To avoid a relapse of your condition or readmission to the hospital, it is important that you understand the directions your doctor or other healthcare provider is giving you. There are steps you can take to improve your recovery once you leave your healthcare providers office. To ensure that you understand the directions, we suggest:

• Asking your care provider to use plain language rather than medical jargon. Don’t know what a myocardio infarction is? Ask (it’s a heart attack).
• Asking your care provider to show you how to take your medication (or give it to a child or dependent adult) if you’re not sure how you are supposed to do it.
• Writing down what your healthcare provider tells you, then reading it back to make sure you understand.
• Asking for an interpreter in your native language if you think it would make it easier for you to understand the directions being given.
• Setting timers to remind you take medication at specified times.
• Asking who you can call with questions about the doctor’s orders if you have any once you leave, then write down their name and number.