Being organized is helpful for staying on top of all the normal tasks of everyday life. While being organized is handy under normal conditions, it becomes a survival tool when a family is hit with a crisis.
Here is the system that got me through a huge family emergency.
Nothing Says Crisis Like Brain Tumor
My husband and I left the MRI building, holding hands and enjoying the lovely afternoon. We were happy and relaxed after his scan. After all, if they saw anything scary, they wouldn’t have let us leave, right?
Hubby was having bad headaches, but it wasn’t until he got sick at work that he agreed to get it checked out. We were at our doctor’s office the next morning. The MRI was scheduled the same day.
The call came at 7:00 p.m. A meningioma. Not the same as cancer, but it was big and in a bad place.
Information Overload
The specialist appointments, tests, bloodwork, and insurance issues multiplied.
We started with local doctors and ended up traveling to Johns Hopkins in Baltimore for another opinion. Two weeks later, we were back to Johns Hopkins for Hubby’s surgery.
I was in shock and scared nearly out of my wits as Hubby’s condition rapidly worsened. I was determined to make sure he got the best care as quickly as possible.
I began to draw on my project management experience and before long, my organizational skills kicked in.
Keeping It Together
I quickly put together a planner and filing system that fit in a tote bag. I lugged that tote bag everywhere I went.
I had a legal pad in a stiff folder for taking notes. A ring bound planner with monthly and daily calendar pages was used to track medical appointments.
The item that made the biggest difference was a multiple sectioned file folder. I used one with a tabbed top for each section and an outer flap that folded over and hooked to keep everything inside.
Ready for Anything
I labeled the sections to help me keep track of all the legal, medical and insurance papers that we needed:
- Legal-type papers – copies of identification cards, medical directives, and a Power of Attorney allowing me to have his medical records and talk to his doctors.
- Insurance information – insurance cards, pharmacy cards, pre-authorizations, a page of contact information with phone and fax numbers , and notes to keep track of all the insurance company people we dealt with.
- There were so many medical papers, I organized them into different sections. One for general medical information like medication lists and blood work results, one for special test reports and another for referrals and pre-test instructions.
- Maps – Don’t laugh. We didn’t have GPS back then, so I relied on MapQuest and printed out directions. I also had a map and directory for the Johns Hopkins campus.
You’ve Got This
Do ask for copies of every report, every time! I always kept an extra copy of each report in my folder.
There was more than one time where a test or procedure would have been postponed because the doctor didn’t have the report from a different test. Since I was able to hand over a copy of the report, we didn’t have to come back another time.
I first used these organizing tools to handle a family medical emergency that came out of the blue.
It worked so well that I used the same system when my elderly mother was under the care of several different doctors for different conditions. Surprise! The doctors didn’t always talk to each other! Having copies of all her reports made a big difference.
Having been through this a few times now, I have found that a couple things happen when I am keeping it all together with this system. First, it helps me feel like I have a little bit of control over a crazy situation.
I have also found that when I come prepared, it makes things easier for the medical folks, so I seem to get more information and cooperation from the doctors and nurses. Always a good thing!
Please let me know if you have questions or suggestions for staying organized during a family crisis. Until then, I am sending kind thoughts, from my home to yours!
