If you're like most people, you have a better idea of when the phone bill is due than how long ago you had a dental checkup.  Surely keeping family medical records up-to date and accessible is as important as knowing the state of your family's financial health. Yet, while many people balance their checkbooks and manage their savings accounts by computer, they leave the family health record-keeping spread among the various pediatricians, internists, dentists, surgeons, and other health care providers that different family members rely on.   Since there is generally a lack of communication among these specialists, each of your records is incomplete, and possibly inconsistent.  Patients must take the responsibility themselves of organizing their own health information and communicating with their doctors.

You may already know the benefits of  using a computer money management program to organize statements from different checking, savings, and investment accounts -- and you know you must do this yourself if you want a total financial picture. 

Now, new computer programs can help you manage family health information , and the benefits are well worth the effort. 

·        What, specifically, are the benefits?  

·        What can the software do to help improve family health?

·        How do you choose computer software for family health records?