As you provide care for your elderly parent, you may have decided it’s time to start attending their doctor’s appointments. It can be helpful for your parent to have you along to help him ask the right questions. You can also help him remember the answers and advice given by the doctor.
Whether you’re visiting a new doctor or bringing your parent to his long-time family doctor, it’ll help to take care of several things before you go with your loved one for a visit.
Talk to Your Parent
It shouldn’t surprise him when you say you’re coming along. Talk to your parent beforehand and discuss how much he’d like you to talk and ask questions, or if he’d rather just have you listen. It might be hard to follow his desires, but if he trusts you to follow his requests, he’ll be more likely to talk openly to the doctor and you.
Make a List of Concerns
This can be a group effort. Ask your parent what he’d like to talk about. Then add your own concerns, and even ask his companion care at home provider if she has anything she thinks should be discussed. Write them all down and bring them with you, so you don’t forget any of them.
Gather up All Your Parent’s Medications and Supplements
If your parent is seeing a new doctor for a condition or treatment, that doctor should be aware of all the medications he is taking. Bring the ones he’s both taking now and any older ones he took previously. The doctor will want to review all of them before he prescribes anything new. The doctor might even find he should drop one or two that are no longer needed. If you have companion care at home, provide assistance with helping your parent take his medicine, have them review your stash to ensure you have everything.
Call Ahead and Let the Doctor’s Office Know You’re Coming
It’ll help the doctor have a head’s up if there is a new person joining your parent. You can also ask if your parent needs to sign any forms for you to attend with him. You can also ask if there is any paperwork you can fill out ahead of time, such as medical history or waivers. This can save time and aggravation while at the doctor’s office, and will ensure your parent’s doctor has everything she needs to treat your parent.
Ask Your Parent About His Medical History
If you know your Uncle Joe passed away at 56, but aren’t sure how, ask your parent before you get to the doctor’s office what happened to Uncle Joe. This can give your parent the time and stress-free environment to think about his family’s medical history and how it may help the doctor treat him.
Taking care of these few things before you get to the doctor’s office can help the visit go much more smoothly and provide a sense of security for you and your parent.
For more information about how the caregivers at La Jolla Nurses Homecare can help your aging parents remain in their own homes, call 858-454-9339. We are a home care agency providing quality and affordable companion care at home in La Jolla, CA, and the surrounding communities.
Today we are the oldest and most experienced private duty agency in San Diego County.She saw a need for quality private duty home health care and she worked diligently to build an agency that filled that need.I am proud to say, her vision is carried on today with our dedicated staff.
I believe our tenure in the community speaks well for us.We have had the opportunity to be of service to countless interesting individuals, including local and worldwide celebrities.It is the people we care for that makes this a fascinating industry.Whether high profile or a more ordinary citizen, we are proud that thousands have entrusted us with their care or the care of their loved ones.Our Mission is to provide high quality, very secure and the most compassionate home health care.We believe that patients heal faster and are happiest when they can stay in their homes.”
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