Ticket 02 of 07

Do I really have to bring every bottle I take?

In one line. The first time, yes, the whole bag; after that, a list written once and kept in the wallet does the same job and weighs nothing.

The request sounds like fussiness, and men tend to answer it from memory: two pills in the morning, something for the knee when it rains, a vitamin the wife bought. Memory, it turns out, is the least reliable item in the bag. Names get shortened, doses get rounded, and the thing taken "only sometimes" is usually the one that matters most to the person asking.

The desk asks for everything because the people inside need to see the whole picture at once: what was prescribed, by whom, at what strength, and what was added on top of it from the pharmacy shelf, the health-food aisle or a cousin's recommendation. Two sensible things taken separately can be an unwise pair taken together, and nobody can spot the pair if half of it stayed at home. The bottle also settles arguments that the memory cannot, because the label carries the exact name and the exact strength.

So the first visit is the bag visit. Bring the actual containers, prescription or not, including drops, sprays, creams, powders and anything bought online. Then, while it is all on the table, write the list once: name as printed, strength, how many times a day, and roughly since when. Photograph the labels too; a phone full of label photos has saved more than one forgotten name.

From the second visit on, the list replaces the bag, provided it is kept honest. Cross out what stopped, add what started, and date the changes. Some men keep the sheet folded behind the driver's licence, which puts it where it is wanted in a hurry. A list like that is also the first thing any new clinic, in any country, will ask for.

Where the desk stops. This page is about carrying information, not about what to take or stop taking. Whoever has a question about a specific item on the list brings the list, and the question, to the physician who sees them.