug allergies or a chronic condition. Don’t assume they know.