Here’s how to prepare for your next doctor’s appointment:
Ask for more time for your appointment, if necessary. If you need longer work, ask the receptionist when you make your appointment. Ms Biali says that if you explain what your medical problem is and need longer work, you may well get it.
Forget Doctor Google. Give up the urge to share a self-diagnosis from the internet with your doctor. It only makes you more anxious and does not allow your doctor to assess your health problem objectively.
Overcome “white coat syndrome”. The first thing to do is to overcome the intimidation you feel in the presence of a doctor. It turns many of us into complete idiots. So take a deep breath and remember that doctors are humans too.
Bring all your medical documents. Ms Biali says that recent blood test results, hospitalization reports and immunization reports can be beneficial to your family doctor, giving them a complete picture of your health, and can help eliminate the need for having you undergo other tests which could delay a diagnosis. It is possible that your doctor does not have on hand the documents relating to your visits to the emergency room, for example; if you were given a medical report when you left the hospital or if you have online access to your hospital file — print it and bring it with you.
Ask someone to accompany you. If you have alarming symptoms and your doctor’s appointment makes you anxious, ask a friend to come with you. This person can support you emotionally, ask questions you haven’t thought of, listen to and remember doctor’s recommendations (which many patients don’t do when under stress), and take notes. . Don’t bring too many people into the doctor’s office, though, and if it’s your teen who has an appointment, leave them alone with the doctor (with a note from you to give them, if necessary).
Figure out which issue is more critical, and focus on that. A long list of concerns can waste valuable time that could be spent on a more serious problem, says Biali.
Ask for clarification. If you don’t understand something, your doctor tells you, ask for clarification.
Remind your doctor of details and take the initiative. Your doctor sees many patients every day. If you are allergic to penicillin, for example, and your doctor writes you a prescription for this drug, stop it. Telling a doctor which medications have not worked for you in the past can also save time and ensure that they prescribe a new medication that will work. Also, if you haven’t heard from the specialist, your doctor referred you to, get their number from your family doctor’s office and follow up.
Record what the doctor tells you. If you can’t bring a friend with you or have trouble remembering instructions your doctor gives you, your phone might help. Ask your doctor if you can record their recommendations using your cell phone’s voice recorder.
