Health Appointment Planning

Pre-Appointment Planning

Your health depends, in part, on how you partner with your health care practitioner. It’s important to see your health care practitioner regularly to help you achieve your best health. Planning for each office visit will help you to get the most out of time with your practitioner. Here are some tips on planning for your next visit.

Step One: Planning Your Personal Health Goals

It is easier to set goals if you have an idea about what your best health looks like. Plan where you would like to make changes in the next three months.

What are your personal health goals?

Is it decreasing blood pressure, stopping tobacco use, reducing weight, eating better, improving cholesterol levels, or other goals? Choose goals that you can reach and make them definite statements with the end goal in mind. Here are some ideas:

I will quit smoking by the end of August.
I will be exercising at least 5 days a week by Thanksgiving.
I will decrease the top number of my blood pressure 10 points by July.

How do you plan to meet these goals? What are your action steps?

Make steps small and achievable so you'll feel confident in reaching them. For example:

I’ll purchase a medication container with days of the week so I remember to take my medications each day.
I’ll walk twice around the block each morning.
I will learn more about what affects my blood pressure by the end of June.

Step Two: Planning for Your Visit

Be sure to keep notes for the next visit.

What is the reason for the visit?
- Is it for a medication recheck, a visit to have lab tests or to discuss lab test results; a chronic condition check-up; a follow-up visit for something discussed previously; or perhaps it’s about a concern.
If you have a health concern, note the following points ahead of time and take them with you to your visit:
- How long you’ve been concerned about…?
- What have you done about the concern?
- How has the concern changed since you first noticed it?
- What helps the concern and what makes it worse?

If you are seeing your practitioner for a regular visit:
- Make a note about how you are feeling most of the time between visits.
- Ask if there are any tests you need to have done before your visit. This saves both you and your practitioner from making a second appointment to discuss results and make changes in your treatment plan
- - Be sure to ask the reason for the tests.
  - Write down the date and time of the tests.
  - Ask if there are any special instructions you need to know.

Step Three: Your Practitioner Visit

At your visit:

Bring along the things you are tracking at home such as blood pressure readings, blood sugar monitoring, a sleep journal, or food log.
Bring results from labs or screenings done since your last visit such as eye exams and blood work that may have taken place somewhere other than at your practitioners clinic.
Bring along a list of all the medicines and supplements you take, including non-prescription ones.
Prepare questions to ask at each visit
- Capture your questions as you think of them
- Jot them down to take with you
Ask for more information if you need it.
- Repeat instructions to the health care practitioner to help you understand them.
- Sometimes it helps to bring someone along who can also repeat the instructions.
- Make sure you are able to follow the instructions. If not, let your health care practitioner know. He/she may have other ideas that will work for you.
Decide on a goal that you would like to accomplish and share it with your health care practitioner.

Pre-Appointment Planning Resources

You can find more tips and resources on pre-appointment planning in Making the Most of Your Appointment as well as other helfpul information in our Health Topics section.