OK, here we are. This week we will be focusing on a very important part of your Health Management Plan (HMP)….. the Medical Workbook. This week I will show you the items that will make up your Medical Workbook which is a very necessary part of your HMP. This is your “go-to” tool for emergencies, for your Loved Ones to use in an emergency and to help keep track of your medical history as well as your medications. Your Medical Workbook can be a folder (display or arch lever) or a notebook. Anything that you can easily update and carry around. I keep mine in a display folder, keeping document templates on my computer for quick updates.
Today I will be focusing on the first two parts of your Medical Workbook. These are your Contact List and your Medication List.
Your Contact List
A Contact List is an essential part of being a “Professional Patient”! Every Professional has one and as a “Professional Patient” you are no different. A Contact List of everyone and anyone who has a hand in your health care is very important for obvious reasons. In an emergency you need to have those numbers close to hand and in one place. When you, or if you are unable to, when your Loved One has to get in contact with your medical team, your doctor, your physiotherapist or your hospital it is very handy to be able to turn to one page and be able to start dialling. Items that I include in my Contact are:
- My Consultants/Specialists – no many how many you have! I have 4! You need to be able to get in touch with them all if need be. Include all the numbers you have for this person, i.e. practice number, emergency number, mobile number, extension number, secretaries number, etc.
- Your local General Practitioner (GP) – include week day number and emergency or weekend numbers.
- Your Physiotherapist – as above.
- Your Chiropractor – as above.
- Your Medical Team – this may include your Team Coordinator, they are often your first port of call in an emergency as they can get you direct access to your Medical Team QUICKLY.
- Your hospital – the general switch board number and your ward number.
- Your pharmacy – both Hospital and Private.
- Anyone else you see for some aspect of your health including massage therapists, acupuncturists etc.
- Your Family and Loved Ones – Although you might know your family contact numbers it is important to have a comprehensive list of your next of kin so that if there was an emergency and someone who doesn’t know you has to make these calls they will have it all together, in one place and can make those calls very quickly. Quickly being the key word here.
It may seem a lot but if you see a lot of people for your health then you need to include them in your Contact List. My Contact List is rather long but it sure as hell beats trolling through an address book at a time when I am not really with it. It is also important to give a copy of this Contact List to your Parents or Loved Ones to have handy just in case as well as having one in a central, easily accessible place in your home (even in your car, if you want). And don’t forget to update it as often as needed. I find that keeping a Word document on my computer makes it easy to make changes and print out a new copy to keep in my Medical Workbook and to keep my Loved Ones updated. I put mine in table form and type it in large, easy to read print. I also keep a copy in my diary for easy reference. Don’t you feel more on top of things already?!
Your Medication List
Having an up to date list of your Medications is also another ESSENTIAL part of being a “Professional Patient”. Like anyone with health issues, if I had a dollar for every time I was asked to list my medications then I would be living on my own island in the Caribbean! And like anyone in the same situation, I find it very easy to forget some important medication here and there, especially when I am on at approx. 30 different medications and treatments daily. Having a Medication List that you update regularly does away with that problem. I have also found it useful when having to call an Ambulance to your home, instead of having to list your meds when you may not be coherent, let alone conscious, you or your Loved One can give them the List. It is also always handy for Clinics/Outpatients appointment or when meeting a new Doctor or other Medical Personnel. A thorough Medication List would include:
- Your daily Medications including dosage and how many times a day it is taken. I include the Pharmaceutical Name (and the Generic name if applicable) as well as the main ingredient (for example: Panadol – Paracetamol 2x500mg four times daily).
- The reasons that you take that Medication (for example: Panadol – Paracetamol 2x500g four times daily. Taken for chest pain.)
- A comprehensive list of your Allergies (to any Medications, foods and additives, tapes, adhesives, bees, whatever it may be) and the reaction you have to that item (for example: Ceftazadime (a antibiotic) – facial swelling, difficulty breathing, rash.)
- For the fun of it I also create a Daily Schedule Outline of my Medications including what I take and at what time. This is to give anyone who needs to know an idea of my daily schedule and the Medications I take and when. This is very helpful actually, I have used it to keep myself on track on days when I am not feeling the best as well as when a new Medication is added to my regime so that I can work out when I need to take it and with what else. More on a Daily Schedule Outline next post.
- I also keep a note of any changes in my Medication Regime so that if there are any problems or issues that arise I can go back to check if it could be caused by any changes in my Medications. This has proven to be an invaluable tool.
As a “Professional Patient” it is SO important to know what medication you are on and why you are on it. It makes your doctors job that much easier and can help you manage your health a WHOLE lot better. Knowledge is power and I have found it very useful to be aware of what I am taking and why. You are putting these chemicals into you body so you also want to know what the possible adverse reactions may be to that medication and what other medications it is compatible with or not compatible with. Talk to your Pharmacist or Doctor about these issues. Once again keep a copy of your List at home and in your diary. You will also need to keep your Prescriptions in one place so that they are easy to find. I also mark on my diary/calender when I will run out of Medications. This is important so that you are able to keep on top of your Medication stock and do not run the risk of running out of an important drug (especially during holidays or long weekends when Pharmacies are not open).
By just creating the above two Lists you will be a lot more organised as well as being more on top of your health issues. Feeling in control and on top of things will allow you to be able to do things you felt you couldn’t do when your health was taking control of your life. You are more likely to go places and achieve things that you would not have been able to do otherwise. And that is only a good thing.
Next post I will be writing about creating a Daily Routine Outline and a List of Health Issues that you manage. Once again, my goal is that by the end of this series of posts you will be able to create a fully functioning and effective Medical Workbook and Health Management Plan. Doing so will give you some freedom to go out and achieve those dreams that you have. To live a life where you manage your health, not the other way around! Until then…..
Take care, Lily
For more information on this website please see my first POST or this collection of ARTICLES
