Tips For Coordinating Appointments With Your Co-Parent

Raising a child when you’re divorced doesn’t have to be a major hassle if you and your co-parent are courteous to each other and take the time to understand everyone’s needs. However, it can be a challenge to coordinate all your times together, mainly if you have split custody and both of you also help to pay for the child’s care. Here are a few ways to coordinate your child’s healthcare.

Know When Your Child is Due For an Appointment

The biggest challenge for many parents is knowing when to take their child to a doctor or when their kid is okay without getting treatment. If you are uncertain, you need to call your physician right away and see when they want your child. Often, this process is pretty easy to do with both parents in the room.

Most of the time, they’ll give you a basic timeline that will help to make this process much more manageable. Just as importantly, you need to know when your child needs to start certain types of treatments. For instance, doctors say that the best time to begin orthodontic treatment is at age seven, so make sure to schedule an appointment then.

Pay Attention to Your Custody Days

The days your child can go to the doctor may vary depending on your custody days. For example, you may have them one week while your ex has them the following week. Once the child’s appointment has been decided on, it is crucial to make sure you take any necessary steps if you’re in custody of them that day.

It is a good idea to try to balance this situation based on the needs of each parent. For instance, if you take your child one time, the other parent should take them the next. This step helps avoid resentment from any parent and makes each parent feel essential to their child.

Focus Most on Your Child’s Schedule

Though you should make sure that you balance doctor’s appointments with your needs, your child’s schedule should always be the ultimate decider. Your child needs parents who take care of their needs and are willing to sacrifice a little of their comfort. They also need parents who will give them the care that meets their needs.

And try to find treatments that help your child in unexpected ways. For example, it has been found that seven percent of Invisalign Teen users had a boost of self-esteem compared to just 22% of teens with metal braces. Try to pick care options like these that help your child out and make their life easier to handle.

Consider the Season

During the summer, your child (and your co-parent) are probably going to resist taking the child to the doctor. After all, they probably want to run and play while off from school. But if the child needs an appointment, you need to stress the importance of going and take them, especially if your co-parent is balking due to a vacation plan. Though it’s not fun, it must be done.

Figure Out How It Will Be Paid For

Lastly, it is crucial to know who will pay for the care. In the past, it likely would have been the father at all times. But MarketWatch reported in a survey given in 2018 that 45% of matrimonial attorneys saw an increase in women paying alimony. And this increase has also been noticed among doctor’s appointments. So make sure this factor is sorted out before a child’s appointment.

Doing Right By Your Children

As you can see, getting your kids to their doctor’s appointments isn’t a challenge if you work with your co-parent smoothly and reasonably. You don’t have to be friends or even like your co-parent to succeed. All you have to do is be civil and put the needs of your children first. Doing so will help to ensure that you get the most benefits possible from your child’s doctor appointments.