When my mother was sick, before I knew it, I was making her appointments, providing transportation, asking the questions, and, I had even developed a first name relationship with her pharmacist.

Not that I shouldn’t have done those things, but, when you first start, it’s just weird to be doing it for your parent. Not only did I have to keep the kids medical appointments in my head, I added my mother, and, 3-5 more doctors. It was already pretty crowded in there, too.

As we have undoubtedly all experienced, doctors have less an less time to see patients who come for an appointment. While there’s 2 sides of that dilemma, I think both doctors and patients would agree that it’s important to maximize the time spent together.

Ivanhoe has an article with a few good tips on using the doctor appointment time wisely.

Though financial impact would vary, I like the idea of making two appointments if there is a lot of things that you need to discuss with the doctor, and, as a nurse, I can attest to the importance of describing your pain specifically, and, thoroughly.

As always, I think it’s a good idea to write down anything you want to discuss, and, always carry an updated list (and some copies if there’s a lot) of your or your parents’ medications and dosages with you. Yes, it is “on file” at the office, but, it can be very important for the doctor to see what you’ve actually been taking, and, a specialist may not always have ready access to all the medicines you’ve been prescribed.

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That’s right! Today’s Blogtoberfest Day here at GenBetween, and, there’s a prize lurking behind this very entry.

Don’t forget, I’m also at Career and Kids, watch for prizes over there, too, during Blogtoberfest!

UPDATED: contest closed for this entry, winner announced here.

Post from: Blisstree

Getting the most out of doctor’s appointments