The single most useful thing you can do before a medical appointment is arrive with a complete list. Most people arrive with a partial one, and the gaps are predictable.
This page explains what belongs on the list and why, and ends with a worksheet you can print and fill in.
Why the List Matters More Than You’d Think
A doctor can only review what they know about. The record in front of them shows what they prescribed — not what a specialist added, not what a hospital started, not what you bought at the pharmacy last winter and never stopped taking.
Fall risk rises with the number of medications, and taking four or more has been consistently linked to increased risk. But the count only helps if it’s accurate. A list that omits three over-the-counter products isn’t a list of four medications; it’s a list of seven with three missing.
The Bag Method
The most reliable technique is also the least sophisticated: put every bottle, box, tube, and bottle of vitamins into a bag and bring the bag.
This works better than writing things down because it removes memory from the process. Pharmacists and geriatricians recommend it routinely. It also lets whoever reviews it see doses, prescribers, and dates — information that is rarely transcribed correctly by hand.
If you’d rather bring a written list, fill in the worksheet below while holding each container. Copy from the label, not from memory.
What People Leave Off
Six categories account for nearly every gap:
- Anything bought without a prescription. Sleep aids, allergy tablets, nighttime pain relievers, antacids, motion sickness tablets. Several of these carry real fall risk.
- Vitamins and supplements. They interact. Some affect bleeding, blood pressure, or how other drugs are absorbed.
- Anything prescribed by someone else. A specialist, an urgent care visit, a hospital discharge.
- “As needed” medications. People report only the daily ones. A sleep tablet taken three nights a week still matters — particularly on the nights it’s taken.
- Eye drops, creams, patches, and inhalers. These are medications. Eye drops in particular are absorbed into the bloodstream.
- Anything recently stopped. A drug stopped last month can still be relevant, especially if symptoms started around the same time.
Two Columns People Skip
Beyond the name and dose, two pieces of information carry disproportionate weight.
Who prescribed it. This is how a reviewer spots the drug nobody is monitoring — the one started by a doctor you saw twice, three years ago, that has quietly continued ever since.
When it started or last changed. Fall risk is often highest in the weeks right after a new prescription or a dose increase. If you fell in March and something changed in February, that connection is invisible unless the date is written down.
The Worksheet
Fill this in with the containers in front of you. Use the print button on your browser to print a blank copy — the page is formatted so only the worksheet prints, without the website around it.
Medication List Worksheet
Fill in with every container in front of you — prescriptions, over-the-counter products, vitamins, supplements, eye drops, creams, patches, and inhalers.
| Medication name | Dose | How often | What it’s for | Who prescribed it | Started / changed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Anything stopped in the last six months?
Any falls or near-falls in the past year? How many?
Do you ever feel dizzy, foggy, or unsteady? When?
Questions to ask: Are any of these making me more likely to fall? Is there a safer alternative or a lower dose? Can we check my blood pressure lying down and standing?
Senior Health News · dontfall.com · Educational information only, not medical advice. Never stop or change a medication without speaking to your doctor or pharmacist.
What to Do With the Completed List
- Bring it to your next appointment and hand it over at the start rather than waiting to be asked.
- Ask your pharmacist first if that’s easier. They’re trained in exactly this review, it usually costs nothing, and you don’t need an appointment.
- Keep a copy in your wallet. If you ever end up in an emergency department, it becomes the most useful piece of paper you own.
- Give a copy to whoever would speak for you if you couldn’t.
- Update it whenever anything changes. A list that’s a year old is a list of what you used to take.
Related Guides
- Medications That Increase Fall Risk — the full guide this worksheet belongs to
- Why People Fall
- After a Fall
Senior Health News publishes free educational guides on fall prevention, home safety, and healthy aging. This page is for general information only and is not medical advice. It does not replace evaluation by a qualified healthcare professional, and no product is sold or recommended on this site. Never start, stop, or change a medication without speaking to your doctor or pharmacist.
Last reviewed: September 8, 2026.