Family Medical Records

• Family Medical Records Introduction
• Important Information to Carry
• How to Access Medical Information
• Why Carry Records
• Home Medical Records
• Synonyms and Keywords
• References
• Authors and Editors

Family Medical Records Introduction

Here's the scenario: In a busy emergency department, an unconscious man is brought in by ambulance. The paramedics found him on the street, unresponsive but alive, with no obvious signs of what might be wrong. And no one in the hospital knows anything about him.

This scene is all too common in today’s hospitals, where patients often arrive with no medical information. The doctor’s job in these cases is very difficult. The doctor must try to treat someone for an unknown medical problem with no knowledge of that person’s medical history.

• Has he had a heart attack in the past? And is he having another?
  
  
• Has he accidentally overdosed on one of his medications?
  
  
• Furthermore, once his problem is diagnosed, the doctors are faced with not knowing the safest way to treat him. Is he allergic to medicines that, if given, could make him worse instead of better?
  
  
• Does he have medical problems that would make certain treatments dangerous?
  
  
• With no family in the emergency department, how do the doctors contact the patient’s family and friends to tell them he is there?

It is because of questions like these that it is so important for people to carry their own medical information. Doctors can most safely and effectively treat you when your medical history is known, rather than a mystery.