Medical Information

I have told you that I take 19 different prescribed medications a day. I haven’t told you how I maintain those medications. I have a make-up type bag that I keep my medications in, it is round and has a zippered top. It is fairly large. All of my medications fit in it except for my insulin, I keep it in the refrigerator even though they told me I don’t have to. It is just easier for me to keep up with it there.

My pills are all standing up in the bag I have them in, so on the lids, I write if they are an A.M. pill or a P.M. pill, or both. This way when I am filling my pill container for the week, I can grab the appropriate pill bottle for the appropriate time it needs to be taken.

I also keep a list of my medications in my purse, the list consists of the medication name, how many times a day I take the pill, whether it is an A.M. pill or P.M. pill and the milligrams. Also on this list are my allergies, what the allergic reaction was, my surgeries, the date I had the surgery and the doctor’s name that did the surgery. My diagnoses, the doctor’s name that diagnosed me and the date of the diagnosis. I have my name and cell number, my husband’s name and cell number and my son’s name and cell number. A list of all my current doctors and their phone numbers. And the date I last updated the list.

This makes it a lot easier when visiting the doctor, they can look over my medication list with ease. See all of my history and have a copy for their file.

When an emergency arises, my husband can grab my bag of pills and take them with us, just in case I am admitted into the hospital because Medicare will not pay for pills you take at the hospital unless you are admitted into the hospital. Plus, nurses get busy and I don’t like taking my medications late. If by chance my medications don’t make it with us, I have my handy list that is updated regularly.

It is necessary to remember what all you take and the milligrams of the medications, and with the amount I take, I need a little help remembering everything. This has worked for me for years and saves time when filling out forms, I just hand them the list and let them make copies.

I suggest typing it out and printing it. It is much easier to read if it is typed. I also have it in my draft folder in my yahoo email address so if by chance, I lose my sheet, I still have a copy of the necessities  on my phone, or anyone’s phone that can open a yahoo email account. Covering all bases is the best way to handle your medical information.

To break it down for you:

• Medication name, mg, instructions, doctor
• Allergies, reaction
• Surgeries & procedures, date, doctor
• Diagnosis, date, doctor
• Emergency contact(s), phone number
• Current doctor(s), phone number(s)
• Last date list was updated