Your welcome gift · print it, fill it out, stick it on two refrigerators
The Emergency Plan Checklist
For families with parents in the Philippines · vivafilipino.com
Fill this out in one family video call. Keep a printed copy in your parents' home in the Philippines and in your home abroad. Review it every six months.
1 · Emergency contacts — who calls whom
- First responder on the ground (nearest relative/neighbor, <1 hr away):
- Decision-maker abroad (primary):
- Backup decision-maker (for night shifts / travel):
- Caregiver / helper & her personal emergency contact:
- Attending physician & secretary's number:
- Barangay emergency line & nearest rescue:
- We have tested the phone tree once — everyone answered
2 · Hospital plan — decided before it's needed
- ER hospital for true emergencies (nearest capable):
- Preferred hospital for serious-but-stable (doctor's admitting privileges):
- Typical admission deposit & exactly how it gets paid within hours:
- PhilHealth member ID confirmed active; number written here:
- Senior citizen (OSCA) ID location:
3 · Medical one-pager — on the refrigerator
- Diagnoses & allergies listed
- Every medication with dose & schedule (the maintenance-meds list)
- Past surgeries & hospitalizations
- Blood type & approximate weight
- Photo of the one-pager saved in the family group chat
- Someone owns updating it every prescription change — who:
4 · Documents — findable in five minutes
- Location of: birth certificates, marriage certificate, passports/IDs:
- Property titles / condo CCT location:
- Insurance policies (life, memorial plan) location & contact:
- Scanned copies of all of the above in a shared family folder
5 · Authority — who can act
- Special Power of Attorney executed (bank / PhilHealth / property scope) — held by:
- If signed abroad: apostilled or consularized, original in the Philippines
- Family agreement in writing: who speaks for Mom/Dad on medical decisions:
- Parents' own wishes discussed (incl. resuscitation & ICU preferences) — hard, necessary
6 · Money access — the 24-hour test
If the hospital needed ₱80,000 tonight, how does it arrive? Have at least two ways:
- PH emergency fund account, accessible by first responder — where/who:
- Remittance app tested end-to-end (limits & cutoff times known):
- Emergency card held on the ground, written usage agreement:
- Bank access survives incapacity (joint account / signatory verified with the bank)
