Your Doctor Visit Checklist
May 11, 2021
It’s happened to everyone — you go to an appointment with your doctor, and you forget the questions you wanted to ask her as soon as your appointment starts. Or maybe your doctor gave you specific instructions about a new medication, but by the time you got home, you couldn’t remember exactly what he said.
“Studies have shown that many patients do not fully recall medical instructions they receive, even just a short time later,” says Mary Beth Donovan, ACNP-BC, a nurse practitioner at Beaufort Memorial Primary Care. “That’s completely understandable. After all, medical terms can be complex, and you may be stressed or scared during your appointment. All these things can hinder your ability to remember information accurately.”
Read More: How to Choose a PCP
How to Remember What a Doctor Tells You During an Appointment
Taking a checklist to every visit with your doctor can be helpful. Younger or more tech-savvy patients may find it beneficial to record conversations with their physician on a smartphone app that offers transcriptions. But physically writing things down, pen on paper, has been shown to increase memory retention.
Using a checklist — like the one below — can ensure your doctor has all the information he or she needs and that you’ll be able to get answers to your questions.
Read More: 9 Symptoms to Never Ignore
Whether you’re writing things down, checking them off or recording, don’t leave your appointment until you are sure you understand your doctor’s instructions. You should be able to answer these three questions:
- What is my main problem?
- What do I need to do?
- Why is it important for me to do this?
“No question is too silly or too dumb,” Donovan says. “We are here to help and want to make sure you understand everything we are telling you. We value your health and want to work together to come up with an appropriate plan of care.”
Download our infographic or use it as a template for making your own checklist to take to your next doctor’s appointment.
Need a new primary care provider? Find a Beaufort Memorial provider accepting new patients.
