Visits to your healthcare provider can be stressful. Using a personal diary or a patient worksheet can help your time spent together more effective. During your healthcare provider visit you will want to know what is wrong, what the healthcare provider can do to treat it, and what you can do to better manage it. Your healthcare provider will begin by taking a history asking for a description of the symptoms as well as possible factors that can bring them on or make them better. This will be followed by a physical examination, possibly diagnostic tests, a diagnosis, and a discussion of treatment options.
Symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), though chronic or recurrent, can vary in duration, intensity, and description. Management of symptoms often is not easy and requires individual participation while working with a doctor or healthcare provider. Don’t be afraid to ask questions; write them down before your appointment. As a patient with IBS, you should never feel devalued, ignored, or uncomfortable with your healthcare provider. If you do, or if your concerns are not being met, it is time to change to another provider. Your goal is to obtain a diagnosis, understand IBS and your symptoms, and develop a management or treatment plan designed to meet your individual needs.
The course of IBS is highly individualized and can be challenging to even the most knowledgeable and caring healthcare provider. Be organized when you visit your provider. Here are some things you can do to help make your physician visit most effective.
Using your patient worksheet to talk to your healthcare provider
Use your patient worksheet to list your IBS symptoms and how frequently they occur. Try to be as specific as you can. For example, describe where pain is located, how often it occurs, and what makes it worse or better. Keeping a daily symptoms diary for a couple of weeks that lists symptoms and associated activities can help sort this out.
| Symptom | Description | Frequency (How often) |
| ____________________ | ____________________ | ____________________ |
| ____________________ | ____________________ | ____________________ |
| ____________________ | ____________________ | ____________________ |
Provide your healthcare provider with a list of all other chronic illnesses currently affecting your health, or of prior infectious gastrointestinal illness.
| ____________________________________________________________ |
| ____________________________________________________________ |
| ____________________________________________________________ |
List all prescription and nonprescription (over-the-counter) medications as well as herbal supplements you currently take. Include dosage and frequency.
| Medication | Dosage | Frequency (How often) |
| ____________________ | ____________________ | ____________________ |
| ____________________ | ____________________ | ____________________ |
| ____________________ | ____________________ | ____________________ |
Inform your healthcare provider of any previous gastrointestinal procedures or tests. Samples would include colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy, endoscopy, and ERCP (endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography).
| Year | Procedure/Test | Results |
| __________ | ____________________ | ____________________ |
| __________ | ____________________ | ____________________ |
| __________ | ____________________ | ____________________ |
Inform your healthcare provider of any previous surgeries, especially abdominal or gastrointestinal surgeries.
| Year | Surgery Description |
| __________ | ________________________________________ |
| __________ | ________________________________________ |
| __________ | ________________________________________ |
Use the space below to write down any other questions you may have for your healthcare provider or to take notes during the appointment. Writing questions before the appointment can help you remember what you wanted to ask. Taking notes during the appointment will help you remember what was said later. It is imperative that you walk away from your healthcare provider’s appointment with a clear understanding of what they tell you and the next steps. Therefore, do not be hesitant to ask questions. If needed, take someone with you to help take notes.
| ____________________________________________________________ |
| ____________________________________________________________ |
| ____________________________________________________________ |
| ____________________________________________________________ |
Adapted from IFFGD Publication #185 “Talking with Your Doctor About IBS” By Sarah Quinton PsyD, Director, Behavioral Medicine for Digestive Health, Co-Director, Interdisciplinary Bowel Dysfunction Clinic, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL. Edited by: Lin Chang MD, Professor of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
