I don’t know about for you, but for me, it is often an overabundance of something that necessitates a new organizing system. When I had just one kid in school, it was easy to manage the papers that came home without a system. With 4 kids bringing home papers every day, a system had to be put into place to manage everything before I lost my mind. And so, it came to be with organizing family medical records. In the last year, we’ve had one child diagnosed with several allergies, another with chronic stomach pain, and still another with chronic headaches. We’ve been seeing lots of doctors and the papers and business cards have been piling up.
But over the last year, it got ridiculous! In just this year we’ve been seen or gotten treatment for:
- concussion
- chronic stomach pain (ultrasounds & specialists)
- tonsilectomy
- strep throat
- double ear infection
- ruptured ear drum
- dental appointments
- allergies, allergies, and more allergies
- asthma
- 3 cases of pneumonia
- broken arm
- stitches
- glasses for 3 kids
And more!
Yep, it’s been out of control! There were even a couple weeks where we had at least one appointment every day of the week! And keeping track of all those doctors and instructions is getting the best of me. Not to mention trying to keep the kids straight when I’m filling out paperwork. Who’s allergic to what? What medical/surgery history? And when is this kid’s birthday again?!
Enter the Medical Binder! Here’s how I put it together:
- 1 tab for each member of the family
- on the back of the tab write their date of birth, allergies, and surgery history
- behind each tab include all important information: shot records, eyeglasses prescriptions, most recent well child record (with height and weight), test results, any important info from specialists we’re seeing
- in front of the tabs, use a business card page (like a page protector with slots for business cards) to easily see info for all doctors offices
- in the front pocket put any referrals that need action to be taken (orders for blood work, etc)
- in front of the very first tab, include a printout/copy of your insurance info for medical, dental, vision – easy access when making appointments
- add a cute cover and file all paperwork you need behind each tab
Now, anytime you need to schedule an appointment, grab this binder along with your calendar when you get on the phone. You should have all the necessary information they’ll ask you, right at your fingertips. You can also take the binder along to your appointments to make filling out paperwork so much easier to make sure you don’t forget to include that your kid is allergic to amoxicillin (like I’ve done) – luckily it hasn’t caused any problems.
Additional Tips:
- When you head to that appointment, don’t forget to snap a picture of all medications the child is currently taking or just bring the bottles with you if they don’t have to be refrigerated.
- I’ve also started a “Note” on my phone where I list every time someone gets sick or injured. Having a record of what and when for each child has helped me be able to look back on patterns going on with our health.
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