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nesya
11-02-2011, 09:17 PM
I have started a home daycare and strictly go by schedule. As I have just started I do not want to take any risk but how can I calmly handle parents calling frequently.
The child is 3 and 1/2 yrs old. The mother calls almost every 2 hours and the father also calls once day. The mother wants to an update of every 2 hours in detail about everything from the child's food intake to the activities ( i also send a written note about all this to her on a daily basis). She almost everyday calls me after daycare hours to again discuss the child's day which is now irritating my children as i cannot give them quality time after the daycare kids go. She says she prefers talking to me in detail than reading the notes i send her. Her calling me frequently is not only effecting her child's schedule of activities but also mine. It takes me lot of time to once again get the children back to focussing on what was going on. I have explained this to her but of no use. I also do not want to loose her as a client as I am just starting off. Any ideas.?

Judy Trickett
11-03-2011, 06:24 AM
This is what I tell clients about the phone. I tell them that I am BUSY all day tending to their children so if they call do not be surprised if I don't answer. I will call them back ONLY if I have time and much later. Otherwise, I will give them a quick report at the door at pick-up. I also tell them that I do NOT do ANY parent consultations after my operational hours. If a parent wants to talk to me in depth then they can come 20 minutes EARLY at pick up to do so.

Here is the thing with parents (and just people in general in any walk of life or situation): they want you to do SPECIAL when it suits them. They don't care if it robs you of time or energy. In order to stop this behaviour you have to make it inconvenient for THEM. THEY have to be the ones doing the "extra" in order to get the SPECIAL.

So, putting in place a policy of making parent consultations occur 20 minutes before closing and not going a minute past closing you are forcing the parents to take time from THEIR work day.

Do you see what I mean??

It is all well and good to constantly ask someone else (the provider) to do extra, extra, extra when it doesn't affect you at all. But it suddenly comes far less important to the parent when it is them who has to go out of their way to get that extra.

I feel that if you are providing written reports then the parent really doesn't need to be calling and disrupting your day. What is this parent going to do next year when this child is in kindergarten?? Is she gonna call the school every hour and demand a in-depth update?? NO! The school would refuse.

Remember, this is YOUR business and you get to run it as you see fit. And that is not a bad thing. It is not an egotistical thing. It is what makes the best providers successful. Put systems in place that work for YOU while still offering quality care to the kids. And then if parents don't like those systems it simply means that you are not the right provider for their family and they get a .............NEXT! If you constantly give into the various whims of every single family you have in care you will burn out. It will suck all the joy and energy you have for this job out of you.

You do important work. You deserve to be happy doing it. And when the provider is happy every one wins.

clep
11-09-2011, 02:10 PM
I used to have a parent text me at rest time every day to see how the day is going. I didn't have a problem with that.

I do what the above poster does. Parents may come early to chat with me at the end of the day. They are welcome to call me during the day, but I won't be answering and the same goes for after work hours.

I would let her know that you are not comfortable with being on the phone when you are supposed to be caring for children. I would let her know to come early if she wants to know about the day. I would let her know that I would not be talking on the phone after hours as well.

I realize you do not want to lose a client. I also realize that it looks like that may very well be the case. She has a sense of entitlement that is really over the top.

mom-in-alberta
11-14-2011, 08:32 PM
As harsh as it may seem; I would stop answering her calls during the day. Call her back if necessary, and say "Oh, sorry; I was busy with the kids. Is there an emergency?" and so on. I would not cater to this any more. She does it because you have allowed it so far, but this is a little ridiculous. Especially seeing as you are providing daily reports as it is. And for a 3 1/2 year old!!
If you end up losing this family, I would say that it was inevitable. This is exactly the type of person that no care arrangement will ever be good enough for them. Good riddance!