How do you screen for infant experience?

[Anonymous]

Some people have said they screen heavily for infant experience and get an AP good with a baby. What exactly do you do or ask? What are you looking for?

In our experience, looking good on paper (computer screen) with lots of likely exaggerated hours does not make an AP suitable for caring for a baby. I've heard others choose APs based on ability to work hard for long hours, then train extensively on how to deal with infants.

[Anonymous]

It's a tough one. We did look at the actual experience. I pretty much ignored all the "experiences" where it said that AP was babysitting infants. To me, it sounds more like being a mother's helper than having hands-on experiences with an infant. I gave more weight to having MUCH younger siblings. But true infant experience is rare and comes from professional settings, like being a NICU nurse, or working in the infant room of a daycare, etc.

[Anonymous]

Do all the screening your heart desires, but know that most of it will come down to pure luck.

[Anonymous]

Screen for a child-centric countries. I got Brazilians for my infant/toddler. They are gaga over babies. I could not say the same about Nordic countries from the young oflks I've met from there.

Mine were not upper middle class princesses; screen for that to. Ones who are not used to handing the dirty-diaper duty off to a housemaid.