Caring for a loved one often means keeping track of far more than one appointment.

You may be noticing changes at home, coordinating with other family members, managing medications, scheduling follow-ups, or trying to remember what happened between visits. By the time you get to the doctor’s office, it can be hard to know what to bring up first.

Healthcare providers want to help with your concerns, but appointments are often short. When there are multiple things to discuss, a simple visit agenda can make the conversation easier for everyone.

It can help you organize what you have noticed, what you want to ask about, and what you may want to discuss with the healthcare team.

How to use this guide

Before the appointment, take a few minutes to write down notes in four sections:

1. What has changed since the last appointment?
2. Main goal for the visit
3. Top concerns for today
4. Other concerns

You can keep these notes on your phone, print them out, or write them on a piece of paper.

At the beginning of the visit, you can say:

“I wrote down a few things we wanted to make sure we covered today. Would it be helpful if I shared this with you?”

Some providers may skim it quickly. Others may ask you to walk through it out loud. Either way, having your thoughts organized can make the visit easier to follow.

1. What has changed since the last appointment?

You can start by writing down anything new or different since the last visit. You might include:

• New or worsening symptoms
• Falls or near-falls
• Changes in memory or confusion
• Changes in mood, behavior, or sleep
• Medication changes or missed doses
• New pain, dizziness, fatigue, or appetite changes
• Emergency room, urgent care, or hospital visits
• Safety concerns at home

Try to be specific when you can.

For example:

• 06/01: Fell while getting out of bed. No injury, but felt dizzy beforehand.
• 06/07: More tired than usual and sleeping longer during the day.

Concrete examples can help the provider understand what has been happening between visits, especially if your loved one may not remember or mention everything during the appointment.

2. Main goal for the visit

Before the visit, try to answer one question:

What do we most want to get out of this appointment?

This helps focus the conversation, especially if there are many concerns.

Your goal might be to:

• Understand whether a change is serious
• Review a recent fall, hospitalization, or health event
• Discuss whether medications need to be adjusted
• Ask whether your loved one needs more support at home
• Clarify what to do next
• Make a decision about treatment, testing, or care planning

Identifying the main goal helps make sure the most important reason for the visit does not get lost.

3. Top concerns for today

Most appointments do not have time for everything. Try to choose the top 2 to 3 concerns you most want to discuss.

For example your top concerns might look like:

1. Recent fall and dizziness
2. Increased confusion in the evenings
3. Medication management

If you have more than three concerns, you can write them down in the next section so that the provider can take a quick look. But deciding what matters most to you and your loved one before the visit starts can make the appointment feel more focused.

4. Other concerns

This section is for anything else you want the provider to know, even if it is not the main focus of the visit.

These may include smaller changes, background context, or questions that can be addressed if there is time.

Examples:

• Sleeping more during the day
• Reduced appetite
• Repeating the same questions more often
• Caregiver stress managing appointments and medications
• Questions about future living arrangements
• Difficulty remembering evening medications

Other concerns still matter. They may help the provider notice patterns or decide what to monitor over time.

Download the visit prep sheet

Use this one-page sheet to organize your notes before the appointment.

Download the visit agenda worksheet

You can fill it out on your own, review it with another family member, or bring it to the visit.

How Simpli can help

Simpli makes visit prep easier by helping you keep track of notes, questions, and changes you want to bring up at the appointment.

Instead of trying to piece everything together at the last minute, Simpli helps you keep track of what matters, organize your concerns, and walk into the visit more prepared.

Join our waitlist to be one of the first to try it out.