Method

Organize HPI data collection around 3 logical themes:

Space

1. Character

"How would you describe the pain?"

2. Location

"Where is the pain located?"
or "Where does it start?"

3. Radiation

"Where does the pain travel?"

Time

4. Onset

"When did the pain start?"
or "When does it start?"

5. Duration

"How long does it last?"

6. Frequency

"How often does it happen?"

Relation

7. Exacerbating Factors

"What makes the pain worse?"

8. Relieving Factors

"What makes the pain better?"

9. Associated Symptoms

"What symptoms are related to this pain?"

Figures

Space

1. Character

First, think about a road — is it narrow, wide, etc?

"How would you describe the pain?"

2. Location

Now, think about a starting point on that road.

"Where is the pain located?"
or "Where does it start?"

3. Radiation

Lastly, think about a destination on that road.

"Where does the pain travel?"

Time

4. Onset

First, think about a start date on a calendar

"When did the pain start?"
or "When does it start?"

5. Duration

Now, think about a stop date.

"How long does it last?"

6. Frequency

Lastly, think about the frequency btwn those 2 dates.

"How often does it happen?"

Relation

(Needs work ...)

7. Exacerbating Factors

Stop.

"What makes the pain worse?"

8. Relieving Factors

Go.

"What makes the pain better?"

9. Associated Symptoms

Slow down.

"What symptoms are related to this pain?"

Notes

2013-09-18

TL;DR — I made a few changes! You guys are great!

Hi! Thanks to everyone who gave feedback on Far Better! I'm thrilled folks liked it and/or found it somewhat useful. Based on the feedback I received, I've put together some changes which I've detailed below.

A couple quick notes: Far Better is now smartphone/tablet-friendly, and it's being hosted on GitHub under an open source license. Also, sample questions that were previously close-ended were turned into open-ended ones.

And now, some lengthier thoughts ...

Shane Naki made a great comment about following questions about Space with those to do with Time (as opposed to Relation). I agree 100% – it just makes more sense, so I've edited Far Better accordingly. (With regards to Space, Shane also suggests starting with Location, followed by Character and Radiation.)

That said, feel free to organize the themes as you see fit. As we become more experienced and knowledgable (hopefully not too far from now), we'll probably be jumping around these questions seamlessly. For instance, your natural progression might end up looking something like:

Onset / Quality / Location / Duration / Frequency / Radiation / Exacerbating factors / Associated symptoms / Relieving factors

Hopefully Far Better expedites this process for you by helping to initially organize your thoughts about HPI.
The figures and analogies were helpful to me as I was thinking through this. I realize that they're not so helpful to others, so I moved them away from the main page and gave them their own section (try clicking "Figures" up top).
I think you'll all recognize that this is super low hanging fruit, but that's kind of the point. Long acronyms aren't simple; Far Better is (to me at least).

2013-09-12

After reading for Week 4 of MIDPR, I started work on an alternative to "Far Colder" (pg 64). Why? Because I think acronyms are the worst, and I'd like to collect HPI without fumbling over one.

So, I present to you "Far Better" – obviously, it's a work-in-progress, and I'll be tweaking it over the next few months. If you think it can be improved, that's because it probably can; your feedback is much appreciated. Thanks!

Colophon

Disclaimer: Far Better is informational and should not be used for diagnostic purposes.