"I think my kid is sick" - parent advocacy from an RNs perspective

As a pediatric Registered Nurse for coming up on 5 years, I have some serious admiration for medical parents. Actually, I have some serious respect for ALL parents overall. Disclaimer, I do not have any children yet but I have worked alongside so many incredible parents and have seen some medical mamas and pops with some mean advocacy skills for their littles!

I always tell my patient's parents: you know your kid best 

Even children with complex disabilities who struggle with things such as being verbal or mobile, I found parents picked up their children's cues with such fire and accuracy that 99% of the time when something was going on the parent could pick it up before the true symptoms and physiological changes took place. So it's absolutely crucial to trust your gut.

Despite my personal experience being from a healthcare perspective, parents have the opportunity to not only advocate for children's health needs but rights, learning needs and growth/development.

Some simple ways you can advocate for your child include:

• Be informed - we are so blessed to have the amount of information we do at our fingertips. But it is crucial to be aware where you are getting your sources from because there is also a lot of unreliable information out there. Also be informed in your kid - pay attention to their strengths and how you can best support them learning and growing.
• Try to be organized - now I say this with a grain of salt because granted I do not have kids right now but I see so many parents with a simple coil notebook per kiddo where they keep track of things such as health symptoms, appointments, results and treatment plans.
• Build relationships - whether it is with your children's teacher, health care provider, therapist or friends parents
• Ask questions - no question is ever a stupid question. Making sure you understand what is going on with your child and ensuring you are educated puts you in a better position to be able to recognize when you need to step up and voice your opinions or concerns
• Stay calm & collected - The majority of those working in child focused fields, we want to see your kid succeed, get better, excel - whatever it is! Sometimes there are unknown factors and a strained system we are all fighting against in both health care and education. We are here to help and you are 100% on the decision making team even if you do not agree! A clear head will get you way farther and staying calm and respectful will get you that in return! 
• Communicate, Communicate - open lines of communication with those involved in your kiddos life is crucially important. It truly takes a village and these teachers, educational assistants, nurses, physiotherapists, doctors, etc. we all care about your child! Communication is easier once you combine many of these points together such as building relationships and ensuring you stay calm and clear. 

Resources

https://www.understood.org/en/school-learning/partnering-with-childs-school/working-with-childs-teacher/10-ways-to-be-an-effective-advocate-for-your-child-at-school

https://www.edcan.ca/articles/parent-advocacy-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/

https://childrensupportsolutions.com/parent-advocacy-guidebook/