Where do I get an eczema action plan template?

The Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA) provides a widely used eczema action plan template, and many GPs and dermatologists have it on hand. Bring it to a dedicated appointment so your doctor can complete the medical sections and sign it.

Does my child need an eczema action plan for childcare?

Many Australian childcare centres and schools require a signed action plan before they will apply creams or manage a flare. Even where it is not required, providing one ensures carers know your child's routine, triggers, and what to do if the skin worsens, so it is worth having regardless.

Who fills out an eczema action plan?

You build it together with a health professional. You provide the observations about your child's triggers, flare signs, and what works, and your GP, dermatologist, or eczema nurse completes the medical sections, prescribed treatments and how to use them, then signs and dates it.

How often should I update the plan?

Review it at least once a year, and any time your child's treatments change or they start a new care setting. Children's skin and needs change as they grow, and childcare or school will usually want a current, recently signed version rather than an old one.

How to Create an Eczema Action Plan for Childcare, School and Carers

By Kelly Northey, Certified Postpartum Nutrition Professional

Founder of Nella Vosk • 14+ years supporting families across motherhood, feeding, and early childhood wellbeing

Editorial Policy →

How to Create an Eczema Action Plan for Childcare, School and Carers

When your child has eczema, you carry the whole management of it in your head: which cream goes where, what a flare looks like when it is starting, what you do first, when it is time to call the doctor. You just know. The problem comes the moment someone else is caring for your child, a grandparent, a childcare educator, a new babysitter, a teacher, and suddenly all that knowledge is locked inside you and useless to them.

That is what an eczema action plan solves. It is a short written document that takes everything in your head and puts it on one page, so anyone caring for your child knows exactly what to do. This guide walks through how to build one with your doctor, and just as importantly, how to actually use it.

Quick note so you are in the right place: this guide is about the written plan you create with your doctor and share with carers. If what you need right now is the step-by-step of what to do the moment the skin flares, cooling, soak-and-seal, stopping the scratching, that is our companion piece, the eczema flare-up action plan. The two work together: the flare plan is what you do, this is the document that makes sure everyone caring for your child can do it too.

This sits within the Skin/Sensory & Regulation pillar of the Nella Vosk CARE SYSTEM, alongside our Complete Guide to Eczema-Friendly Clothing: Fabrics, Fit & Science for Australian Families. It answers one focused question: what is an eczema action plan, and how do you create and use one?

The thing most parents miss: an action plan is not really for you. You already know what to do. It is for everyone else who cares for your child when you are not there. In 16 years of supporting eczema families, the moment this clicks is when a parent realises the plan is what lets them hand their child to childcare, or a grandparent for the weekend, without the skin going backwards. Write it for the person who knows nothing, and it works for everyone.

What is an eczema action plan?

An eczema action plan is a written, personalised document, usually one page, that sets out how to manage your child’s eczema day to day and what to do when it flares. In Australia, the most widely used template is the eczema action plan from the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA), which many GPs and dermatologists complete with families. Childcare centres and schools often specifically ask for one.

A good plan is not generic advice. It is specific to your child: their creams, their triggers, their flare signs, their treatments, filled in by the health professional who knows their skin.

What goes in an eczema action plan

A complete plan usually covers these areas. You build it with your doctor, but knowing what belongs in it helps you get the most from the appointment.

Everyday care (the maintenance routine)

The daily basics that keep skin stable: which moisturiser to use, how often, how to bathe, and any everyday skin-care steps. This is the routine that prevents most flares in the first place.

Known triggers to avoid

Your child’s specific triggers, so carers can steer around them: particular fabrics, heat and sweat, certain products, or known irritants. If you are still working out what sets your child off, our guide to what causes eczema flare-ups helps you identify them to add to the plan.

Flare treatment (the step-up plan)

What to do when the skin flares: which treatment to start, where to apply it, and how much. This often includes a prescribed topical, and your doctor will set out exactly how and when to use it. For the practical in-the-moment sequence that sits alongside the medical steps, our eczema flare-up action plan walks through settling a flare at home.

