You can be an excellent nurse in the clinical setting and still fail to prove that you are an excellent nurse if your documentation is inadequate. Having worked in a variety of inpatient and outpatient settings, I understand the obstacles nurses face. There's just not time, nor do nurses have the mental energy to meticulously document every little thing on top of the rest of their to-do list. That's part of why I became passionate about documentation education. It doesn't have to be an overwhelming, endless challenge to chart exhaustively in hopes that you enter enough data into the chart to defend yourself one day. Rather, leveraging the most critical data, knowing how to format notes and exactly what to say, and when to spend five minutes dumping information into the chart can be learned skills that make documentation faster, easier, and less stressful, while doing a better job of defending your actions. The Importance of Documentation & Overcoming Obstacles Purpose(s) of Documentation Defensive Charting Obstacles Impacting Quality of Medical Record Overcoming Obstacles Legal Responsibilities of the Nurse Duties of the Nurse Nurse Practice Acts Duties of the Hospital Hospital Policy vs. State Board of Nursing Regulations Reasonable Prudence Failure to Fulfill (Document) Responsibilities Fulfilling Responsibilities vs. Documenting Responsibilities What if Responsibilities Aren't Fulfilled? Mistakes Happen Professional Liability Insurance Malpractice Medical Negligence Acting with Malice Fraud What Happens When a Nurse is Charged with Malpractice? What to Do if You Receive Notification of a Claim Common Charting Mistakes & How to Avoid Them The Most Common Errors Charting By Exception & Charting to Capture Minimal Data "But I've Always Charted This Way, and Nothing Bad Has Happened Yet..." What You Should Be Charting How and What to Chart Quick Glance Charting Checklists What is a Timely Manner? Documenting Assessments Sample Focused Assessment Criteria Sharing the Responsibility Modifying Electronic Data Abbreviations Standing Orders Early Warning Systems Scores & Scales Informed Consent Special Circumstances Paper Charting Writing an Incident Report Patient Leaving AMA Patient Threatening to Sue You Identifying Patient Belongings Another Member of the Team is Not Documenting Correctly Restraints Defective Equipment Suspected Abuse Patient Requesting to View Their EMR on Hospital Computer Narrative Notes When & How to Write Notes One Note or Several Notes? Daily Narrative Notes Examples of Common Notes Written As-Needed How to Title Narrative Notes How to Format Notes Using Patient Names in Notes Length of Notes Create a Template Tips for Less Stress When Charting BONUS: How I Chart on a "Typical" Shift ABOUT THE AUTHOR: I'm Andrea, RN-MSN. Perfecting my own documentation and working to find concrete guidelines to share with my fellow nurses has become my passion. As I gained more knowledge and researched the dusty, forgotten corners of the internet for obscure evidence-based practice and case studies, becoming a subject matter expert on nursing documentation lit a spark because sharing this information helps empower nurses to understand exactly what should appear in their patient charts, where, when it should entered, and how it should be phrased.

Provides information on documentation issues, including electronic medical records, legal and ethical implications, and documentation in acute cases, along with a variety of charting examples.

Nursing can be nuts. On a twelve-hour shift, the last thing most nurses want to do is sit down and draft a lengthy note describing the craziness that occurred. Written by a nurse, for nurses, this book is chock full of narrative note examples describing hypothetical situations to help you describe the, well, the indescribable. Some shifts are just like that!

Chart Smart: the A-to-Z Guide to Better Nursing Documentation tells nurses exactly what to document in virtually every type of situation they may encounter on the job, no matter where they practice--hospital, medical office, outpatient, rehabilitation facility, long-term care facility, or home. This portable handbook has nearly 300 entries that cover documentation required for common diseases, major emergencies, complex procedures, and difficult situations involving patients, families, other health care team members, and supervisors. In addition to patient care, this book also covers documenta

Ever wonder what to put in a nursing note? This pocket sized guide provides you with over a hundred templates for written and verbal comminication in nursing to help you.

Law and Order for Nurses: The Easy Way to Protect Your License and Your Livelihood teaches nurses how to protect their most valuable asset, their license. The book uses a system called GIFTS which is an acronym for tools which allow nurses to speak their mind, stand in their power and be a change agent to improve patient care. When nurses use their GIFTS, they are able to protect their license. The book discusses numerous case studies of real life situation of nurses who did not use their GIFTS and found themselves before the state Licensing Boards. It shows which GIFTS the nurse was not using so that other nurses do not make the same mistakes.

Develop the skills you need to effectively and efficiently document patient care for children and adults in clinical and hospital settings. This handy guide uses sample notes, writing exercises, and EMR activities to make each concept crystal clear, including how to document history and physical exams and write SOAP notes and prescriptions.