computer or paper charting? what program do you use?

[HappyNurse2005]

I am new to ob from cardiology. There, it was mostly paper charting, with the med charting on computer (mak) and of course, pyxis to withdraw meds/witness wastes, etc. all assessments, admission database, vitals, nurses notes, i&o's written down.

now in OB, its all computerized and i love it. everything is on the computer and linked! i can go back and look at the stored EFM strip on teh computer, and it has notes as to where i put anything in-vitals, nurses notes, procedure, etc. i am in love!

so, do you do paper or computer charting? what computer program do you use?

funny thing is, i always used to think i'd hate computer charting (that comes from my student nurse days at a hospital that used meditech. that was evil stuff there)

[SmilingBluEyes]

Meditech is 1985 technology for 2006. We have stingers too but they weigh a ton, and don't roll well. People hurt themselves trying to wheel em in to the rooms to scan meds/bands ONLY TO FIND THE BANDS WILL NOT SCAN. And the canned text, what a time-wasting frustration.

OH dear, I got started......make me stop. I cannot condemn Meditech enough.

[htrn]

You guys are scaring me - our hospital is going to meditech in 2007. We currently do mostly paper charting with a few things done in FAMIS - the dinasour of computer charting. Would love to have a decent program for labor charting - especially when there is a naughty baby involved. I'm ready to amputate my hand after charting 8 hours of decels:madface:

[Mimi2RN, ASN, RN]

We use QS but the Dr.s still write on the hard copy. Until about a week ago, we used QS for mother and baby, from admission to discharge. Some of the Pediatricians complained that the printed copy was difficult to follow and I must admit, the flow is no great...so now we do only the admission information in the computer and hand chart everything else on the baby.

We use QS on mom during labor and mom and baby in pp. Our hospitalists peds, and some of the local peds are now using QS, too. We still have some handwritten orders, but Normal Newborns are on a protocol and that's a preprinted order set.

The QS PE was modified with the assistance of one of our hospitalists, and is very easy for them to use. We are going to QS charting for our NICU next year, too. Right now we have Elmer for orders, labs etc. and still use paper charting for everything else.

[mollyaqua]

We use Watchchild for strip interpretation and Meditech for everything else. The only paper charting we do is for the signed consents.

Meditech is not, let me rephrase that, NOT, user friendly. We call it a "hostile program"and the installation phase was painful beyond description. I think the current programming has me documenting a pain assessment Q4 hours in FOUR different screens and God help us if the patient has pain in more than one place.

[RNHawaii34]

We got rid of paper charting 9 months ago, now we are using EPIC. honestly, it made our job way easier and faster. It was hard at first though, because not all people at work are computer savvy.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

[ragingmomster, BSN, MSN, RN]

We use QS also, but I am hearing from our travelers that we have an older version and the updated versions are much better.

We are changing to a new system in January to coincide with physician electronic order entry (whatever the acronym for that is).

Of course we have the nurses that have been here forever and don't want to try anything new, but our #1" superuser" is the nurse that hsa been with us the longest.

Since the talk of a new system has gotten out, of course there are the doomsayers that are knocking it, but we shall see.

I'm not betting on anything changing in January though.