Getting the Most Out of a Medical Appointment.

No matter what your age, it’s easy to forget a lot of what your health care provider say. Even if you are comfortable talking with your doctor, you may not always understand what he or she says. It’s not unusual for a 20-something to text Mom in a panic from the doctor’s office, seeking help answering a question. And patients of any age can struggle to recall all their medicines — or forget to mention a concern.

Here are a few tips to get the most from your appointment.

1. Plan your appointment: Bring a list of symptoms and questions to show at the start of the visit. The first item should be your top concern, but seeing the full list helps your doctor prioritize what’s most medically urgent.
2. Your primary care doctor monitors your overall health: Primary care is more than preventive checkups to help avoid illness, such as vaccinations, cancer screenings or health advice. It also includes detecting and treating common problems like high blood pressure and helping to find and coordinate specialty care. If you have a specific concern, make a note to ask. As the saying goes there is no dumb question.
3. Quiz your family before the appointment: Young adults navigating health care on their own for the first time may need help filling out forms with their personal medical history. Have you ever had general anesthesia? Is your tetanus shot up to date? For all ages, family medical history is critical — and needs regular updating. Ask what diseases your close relatives have had and how they fared. For example, if Type 2 diabetes runs in the family, or Grandma had a stroke, or someone had cancer at a young age, that information could help tailor your preventive care.
4. Fill out your paperwork ahead of the visit: Filling out paperwork from home makes it easier to check medicine bottles for the name and dose. Include both prescription and over-the-counter medicines, pills or creams — and don’t forget vitamins and supplements. Why are the latter important? Some can interact with prescription medicines. And an easy tip for busy people is to take pictures of the medicine bottles if you do not want to bring them with you. Also before your visit, check if the doctor received records of recent lab tests, hospitalizations or visits to other health providers, since electronic medical records aren’t always automatically shared.
5. Keep a running list of questions before a doctor visit: Some symptoms are bad enough to prompt an urgent visit. But if you’ve got a checkup coming, whether it’s routine or to follow up on health problems, start a list of questions in advance. The idea is to address the most urgent questions first, rather than patients running out of time before raising a key concern.
6. It’s OK to ask again: People may know how to ask questions about treatments, such as how well they work and what side effects to expect. But it’s also important to understand why a doctor makes a particular diagnosis or, conversely, isn’t as worried about a symptom as you might be. Don’t hesitate to say, “Explain to me what else could be going on. What would be the next step? How would you evaluate that for me, to know if it’s this or that? Most health advocacy groups also advise bringing along a friend or relative, especially if you have serious or multiple health problems. They can help ask questions and take notes. Whether you are 20 or you are 85, you will not remember everything from your medical visit.

An appointment with your healthcare professional should work in your favor. Preparing for your visit ahead of time can help you get the most out of it. Ask questions, get clarifications, and let your healthcare team know what does and doesn’t work for you. Honest and respectful communication between you and your clinic team is a vital part of your good health.