Like a lot of the rest of the world right now, I’m practicing social distancing. Being stuck in the house is nothing new for me, or a lot of the chronic illness community. Feeling well and isolating is new for me, though. As such, I’m finding new things to keep me occupied, and decided one item I’d finally check off my to-do list is creating a medical binder.

A lot of posts regarding this idea have links to special binders, page dividers, and fancy printables. If that’s your style, by all means, do your thing. Just know I’m doing this with an old left over binder from last semester, sans page dividers, with all free printables – most of which I’ve linked below. You can spend as much, or next to nothing on this. Now , the basics –

First, for those new to the term, what is a medical binder?

For my purposes, I’m hoping for a collection of easily accessible documents, results, and other important information regarding all my medical conditions. 

Why should you have one?

For practical purposes, I’m expecting this to make it much easier to find information I need at appointments, when I’m on the phone with insurance, or doing battle with the specialty pharmacy. It’s super handy to have all of it easily accessible, no searching needed.

Worst case scenario – it can help your loved ones and doctors if you’re not in a position to do so yourself.

What should you include in a medical binder?

This is going to really vary from person to person, and from time to time. While I haven’t had a dedicated, well-organized binder since my diagnosis, I have changed what information and pamphlets I keep or find important a few times in the last couple years.

Below, I’ve listed a few examples of what to include, some with free templates for you to create your own!

Medical Binder Content:

Visit Information and Notes – here is an awesome template

We’v all been there – by the time we leave a busy appointment, half the details have already left our minds. This template makes it easy to keep notes so you can remember everything.

Personal information and health records

Petty obvious why this is needed – how can your doctors help you if you can’t help them?

Insurance/Benefits Information – I like this template for this info

Same as above, how can they help if they can’t get paid?

Medications/side effects

This one is really important for me. As I’m currently titrating off certain meds, I’m constantly trying to remember what dose I’m on and how it’s treating me lately. Keeping a list and current side effects make it easier for me to keep all my doctors informed.

Appointment Log – this template is great for this

I think this is also important for obvious reasons, especially for me on appointment days. I try to schedule them back to back on the same day, so this helps me remember what I’ve just agreed to.

List of doctors and specialists

This also helps you help your doctors. Keeping them informed keeps your care cohesive.

Equipment + Vendor List – this template has areas for all these

This can be especially important for parents who need to order supplies and keep track of information for their children, or adults managing multiple conditions.

Preferred hospitals/labs

Having this information easily accessible will make it easier to get tests scheduled if needed.

Family Health History – this template is very detailed

There’s obvious reasons why this is important, and for me, trying to remember everyone else’s health issues is nearly impossible on top of my own. This way, I don’t have to remember who had what and when.

Any recent test results

Not all of my doctors and specialists are in the same network, so keeping labs handy keeps them informed.

These are just a few ideas of what to keep in your binder. If you’re like me and like to use free templates rather than craft up your own, I’ve linked quite a few that I like. 

Although this one comes from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the templates are applicable for both children and adults, AND they come in three different languages. By far my favorite so far. If you’re here to make a binder for someone you care for, I think this link is going to be most beneficial for you.

This link takes you to a site with templates for all the basics, plus some extras – like a blood pressure and blood sugar tracker, trackers for dental and optometry appointments, and more. 

Hopefully this list of content and links to the printables I used have been helpful for you. Hoping everyone is staying safe – with all this free time, check back later this week for another new post!

Until then,