The older one gets, I think it becomes more important on keeping track of details, of doctor visits, nurse visits, test results, but man, it takes a lot of preparation to do. Even if you are computer savvy, it is difficult to anticipate what you need to track, and then HOW.
I’ve used Excel, and yet, it is cumbersome in a lot of ways.
The problem is, what do you store, how often do you record it?
What to track
I wish there was an easy to follow template, but there isn’t, so guess I am going to have to actually spend some time, and think on this one. There are some good resources out there, one from a twitter I noticed, which I’ll have to go back and find. That’s the downside to twitter, finding past tweets.
Things I know I need to include in my template
- blood pressure readings
- INR results
- dates of Nurse visits
- dates of Doctor visits
- frequency of bowel movements
- weight
- innoculations
- medications
Now the real problem is to record any outside details, such as things to watch for. A handy list of possible side effects would be good too, for easy checking, but then, that’s maybe going too far. And yet, I don’t know, as a person ages, their reaction to things change. Side effects DO happen, and it’d be nice to know what they are, to double check.
Example, Dizziness. Can be from a rapid drop in blood pressure, can be from the blood pressure medicine, or other meds.
This certainly is a lot more complicated than I thought. Time to read more on Excel, to see what it can do, so I can better track things, including how to make it simpler to do. Time is not an ally.
