Most people don’t put much thought into preparing for their visits to the doctor, although a few seniors will wear their Sunday’s best – women in their formal dresses and men in suits and ties.
Women often apologize for not shaving their legs (though that doesn’t bother doctors at all), and men may not have had time to shower after work (though that may bother us a little).
Doctors are used to seeing you at your worst – when you’re midway through the worst flu ever, recovering from major surgery, or throughout a long labour and the delivery of a baby.
Beyond basic grooming, making an appointment or just dropping in, there are a few things you can do to be better prepared for a visit to your doctor.
Let’s begin with the list. That’s not the list of essential qualities you seek in an ideal mate nor is it the to do list your real-life spouse has written for you. Both may be beyond human achievement.
I mean your list of concerns or your problem list. Because of the constant pressure of time, many doctors hope that it is a short list. But to be realistic, our lives are complicated and sometimes we have to deal with a lot of problems at once.
When I’m on the verge of feeling overwhelmed with unlucky patients’ unending lists of problems, I imagine how hard daily life is for those patients and their families.
To prepare your doctor and the clinic staff for your visit, when booking your appointment, tell the medical office assistant everything that you would like to address during the visit. This will ensure that there is adequate time to deal with your concerns. If there isn’t, one or two of your problems may have to be addressed at a separate visit.
Provide your list in point form. Save the complete history of how each problem evolved for your doctor. The medical office assistant is multitasking other duties beyond answering the phone and booking appointments.
One reason for your visit may be to review the results of a recent test or to discuss a visit to a consultant. By informing the staff in advance, they can ensure that the reports are available for your visit.
If something else comes up after booking the appointment, inform the staff when you arrive at the clinic. Again this is to ensure that there is adequate time to address your concerns and that the doctor has everything needed to attend to your needs.
When you meet with your doctor, take a moment to review your list and agree on the objectives of the day’s visit. The doctor may have a list of things you should review together, such as the results of a recent investigation or a screening test that you may need at this time.
The two of you may need to negotiate the agenda for this visit and if more time is needed, a plan for addressing some of the problems at a future appointment can be set.
Finally, while preparing for your medical visit, don’t forget to bring a pen and paper. You will need it to write down what you have discussed with your physician, the plan of action and any medical terminology that is new to you.
In summary, be prepared for every medical visit by:
1. making a list of your concerns
2. sharing it with the staff when you call for an appointment
3. briefly reviewing that list with your doctor at the beginning of your visit, and
4. bring a pen and paper to write down what you wish to remember.
Dr. Davidicus Wong is physician lead of the Burnaby Division of Family Practice and works at the PrimeCare Medical Centre. His Healthwise column appears regularly in this paper. You can read more about achieving your positive potential in health at davidicuswong.wordpress.com.
