Guides · Updated 16 July 2026
Maid, nurse, attendant: the care contacts NRI families forget to write down
When a parent falls ill, the first call is often not the bank. It is the maid who has a key, the nurse who knows the night medicines, or the neighbour who paid the cook last month. Adult children abroad frequently have those numbers only in a parent’s phone — or nowhere. Mapping care contacts is the highest-leverage “boring” work you can do in a twenty-minute video call.
Why care contacts beat a perfect bank list on day one
Papers matter. People unlock the house. If you cannot reach the person with the spare key, you cannot start half the India checklist. Hospitals also ask who has been giving medicines at home.
- Maid / cook / driver — name, phone, usual shift, weekly off.
- Nurse / attendant / agency — rate band if known, who hired them, backup name.
- Neighbour / society security / watchman who will open for family.
- Who pays cash vs UPI (parent, you, local sibling).
- Medical: GP, chemist shop, any home-care agency WhatsApp.
How to ask without sounding like a takeover
Frame it as logistics: “If my flight is delayed, who should I call for the morning medicines?” Parents usually answer that more easily than “list all your assets.”
- Type while they speak; confirm spellings of names.
- Ask for a backup person for each critical role.
- Note languages spoken if carers and NRI kids do not share one.
- Stop after care + one bank if they are tired — resume next Sunday.
What belongs on the fridge QR vs inside the vault
Public emergency cards should help a neighbour or unlocker act fast. They should not publish salary gossip or private medical narratives. Put rich notes in the vault; put phones you are willing to expose on the card.
- Fridge / emergency QR: subject name, unlocker path, selected care phones.
- Vault notes: shift patterns, payment habits, allergies, “does not open door after 9pm.”
- Never put UPI PINs or bank passwords on a printed card.
Sibling coordination
- Invite a sibling so care updates are not stuck in one NRI’s Notes app.
- When a carer changes, update the Life Map the same week — stale phones are worse than none.
- Light review nudges on HeirReady exist so you re-check “same maid / nurse phone?” periodically.
How HeirReady models this
- Care category items with phone in the account/contact field.
- Housewarming steps that push you to capture attendants early.
- Optional care network features for families who want verified help later — mapping your existing people comes first.
Add care phones to a free vault
Not a will. Not a bank. Not a substitute for licensed legal advice.