Seriously, be prepared!  Maintenance of a personal updated health history is one of the most important steps to improve your quality of healthcare. A good medical history can literally be a life saver. During the pandemic, having current information completed crucial. Having documented your health information becomes more important, if a family member or HCPOA, needs to step in at a time of crisis.

You really do not want to have to come up with all this information, if you start feeling sick! Your providers’ time is limited, the more efficient you can make your visit, the better outcome you will receive. You should arrive prepared with the following information:

• Name, age, height, weight and chief complaint or complaints specific to that healthcare provider.
• Explain your chief complaint or complaints. In particular specify anything that has changed from previous visit.
• Give specific numbers for things: like how long had the symptoms or how much pain, on a scale of 0 to 10. Document any of information you have; daily b/p, daily weight or change in medication administration.                 

• Give any associated symptoms, as they often the key to making a correct    diagnosis. Have you had similar symptoms previously? Bring copies of past medical test, lab work, EKG’s, scans.
• Make sure to review symptoms. This is when reading from your healthcare notebook is helpful. You should always have the following information documented:
• Allergies and drug reactions
• Current medications, including over-the-counter drugs, any CBD use.
• Current and past medical or psychiatric illnesses or conditions
• Past hospitalizations
• Immunization status
• Give truthful use of tobacco, alcohol, CBD or recreational drugs
• Family status, including whether the patient is married, who the patient lives with and other relationships. Include questions about the patient’s current sexual activity and history.

 So, Get TO IT! Be Prepared.