Nanny Canada

“I was a single mother. I definitely need to work and I definitely needed childcare. After the baby was born, I had a month to relax and recover from my episiotomy. I didn’t even sit at my desk the entire month (because of the baby, not the episiotomy). But then I had to get some childcare help. I had to get back to work. I had a career; I had responsibilities. One time, the baby’s father looked after him while I ran to the office. But when I got home, I discovered that he was holding a business meeting instead of the baby. Clearly this was not a solution to my need for childcare!

Maybe there are more choices now, but I was on the leading edge of the childcare and maternal employment wave, and the pickin’s were pretty slim. My first “childcare” was a young student who came to my house several hours a week. Usually I ended up sending her to run errands for me, because the baby was always asleep when she arrived. It was helpful to have a personal shopper, but it wasn’t childcare. I started interviewing nannies – quite a few nannies. I finally found one that I liked. She had a young child herself and she seemed kind and knowledgeable. She sure seemed to know more about babies than I did. But when I called to offer her the job, I discovered that the rate that I thought was for the month was for the week! That woke me up in a hurry. I wasn’t going to be able to afford an in-home caregiver.
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I looked in the paper for women who watched children in their homes. There weren’t many in the neighborhood, and being in the neighborhood was important to me. Eventually, I found a woman who stayed home because she had a toddler herself, and she wanted to care for one more child to make a little extra money. I sounded promising; it was affordable and there was only one other child, so I was sure that my son would get plenty of attention. Within a month, though, this woman had taken in another child, and soon she said she was looking for another one. That wasn’t the direction I wanted to go, so I got on the childcare carousel again. I found another home with a woman who was staying home with her own toddler. This worked well . . . until she got pregnant and decided she wouldn’t do childcare anymore.

I was back to the now all-too-familiar task of interviewing care providers. My first choice – a wonderful woman with a background as a nursery school teacher – had changed her mind by the time I called to hire her. She was going to do something entirely different. I don’t remember what it was now – maybe making jewelry. So I went to my second choice – a young woman who had just graduated from college with a degree in animal science. I was her second choice too. She hadn’t be able to land a job at the zoo, so she thought that taking care of babies would be the next thing. She wasn’t ideal, but I needed someone right away, and she worked out okay, I guess. She was shy and quiet, and she didn’t talk to the baby as much as I would have liked. But she was careful and caring. She took my son to the park; she played with him in the yard. He was safe and seemed content.

At the end of the year, though, my job required me to move across the country. So back on the childcare carousel I went, before my son had even had his second birthday. This time, I went to the university and checked with a childcare expert. She recommended the childcare home where her son had gone. We tried it. It was clean and there were lots of toys. The care providers were very professional. But before the end of the year, I decided to look into nursery schools. My son was almost three, and I thought he would benefit from a more educational program. I was lucky to find a Montessori school and talk the director into accepting my son even though he wasn’t toilet trained. “Never mind”, she said, “he soon will be.” She was wrong about that (every day I picked up a little wet baggie when I picked up my son), but she was right to take him. He enjoyed it and thrived. But six months later, it was time to move again, and the childcare search recommenced. I found another Montessori school and I liked it. The director was intelligent; the teacher were fabulous – full of ideas and energy. Unfortunately, my son did not share my opinion. Every morning was a struggle to leave him inside the gate in tears. So once again, we moved to a new center. Although it was a longer drive, I had met the owner and liked her. She helped my son get integrated into the new class and watched out for him there. He was never really happy about going, but he tolerated it, and we stayed there until he started elementary school. At long last, after a dizzying five – year, eight – childcare – arrangements ride on the childcare carousel, I was able to jump off and move on.”

- Kathleen, age 60 (What We Know about Childcare- Alison Clarke-Stewart, Virginia D. Allhusen)

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When families decide to have a nanny in their home, they think about what it means to have a new person on her own with their children. They think about the changes that will take place and how the kids will accept the stranger. In most cases, a nanny is not hired for a short term. Parents don’t like to change nannies and the nannies don’t like to change families. In many cases the children get attached to the nanny and she is considered a part of the family.
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If a family does not need a nanny on regular basis but only for a few hours sporadically, then a babysitter will be more appropriate then a nanny full-time. The question is where to look for a babysitter when your needs are for only a short period of time knowing that is not easy to have the same person babysitting whenever is required.

One should try as many ways as possible including friends’ and relatives’ referrals, newspapers and bulletin board advertisements and not in the least, domestic help agencies, especially those specialized in nannies. Although, a nanny or domestic help agency will ask you for a fee for finding a babysitter, the advantage is that the agency will do the screening process and if the babysitter is not available, the agency will provide a substitute for her.

Regardless of the screening done by the nanny agency, you should interview the baby-sitter at your home so you will have a better sense about the interaction with your kids and if they will feel comfortable with her at home.

Some questions to ask of potential babysitters:

1. How would you make sure that my child does not play with dangerous objects or swallow poisons?
2. Have you ever taken care of an injured child? What would you do if my child fell off a swing? How would you decide when to call an ambulance?
3. What would you do if there were an emergency in the house like a fire or a gas leak?
4. Do you plan to have children of your own? What do you like about children/
5. Have you ever taken care of your younger brothers or sisters? What do you dislike about children?
6. What would you do if my child complained that he was bored?
7. Tell me how you plan to spend the day (evening) while you are caring for my child?
8. If my child broke an expensive object in the house or refused to eat her dinner, what would you do?
9. What do you feel are your main duties as a babysitter?

The following are tips on choosing and orienting a babysitter:

• Choose babysitters who demonstrates knowledge of how to prevent injuries. They should have taken first aid training or a babysitting course that includes first aid. The Canadian Red Cross Society offers these types of courses.
• Orient a new babysitter to your home. Show the babysitter the first aid supplies, emergency telephone numbers, the escape plan in case of fire and how to control heat, stove, lights and fuse box.
• Be clear about activities and areas that are off limits to children.
• Leave the telephone number where you will be and the number of a neighbour who could be of assistance in an emergency.
• After the children are put to bed, the sitter should check each of them once an hour. Make it clear that the babysitter should not sleep.
• The babysitter should not be allowed to entertain friends. He or she is hired to do a job and should not be distracted.
• The telephone should not be used for personal calls. It is for emergency use only.
• The babysitter should know what the child is doing at all times.
• If possible, avoid asking babysitters to give medicine. If you must, give them careful instructions.
• Babysitters should not smoke. Smoking is a fire and health hazard. Smoke may cause or worsen children’s colds, flu, asthma and bronchitis.
• Babysitters should not be expected to do chores. Their concerns is for the safety of the child.
• Check out your babysitters thoroughly. Make unscheduled visits home until you are sure you can trust them.

Before you leave home give to your babysitters a written list of the chores needed for your child’s well being, instructions, everyday telephone numbers, phone numbers to be used in case of emergency.

Here is a sample information sheet you can leave with your babysitter:

INFORMATION FOR BABYSITTERS

Parents Names:________________________

The House Address:_____________________

The Phone Number of the House:___________

Mother’s Work Phone:____________________

Mother’s Mobile Phone:___________________

Father’s Work Phone:_____________________

Father’s Mobile Phone:____________________

Neighbour’s or Relative’s Name:______________

Neighbour’s or Relative’s Phone Number:______

Child’s Bedtime:__________________________

Mealtime Instructions:_____________________
________________________________________
________________________________________

Special Instructions:______________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________

Fire:_________________________________911
Police:________________________________911
Ambulance:____________________________911
Poison Control Center:______________________

Doctor’s Name:____________________________

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