Outskirts Press, INC.

Your Personal Medical History

Keep an ongoing record of your medical history (your medical diagnoses, blood type, medication list and updates, physicians’ contact information, emergency contacts and their contact information, a list of allergies, a record of your daily vital signs, a log of your food intake and exercise routine, shots and vaccinations received, tests you’ve undergone and the results, a list of your surgeries, information on your insurance policies, notes taken during doctors’ visits and hospitalizations with discharge orders, treatments received, and a list of health care provider options) along with important documents (a copy of your insurance cards, a Living Will, Power of Attorney, etc.) all in one handy book. Bring your medical history book with you to doctors’ appointments and to the hospital to write notes. Review previous entries periodically to look for patterns and for cause and effect relationships between reoccurrences of illnesses and symptoms, medication changes and reactions, treatments and results, etc. Take charge of your health or the health of someone you care for.

This comprehensive medical log began as sections in a spiral notebook, used by my siblings and me to keep track of the daily vital signs, medication changes, doctor and hospital visits, etc. for our father and mother. The need to keep track of everything became apparent when we started taking Mom and Dad to their doctors’ appointments. Before we began the notebook system, we would attempt to piece together information we each had in our aging minds, since we took turns taking Mom and Dad to their appointments. • When did Dad have those heart stents put in? • Do you remember why Dad had to go to the emergency room last July and then in November? • Did anyone bring Dad’s Living Will? • Did Mom receive her flu shot this year? I hope this log will enable you to monitor and coordinate services for yourself or someone you love. Carry it with you to doctors’ appointments, hospital visits, etc. It will also provide useful information to medical emergency personnel at critical times. Your medical history will always be at your fingertips.