5 steps to organize your notes after a doctor's appointment

When you walk out of the exam room, it feels like you'll remember everything. A few days later, though, which tests were ordered, when the follow-up is, or exactly what your doctor said starts to blur. In this post we share how to organize your appointment notes the same day in five short steps, plus a note template you can use.

Why organize your notes after an appointment?

A lot gets discussed in a short appointment: your doctor's assessment, the tests ordered, what was said about medication, the next step. Nerves, tiredness or a crowded waiting room can mean some of it doesn't stick. That's completely normal; nobody's memory is expected to handle all of this on its own.

MedlinePlus, the health guide of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, suggests taking notes during the appointment, bringing someone along to take notes if needed, and asking about anything you don't understand until you do. The short notes you take during the visit become a real record once you organize them at home. If you're wondering how to prepare for the appointment, 7 notes to take to your doctor's appointment covers what comes before this post.

Organizing your notes has another benefit: at your next appointment you can tell your doctor clearly what has changed since last time. Especially if you see more than one doctor or are called back several times for a result, organized notes keep the pieces together.

5 steps to organize your appointment notes

Fifteen minutes is enough for these steps. Sitting down on the evening of the appointment usually does the job. You don't have to finish everything in one go, either; doing the first two steps the same day and leaving the rest for the next day works too.

1. Gather your raw notes. What you typed on your phone during the appointment, what you scribbled on paper, the documents you were given and what the person with you remembers… Collect it all in one place. If a piece is missing, this is when you'll notice.
2. Write down what your doctor said in your own words. Use short, plain sentences: "Blood test ordered", "Follow-up in two months". Keep what your doctor said separate from your own interpretation; don't fill a gap you're unsure of with a guess, put a question mark next to it.
3. Pull the to-dos into a separate list. List tasks like getting a test done, collecting results, booking an appointment or taking a prescription to the pharmacy one under the other, with their dates. If a task has no set date, mark it "to ask".
4. Add the next date to your calendar. If you were given a follow-up or results date, put it in your calendar right away and set a reminder. Leaving the date to your calendar instead of trying to remember it takes a weight off your mind. If you were told something vague like "in a few months", pick an approximate date and make a note to call the clinic to confirm it.
5. Carry remaining questions over to the next appointment. Write any new questions that come to mind once you're home at the top of the list you keep for your next appointment. For gynecology appointments, you can also use the list of 12 questions to ask at your gynecology appointment.

After these five steps, your notes become a single story running from one appointment to the next. At your next visit, the answer to "What did we talk about last time?" will be right at hand.

If someone came to the appointment with you, going over your notes together also helps. They may remember a detail you missed; if your memories don't match, simply mark that point as a question.

What should an appointment note include?

If you keep every appointment note under the same headings, it's easier to find things later. You can use this short template:

• Date, doctor and department: Which day, who you saw and why.
• What was discussed: Your doctor's assessment, in two or three lines in your own words.
• Tests ordered: Blood tests, imaging or a referral to another specialist.
• What was said about medication: Medications your doctor started, changed or told you to continue; exactly as it was said.
• Things to watch for: Situations your doctor said to let them know about.
• Next step: The follow-up date and when results will be ready.
• Open questions: Things you forgot to ask or didn't get a clear answer to.

You don't have to fill in the whole template every time. Two lines may be enough for a short check-up; at a longer appointment, every heading is useful. What matters is that your notes are always in the same place and in the same order.

What if something is still unclear?

While organizing your notes, you may notice that an instruction isn't clear: how to take a medication, for example, or how to prepare for a test. Don't fill a gap like that with a guess. You can call the clinic and ask, and for anything about medication, ask your doctor or pharmacist. MedlinePlus also suggests asking for written instructions when needed and getting contact details for questions that come up later.

When results come in, go back to the same note. If you found out at the appointment when and how results will be shared, and whether the clinic will call you or you need to ask, write it in your note; if you didn't, set yourself a reminder to ask the clinic.

If you also want to keep your test results together in one place, have a look at the 6 ways in how to organize your lab results.

If your symptoms change after the appointment or something unexpected happens, contact your doctor without waiting for the next appointment. If a symptom is severe or starts suddenly, call the emergency line.

Where do you keep appointment notes in Oveluni?

In Oveluni, every appointment is a visit record. From the Quick add menu you choose Add a visit and enter the visit's name, date and time, the doctor, the hospital and your note. Once the appointment has taken place, you use "Mark as completed"; no reminder completes a visit automatically. Updating the note of a completed visit lets you see what was discussed when you look back at past appointments in Calendar. For your next visit, you can choose a reminder one day before, one hour before or 15 minutes before.

You can save anything that comes to mind after the appointment with A note in Quick add. When you prepare a PDF report to take to your doctor, the "Include notes" option is off by default; your notes are only added to the report if you want them to be. For all the features, take a look at the Features page. Oveluni is coming soon to the App Store.

Sources

1. MedlinePlus: Talking with your doctor (U.S. National Library of Medicine)