Nanny Agency JobsIf your employer asks you to accompany them to a medical appointment, start with the job you would actually do there. Looking after their child while they attend, driving the family and supporting the adult are separate requests. You can offer useful childcare without agreeing to everything that might be needed during the visit.
The practical question is whether the whole journey has workable child supervision, transport and handover arrangements. You do not need the parent's diagnosis to discuss those arrangements. This guide is an appointment-day work brief, not medical advice.
Name the purpose of your attendance
Ask: “Am I coming to care for the children, to drive, or are you asking for something else as well?” Follow the answer through departure, arrival, the appointment and the return home. A parent might need childcare only during the appointment, but the children still need an agreed arrangement while the car is parked or the parent checks in.
For a childcare assignment, identify which children will attend and where you will stay with them. Ask the parent to confirm the location's visitor arrangements directly. Do not build the plan around an assumption that children may enter a waiting area or treatment room.
If the request includes helping the adult personally, use the separate adult-care scope guide. Do not let “come along” become an unexamined commitment to clinical tasks, interpreting medical instructions or managing the adult's care afterward.
Complete an appointment movement brief
Use this original NAJ brief with the parent before the day. Record work logistics only; leave medical history and treatment details out.
| Point in the visit | Agreement to record |
|---|---|
| Leaving home | Children attending, driver, vehicle, departure time and any separate school pickup. |
| Arriving | Where the parent goes and where the nanny remains responsible for the children. |
| During the appointment | Confirmed childcare location, usable parent contact and backup adult if that parent cannot respond. |
| A longer wait | Who arranges replacement coverage if the visit conflicts with another commitment or the agreed finish. |
| Leaving and handing over | Return driver, destination and the person who accepts care of the children. |
Keep the appointment's estimated finish separate from your agreed working hours. Ask how parking, meals and other agreed work expenses will be paid. If driving is included, settle the arrangements through the driving-duties guide; access to the family's keys is not the whole transport plan.
Resolve requests that put you in two places
The most useful rehearsal is a simple question: “If you ask me to join you inside, who will be caring for the children?” The answer needs to name an actual arrangement. Another adult somewhere in the building is not a confirmed handover.
Fictional example: A parent asks Noor to accompany them with their preschooler. The agreed plan is for Noor to stay with the child in a visitor area the parent has confirmed is available. The parent then mentions wanting Noor beside them during a discussion with staff.
Noor explains that she cannot be responsible for the child in one room while attending a discussion elsewhere. The parent arranges a separate support person and keeps Noor's assignment to childcare. Noor's note records the location, contacts and handover, without recording the reason for the appointment.
If no workable separation is available, propose an alternative such as caring for the child at home while the parent arranges accompaniment. The parent can assess that option against their actual needs.
Keep new requests separate
Being present does not mean volunteering to access patient accounts, retain adult health records or create a health log. Direct requests for medical explanations or decisions back to the parent and the appropriate professionals. For a separate child-related medication assignment, use the medication preparation questions; this appointment brief supplies no medication instructions.
A closing message could be: “I can care for the children during the visit under the plan we discussed. Please confirm the waiting location, backup contact and return transport. Any adult-support request needs a separate conversation before I agree.”
Sources
International Nanny Association: Recommended Practices for Nanny Employers, pages 3–4, recommends written duties, schedules, driving arrangements and updates when roles change. Checked October 30, 2026. These are association recommendations, not a medical protocol or universal legal rule. The movement brief and example are original NAJ planning aids.