Working as a doctor, you don’t have the most stable schedule. While you generally work a 9-to-5 at a clinic, you do have days where you have to stay late or when you’re called in for an emergency. You also work one on-call day at the local emergency room, so that means that you can never be sure if you’ll be called in or not that day.
When you’re in this kind of position, it can be hard to figure out how to set up a custody schedule that will work for you, your child and your ex. On one hand, you can set up child custody on days when you know you can be home at a certain time, but on the other, you have obligations and responsibilities that aren’t always on the same days.
When your schedule isn’t stable, handling custody can be tougher
It is true that trying to manage an unstable or flexible schedule at work can make child custody more difficult. One option that you may want to consider is setting up custody on the days when you know you’ll always be home and then agreeing to have the other parent have custody on the remaining days of the week. For example, if you know you’re always home on Mondays and Thursdays, those may need to be your main custody days.
However, if you can’t even be sure of those days, then you may want to think about having a backup person there to watch your child if you have to go to work. For example, if you have a neighbor who will babysit for you, you could pay them to be on call on the days when you’re not sure if you’ll be called into work. You could also set up daycare options at work (if it’s offered) or look into dropping your child off with a family member if you’re called into work.
It can be hard to manage custody when your schedule isn’t stable, but it’s possible to do so. As a parent, you still have a right to see your child.