I Need to Prepare for a Medical or Caregiving Emergency
Emergencies are harder when no one can find the information, get into the home, or knows what to do next.
You don’t need a perfect system. You need someone who has agreed to help and one place they know to look.
If you had to leave in an ambulance tonight, could someone else step in?
Choose a Backup Who Has Agreed
Choose who steps in first, and who takes over if that person can’t. Ask each of them directly.
Make sure they know:
- how to get into the home (keys, gate codes, alarm, pets, stairs)
- what care they may need to provide
- what they can safely do
- who to call for help
- what to do if the person can’t safely stay home
If children, pets, or someone else depend on you, decide who takes over for them too.
For more on planning for pets, see I Need to Make a Plan for the Pets →
Ask the care team what your backup can safely manage and what needs training or paid help. That may include medications, lifting, transfers, or equipment. If family or friends can’t cover the essential care, ask what respite or paid caregiving is available.
Ask what they could realistically do, and for how long. If they could only cover a short emergency, decide what happens after that.
Confirm it: ask them, “If I had to leave in an ambulance tonight, what would you do first?”
If you’re the backup and you live far away, see I Live Far Away →
If you live alone, decide who checks on you if you don’t answer, and how a trusted person or emergency responders can get in, such as a spare key with a neighbor or a lockbox.
For a fuller plan, see I Live Alone and Need a Backup Plan →
Make One Page Anyone Can Find
Keep this on one dated page:
- current medications and allergies
- major medical conditions
- health care decision-maker
- care team and after-hours numbers
- emergency contacts
- where advance directives, DNR, POLST, or other medical orders are kept
Don’t make someone search a safe, computer, or filing cabinet during a crisis. Update the page when medications, caregivers, providers, legal documents, or living arrangements change.
If you need help with those documents, use I Need Advance Directive Forms →
Confirm it: have someone other than the usual caregiver get into the home and find the page without help. If the plan depends on one key, one phone, one password, or one person, fix that before you need it.
Know What Can’t Stop
Identify anything the person can’t safely go without:
- essential medication
- oxygen or other medical equipment
- electricity for essential equipment
- feeding or suction supplies
- mobility or communication equipment
Know who to call after hours if something fails.
If someone depends on powered medical equipment, tell the utility ahead of time and ask what it can and can’t promise during an outage. See I Need Help Paying My Utility Bills →
Confirm it: ask your backup to name the two most important ones and who they would call if something failed overnight.
If the Person Is on Hospice
Ask hospice before an emergency happens: when to call the 24-hour number, when to use 911, and what the backup should do if unsure.
For expected changes in the illness or dying that aren’t an immediate emergency, call the hospice 24-hour number first.
If the person is in immediate danger, call 911. If you’re unsure what’s happening and there isn’t immediate danger, call hospice and ask what to do.
Helpful Resources
A checklist for disasters and emergencies when you’re caring for someone, including supplies, contacts, and evacuation.
Emergency planning for older adults, including medications, medical equipment, transportation, communication needs, evacuation, and supplies.
Learn More
A printable guide for making an emergency plan around medications, medical equipment, transportation, communication needs, evacuation, and supplies.
