Taking "Note" of your Health

When I was a kid everything of importance, from birth certificates, to social security cards to immunizations records were kept in the “File Cabinet.” Tax records, the deed to our house and bonds were all contained in a fire proof filing cabinet that my dad maintained. Regardless of the importance of this filing cabinet, it was not organized. I found this out the hard way, when I started to play sports in Junior High. Even though I had already been in school 8 years, the Athletic Department now needed my immunizations records. And of course, they must be in the filing cabinet, right? Wrong. Luckily I had been going to the same 100 year old doctor all my life and they were able to pull all of my records and get an accurate report to my school, but not without some hassle and complaining from the medical records department. I remembered this story, only when I was surfing the internet and saw information regarding an iHealthRecord (Interactive Personal Health Record). It is a free on-line data base to keep and share information regarding immunizations, supplements you are taking, health records, physicians or any other medical information. This info can be shared with health care providers, family members or can be printed out in a wallet size card. It is also private and secure. When I was in school, the internet didn’t exist, but the iHealthRecord sounds like a comprehensive way to maintain an online, fire proof, “filing cabinet.”

P.S. When I was in college and needed my original birth certificate to study abroad by dad had to physically go to the County Building and get a new one printed because he couldn’t find my real original in the cabinet.

-Community Assistant