What Grandparents Need Before the Kids Arrive for the Holidays: The Health Records Checklist

In short: Before children stay with grandparents for the holidays, give the grandparents one printed emergency card per child with the child's name, allergies, current medications, pediatrician name and phone number, and your contact information. That card plus the pediatrician's after-hours line is everything a grandparent needs to handle anything short of a 911 call.

Before the kids spend the holidays at Grandma and Grandpa's house, give the grandparents one printed emergency card per child — the child's name, allergies, medications, pediatrician name and number, and your contact information. That card, plus your phone number and the pediatrician's after-hours line, is everything a grandparent needs to handle anything short of an emergency.

Every person gets one health story, and one private Family Stork email address every clinic already knows how to use. Tired of managing health records for yourself and everyone you love? Family Stork organizes them for you automatically — and the emergency card that comes with every child's record is always current, always printable, and always ready for the grandparents.

What health information do grandparents actually need?

The right amount — not all of it. Grandparents caring for grandchildren during a holiday visit need exactly this:

Child's full name and date of birth
Allergies — foods and medications, listed clearly
Current medications and dosages (if any), with the prescribing doctor's name
Pediatrician's name and phone number, including the after-hours nurse line
Your phone number and one backup contact
Nearest urgent care or ER address at the grandparents' location

If your child has a specific condition that requires the grandparent to take action — an inhaler for asthma, an epinephrine auto-injector for a severe allergy — include the plan your doctor gave you. But let the grandparents know: call you or the doctor first, not interpret the plan themselves. For any medical questions about your child's condition, ask your pediatrician before the visit.

One card, one page, everything on it. That is the standard.

What should grandparents NOT have to manage?

Full portal logins. The complete health history. Your account credentials. None of that.

Grandparents are caregivers for the visit — they are not the primary record-keeper. They do not need to navigate MyChart from three different hospitals. They do not need the full allergy panel results from last spring. They need the card.

In Family Stork, helpers see only what the family chooses to share. The grandparent gets the emergency card and whatever specific information you decide is relevant to the visit. They never own or manage the record itself — that stays with you. The family invites; the helper sees only what the family chooses. Learn more about how helpers work in Family Stork.

What is the easiest way to prepare the emergency card?

Family Stork generates the emergency card automatically from the child's record. Print it before the visit.

Here is why that matters more than typing it into a note on your phone: when the pediatrician updates a medication or the allergist adds a new item to the allergy list, the record updates. The emergency card reflects whatever the record holds — no manual editing, no forgetting to change the card when the dosage changed three months ago.

The private Family Stork address shown on the person's record receives every clinic visit summary automatically. Records arrive, file themselves, and the emergency card stays current. One email address clinics already know how to use — no portals, no uploads, nothing for the clinic to learn.

Give each of your children's clinics that address once. From then on, the emergency card you print for Grandma is always right. $99/year — or about $10/month — covers the whole family.

What else should you do before dropping the kids off?

Beyond the emergency card, a short checklist for the days before the visit:

Confirm the grandparents have YOUR phone number and know to call you first for anything that is not a 911 emergency
Include the pediatrician's after-hours number — most practices have a nurse line for evenings and weekends
Bring any medications the child takes, labeled clearly with the child's name, the medication name, the dosage, and the prescribing doctor's name
Note any foods the child is avoiding — whether an allergy, an intolerance, or a preference — and be specific about severity ("causes hives" is different from "doesn't like it")
If the visit is more than two days, leave a written daily routine — bedtime medications, morning medications, and anything time-sensitive

For any medical decision about your child during the visit, the grandparents should call you first. For emergencies, call 911.

How does Family Stork make this easier every time?

The first holiday visit takes work: gathering the information, printing the card, explaining the medications. Every visit after that is a reprint.

The private Family Stork address shown on the person's record receives every clinic visit summary automatically. When your child sees the pediatrician in November and the doctor adjusts a dosage, that update lands in the record. When you print the emergency card for the December holiday visit, it already reflects the change.

When you share the child's record with Grandma through Family Stork, she sees what you choose and nothing more. She does not need a login. She does not need to download an app. The emergency card is a printed page — simple, portable, and current.

Related reading: What to give the nanny, the sitter, and the camp nurse covers the same idea for every caregiver in your child's life. And if Thanksgiving has the whole family in one room, here is the health records conversation to have while everyone is there.

See how the helpers experience works — or explore the Family Stork travel medical summary if the grandparents' house is a flight away.

Ready to start? Create your family's record — $99/year or about $10/month for the whole family.

FAQ

Should grandparents have my child's insurance card?

Bring a photo of the insurance card if the grandparents will be responsible for any medical visits during the trip. If you are staying in close contact by phone, they can call you and you can handle the insurance questions directly. Either way, the pediatrician's name and number on the emergency card is the first call for anything non-emergency.

What if my child has a serious allergy?

The allergy should be on the emergency card with the specific foods or triggers listed clearly. Bring any medication the doctor has prescribed — like an epinephrine auto-injector — with the prescribing doctor's written instructions about when and how to use it. For any medical guidance about the allergy management plan, ask your child's doctor before the visit, not during it.

Can grandparents access my child's Family Stork record?

You invite them as a helper — they see what you choose to share, nothing more. They cannot edit the record, delete anything, or share it with anyone else. The family owns the record. Learn how helpers work.

This guide is about preparing for a grandparent caregiving visit — not medical advice or guidance on managing any specific health condition. For any medical questions about your child's care during the visit, call your pediatrician. For emergencies, call 911.