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Healthcare advocates ensure that people are fully aware of their entire health history, while also being empowered to ask questions and provide input to medical professionals. While friends and family can serve as your trusted advocates, it’s also important for you to advocate for your own health and wellness.
The first step is to ensure easy access to medical records, which can help you gain a better understanding of your health. This knowledge allows you to make data-driven decisions that can help improve the quality of care you receive, which in turn can improve the outcome.
Along with access to essential records, there are other steps you can take to gain greater control over your health. Here are a few tips to get you started:
- Review Your Insurance Policy – Knowing what your plan covers, such as annual screenings and check-ups, ensures you can make appointments as needed.
- Know Your Family’s Medical History – Family history can impact risk when it comes to heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and chronic conditions. It’s also important for doctors to know your family history to ensure you’re regularly screened for any diseases that run in your family.
- Prepare for Doctor’s Appointments – Making a list of questions or concerns before an appointment allows you to make the most of visits when time is limited. You should also jot down any new symptoms or issues you’re experiencing so they can be efficiently assessed.
- Don’t Be Afraid to Speak Up – Good communication between patients and medical professionals is crucial. If you don’t understand something a doctor is telling you, ask questions. If you’re reluctant to speak up, bring a friend or family member to appointments to do so for you.
- Take Notes During Appointments – Notes can help you remember important details of the visit. If you have the doctor’s permission, you can also record the visit using a mobile device.
- Seek Out Electronic Records Storage – Your personal medical records can also provide a lot of insight into your health. Accordingly, you should have a reliable method of storing and sharing healthcare data when necessary. Medical records include so much important information, such as health conditions, medications, surgical procedures, allergies, and other essential data.
In the event of an emergency, easy access to and sharing of medical records can have a direct impact on the outcome. In this case, there are free apps that make it easy to store, access, and share your medical history as needed. These apps allow you to store information from thousands of providers, including the VA, Medicare, and more. Some also enable you to see physician-trusted resources that are specific to your conditions and save up to 80% on your prescriptions.
When you advocate for your own health, it can have a massive impact on the quality of care you receive. It also allows you to make smart healthcare decisions, such as seeking out a second opinion when it comes to diagnoses and treatments. While doctors and other medical professionals are vital for helping you maintain overall well-being, being your own advocate ensures you remain an active participant in the care you receive and can help you get better outcomes.
I do all of the above except anything on line. All my tests and reports I print out and store in a folder. Any issues that come up, I usually get a second opinion on. I am 68 years old and in good health with no chronic conditions. Never take any drugs. Use supplements and vitamins. Eat a healthy diet and stay active. Hope to continue that way and have a good quality of life. Thanking the Lord for his grace that keeps me going. All the credit goes to Him.
Join AMAC and get the truth and get the exceptional treatment you deserve. AMAC does not go behind your back promoting something, instead they give you the truth and help people equally.
I now suffer from health issues I wouldn’t have had if a previous doctor failed to warn me of! 6 years ago when at the Hospital Emergency Room dealing with kidney stones, the attending physician informed me that I had an enlarged prostate but he said that it was “No Big Deal” that 90% 0f men my age have itand that I “could live it!” He then prescribed me a prescription of Flomax to regulate it but failed to inform me about needing to eventually needing to do something about it! My prostate grew so large that it pressed my kidneys together so that I couldn’t void my urine and caused me to have kidney failure that I would have died from if I had have any clogged arteries which thankfully I didn’t have! 16 months later and I still have a catheter in me where I can’t get rid of until I address the enlarged prostate issue. He wants to do surgery to remove it but I don’t trust him because he doesn’t believe in a natural alternative to shrink it. I certainly would have addressed the issue if warned initially but never was! So now I have a “trust issue” with all doctors because I feel that they view me as a dollar sign first rather than what is best for me!
How does one even start to gather medical data/history about one’s self? Doctors’ offices say they can’t or won’t release the information.