How do I organize my medical records?

1. Gather your printed reports.

You will probably have to sign a release for the medical records department to get past reports. If you’re at an appointment you could ask the nurse or medical assistant to print it for you. It’s good to have your info on a flash drive, but not all hospitals will be able to use it, so it is important that you have organized hard copies with you when you go to a doctor’s appointment or the emergency department.   

2. Get a binder and dividers. 

Put the following list in this order with the dividers in between and labeled:

• Your name, date of birth, address, emergency contacts & medical providers’ contact info (include all of your providers)

• Diagnoses
• Medications and what you are taking them for
• Allergies and what type of reaction you have
• Baseline vital signs
• Surgeries and hospitalizations with the dates
• Test result reports - CT scans, MRIs, X-rays, Bone Density, Ultrasounds, echocardiogram, EKG, etc.
• Blood test results
• Advanced directives, living will
• An article about the type of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome that you have

Reference:

Ackroyd, K. (2017). Guideline: Emergency! Emergency!