The storm and outage sheet is a single printed page kept with the care binder, where the aide, the family, and any neighbor with a key can find it without a working phone. Its job is to answer one question on a bad day: who is responsible for what, and who gets called next. It goes stale the moment a phone number, a key holder, or an agency contact changes, so it needs an owner and a schedule like any other record in the home.
Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.
What goes on the sheet
Editorial: Keep the list short enough to read in a hurry. A workable sheet usually names the household contacts in calling order, the agency's office line and after-hours line, the neighbor or relative who holds a key, the location of the flashlight and the portable charger, and the nearest place the client can go if the home loses power or heat. Health questions go to the family's doctor. The sheet does not carry health instructions.
From the file: The agency's phone numbers should be copied exactly as the agency wrote them on its own contact sheet or service agreement. Note the day you last confirmed each one. The public record for the agency is a separate check and does not replace the phone confirmation.
Ask the agency before a storm
Put these questions to the agency in writing, and file the answers with the sheet. Does the aide have a written rule for a home without power or heat? Does the aide stay with the client if roads are closed, or does the agency reschedule the shift? Who decides to move the client, and how does the family hear about it? Which contact answers outside office hours, and does that person have authority to change a shift?
Editorial: A written answer is worth more than a spoken one. If the agency cannot put a rule in writing, write down the name of the person who gave the answer and the day it was given, and mark the line as unconfirmed until the agency confirms it.
Name the owner and a backup
One person owns the sheet. A second person holds a copy and can update it when the owner is away. Hand the owner's job over the same way the care binder changes hands, and write the owner's name at the top of the page instead of leaving it in someone's memory.
Check it on a schedule
Editorial: Walk the route to the flashlight and the charger each season, in daylight, with the aide or the backup holder present. Read each phone number aloud and call any number that is not on a current agency sheet. Confirm that the key holder still lives nearby and still has the key. Replace any light or charger that no longer works. The season is the rhythm here, not a fixed calendar.
Re-run the lines when something changes
Any change of agency, aide, key holder, address, or household phone means the sheet is out of date until the owner has rewritten that line. If an agency changes its name or its office line, re-run the public check on that agency before you trust the new number. The guide to how to check a provider yourself, in five lookups walks through the steps.
Keep it where it can be found
Keep the printed sheet on the refrigerator door or on the first page of the care binder, and keep a second copy with the backup holder. A sheet that exists only on a phone or in a drawer in another room does not help during an outage.