Warning signs and when to seek help

The signs that mean it is time to call a doctor: skin that is weeping, crusting yellow, or looks infected, or a child who seems unwell. This is critical for carers who may not recognise these signs. Our guide to infected eczema in babies covers exactly what to look for.

Emergency contacts

Your phone number, your GP or dermatologist, and any after-hours service, written clearly so whoever is caring for your child is never guessing who to call.

How to create your plan, step by step

Book a dedicated appointment with your GP, dermatologist, or eczema nurse, and say up front that you want to complete an eczema action plan. This helps them allocate enough time.
Bring the ASCIA eczema action plan template, or ask if they have one. Having the template in hand makes the appointment far more productive.
Come prepared with your observations: your child’s flare signs, suspected triggers, what has worked and what has not. You know your child’s skin better than anyone, and this is the information that makes the plan specific.
Have the doctor fill in the medical parts: prescribed treatments, how to step up during a flare, and how to step back down. Do not guess at these yourself.
Ask them to sign and date it. Childcare and schools usually require a plan signed by a health professional, and it is worth reviewing and re-signing it at least yearly as your child grows.

For the official template and clinical guidance, ASCIA and the Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne are the trusted Australian sources.

How to actually use your plan

Give copies to everyone who cares for your child. Childcare, school, grandparents, regular babysitters. This is the whole point, do not let it live only in your drawer.
Keep one on the fridge. The most-used carer, you, benefits from having it visible during a stressful flare when your own brain is tired.
Pack a copy in the childcare bag along with the labelled creams it refers to, so the plan and the products travel together.
Review it at least yearly, and whenever treatments change or your child starts a new care setting. An out-of-date plan is worse than none.

The part of the plan carers can get right instantly

Most of an action plan needs a doctor. One part does not, and it is the part carers can act on immediately: what your child wears. Because fabric sits against the skin all day and all night, it is one of the simplest levers anyone caring for your child can pull. Noting on your plan that your child wears smooth, breathable bamboo eczema clothing and, for younger children who scratch, eczema scratch sleeves and mittens gives every carer a clear, doable instruction that protects the skin without any medical judgement required.

None of this treats eczema, and I would never claim it does. But dressing skin to stay cool and stopping night-time scratching are two things a grandparent or educator can do perfectly from day one, and that is exactly what a good plan makes possible.

Want to Explore Bamboo Clothing for Eczema?

Frequently asked questions

: It is a short written document, usually one page, that sets out how to manage a child’s eczema day to day and what to do during a flare. It is personalised to your child and completed with your GP or dermatologist. In Australia, the ASCIA eczema action plan is the most widely used template, and childcare centres and schools often request one.
: The Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA) provides a widely used eczema action plan template, and many GPs and dermatologists have it on hand. Bring it to a dedicated appointment so your doctor can complete the medical sections and sign it.
: Many Australian childcare centres and schools require a signed action plan before they will apply creams or manage a flare. Even where it is not required, providing one ensures carers know your child’s routine, triggers, and what to do if the skin worsens, so it is worth having regardless.
: You build it together with a health professional. You provide the observations about your child’s triggers, flare signs, and what works, and your GP, dermatologist, or eczema nurse completes the medical sections, prescribed treatments and how to use them, then signs and dates it.
: Review it at least once a year, and any time your child’s treatments change or they start a new care setting. Children’s skin and needs change as they grow, and childcare or school will usually want a current, recently signed version rather than an old one.

Next Steps

Book the appointment, bring the ASCIA template and your observations, and get copies to everyone who cares for your child. That is the whole job. For the in-the-moment flare sequence that pairs with your plan, see our eczema flare-up action plan, and for the full picture of managing eczema through what your child wears, head to our Complete Guide to Eczema-Friendly Clothing: Fabrics, Fit & Science for Australian Families.

Getting it out of your head and onto one page is one of the most practical, load-lightening things you can do, for your child, and for you.

Kelly x

AUTHOR BIO

Written by Kelly Northey, Certified Postpartum Nutrition Professional and founder of Nella Vosk. Kelly founded Bamboo Bubby more than 16 years ago after her own child’s eczema, and has spent the years since helping Australian families turn the daily reality of eczema management into practical, shareable routines that work at home, at childcare, and everywhere in between.

More About Kelly Northey