EIGHT STEPS to Maximize Doctor Appointments for Special Needs Children By Lee Vander Loop
Doctor appointments are routine events and all too frequent in the lives of families with special needs children. The appointments themselves and the issues addressed however are seldom from routine. Given that you will have 15-30 minutes at most with the doctor, making the most of this time is critical. Following are eight steps to maximize benefits from your appointment:
Step ONE – When making the appointment, tell the
staff if you are new or if you have issues that will need additional time so they can block out more time than one appointment slot.
Step TWO – Arrange for someone to go with you to the appointment who can tend to your child. You don’t want to be distracted while you talk with and listen to your doctor.
Step THREE – Write down all your questions and concerns in as much detail as possible and take the list with you.
Step FOUR – Arrive early to get all the paperwork out of the way. You don’t want to waste any of your appointment time filling out forms.
Step FIVE – Be able to hand your doctor a written, up-to-date summary of your child’s medical history and related information. (See detail below, including sample summary)
Step SIX – Have your current issues and questions written down so you make sure to cover everything. Don’t try to take notes. Concentrate on listening to your doctor. Your doctor should provide you with any take home instructions in writing. Do not leave until you understand what your doctor is telling you.
Step SEVEN – Before you leave, ask which RN in the office you can contact with follow-up questions should the doctor be unavailable and get their direct phone number.
Step EIGHT – Once you get home, update
your child’s medical history summary with any new diagnoses, prescriptions, doctor’s instructions and contact information.
What You Should Be Able to Hand Your Doctor
The amount of information you take to your doctor depends on the type of appointment. New primary care visit? Take everything (see care Notebook below). Specialist? Take an up-to-date Care summary highlighting issues related to the specialty (see Care Summary, below). Follow-up visit? The Care Summary should suffice.
Care Summary
Having a written summary of your child’s medical history and other related information readily available for your doctor will save time and give you peace of mind that your doctor is working from complete information. This summary should only be 3-4 pages long and should include:
1. Office visits and diagnoses by date – Note the date of the diagnosis, the diagnosis, the doctor who made the diagnosis and their contact information.
2. Hospitalizations – Name of the hospital, dates of admission and discharge, the admitting physician’s name and contact information, the reason for the admission, the duration of the hospitalization and whether the diagnosis was resolved with the hospitalization.
3. Surgeries- Name of the Hospital where the procedure was performed, names and contact information of the surgeon, the dates of admission and discharge and what the surgery was for.
4.Medications -List of all medications being administered, current doses and frequency, and notations of any allergies or allergic reactions to previous medications.
Care Notebook - What to Keep Organized at Home All of the above, plus: 5. All physicians and providers and their contact
information North Texas Kids • July 2011 •
www.NorthTexasKids.com 31
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