In order to maximize the interaction between you and your cardiologist at your next visit, it is best to come prepared. There are materials you should bring with you and ways you should prepare for your appointment. Here are some tips for a more meaningful visit:
- Make sure to always bring your health card to all appointments
- A sheet of paper with all your current medications written out or typed out (including name, dose, and frequency of use) is an invaluable resource for your cardiologist. A list of any medication allergies is also helpful. Having these pieces of information written out helps ensure accuracy in your medical record.
- If you know you will be admitted to hospital, bring a robe and supportive footwear plus any non-scented toiletries.
- Compile a family health history of close blood relatives. This includes brothers, sisters, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and children. From a cardiology perspective, what you are especially interested in finding out is whether any of your relatives have been diagnosed with heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, or aneurysm. Knowing when any of your relatives passed away and cause of death is also important. A family history of health events can provide clues as to what illnesses/conditions you may be at risk for developing.
- If you have them, bring in copies of any recent lab results and any other test results from the past year, especially if the testing took place with a different health care provider. This will help avoid duplicating tests unnecessarily.
- Write down a list of the questions you have about your condition and bring it with you to the appointment. Keep the list realistic in length. You might want to pick the top 3 or 4 concerns you would like to have addressed during your visit. Even though this might seem silly, it is easy to get sidetracked during a medical appointment. Write down ahead of time what pieces of information you want to leave with.
- Keep yourself organized. Putting all this data into a folder is a good idea so it’s easy to access during your visit.
