Whether it's to allow employees to return to work or to reimburse them for their hospital bills, it's the doctor's job to issue the needed document. Medical letters are official documents that prove a person's illness and possible hospitalization. If you need to make one, we have an entire range of Medical Letter Templates on our website. These professionally written samples come with original content that's 100% customizable, shareable, and printable. Aside from certifications, you can also use these templates for referral purposes. These templates are also available for download in various file formats like Microsoft Word, Apple Pages, Google Docs, and Outlook. Subscribe now to start downloading!
How to Create a Medical Letter?
A medical letter is a document that doctor's issue per their patient's request. People use it as proof of undergoing medical treatment, and as an excuse for a person's absence at work or school. Unlike other letters, the doctor's name, signature, and license number make this document official.
An annual survey done by the American Hospital Association back in 2018 shows that there were 34,251,159 hospital admissions in the US alone. This number has no doubt increased today and that means a lot of medical letters being produced. Medical letters need to sound professional since they're also considered as legal documents. If you need help in creating one, feel free to refer to our list of guidelines below.
1. Gather Information about the Patient
Patient consultations involve asking questions about his or her condition. To write the medical letter, have an idea about the details, start the process by assessing them. Ask about their health history, sign and symptoms, and medications or treatment.
2. Create an Unofficial Draft of the Letter
Since the letter you'll be issuing is for official use, every detail has to be correct. To ensure this happens, start by writing a draft of the content. Even though this is only the initial version of your medical letter, it's important to observe proper formatting and writing tone.
3. Write the Contents of Your Medical Letter
After writing the draft, you can finally begin writing the final version of your letter. Depending on your preference, you can use Word, Pages, or Docs to write a simple letter. Make sure to keep your letter's content straightforward and understandable.
4. Indicate the Discharge Diagnosis of the Patient
When necessary, you should end your printable letter with the patient's final diagnosis. Here, we emphasized "final" since there are times wherein it differs from the diagnosis during the admission. Respectively, these are referred to as the admitting and discharge diagnoses.
5. Place Your Name, Signature, and License Number
Last but not least, write your name and affix your signature over it. And since people use this document for school or employment purposes, it needs more than just your name and signature. Below it, also indicate your profession and license number.
