doctors handwriting is making my clinical expierence hell

LPN1974, LPN · Apr 7, 2005

imagine doing a careplan for a client with a long chart but the doctor handwriting is awful. i feel like i missing things because 75 percent of what i read i can't understand.

I hear ya.

We have a few doctors whose handwriting is so bad there is no way I can decipher it.

I was expected to take off orders from these doctors, and was unable to read it.

I finally just started doing the best I could, and placing the chart back on the doctor's desk in our clinic, and putting a sticky note on there saying, "Please review these orders I've done for accuracy, due to doc's illegible handwriting."

That got action. Now our DON deciphers it herself and writes the orders again to accompany his original.

He signs it again, so it's perfectly legal just in case anyone questions this procedure.

Better her to decipher it than me.

WHY do they not give handwriting classes in med school for doctors???

Do you think these doctors had poor penmanship from first grade on up??

How in the world did their grade school teachers deal with it?

Or did it just become bad with medical school, power and age?

grentea · Apr 7, 2005

I always hear about how the patient's chart is a legal document, and I don't understand how it's at all legal that the patient's information is often written in chicken-scratch on the chart. I'm sure this costs nurses so much time, and I think it's really ridiculous. How can you provide good care to a patient when you're playing guessing games with the chart, calling the doc constantly to clarify chicken-scratch, and pretty much missing a large portion of the chart because it's illegible?

NurseRachy · Apr 8, 2005

OHHHHHH YEAH - My PET hate!!!!!!!!

It never gets any better either. What also irks me is when the medical team do their rounds and I'm busy with my other 3 pts with chest pain and they write orders in their progress notes (like bloods) BUT DON'T TELL ME!!! They KNOW i am the nurse looking after them because i introduce myself and stick my name on the door.

Yes, the med chart is a legal document. It is utterly disgusting when I am asking colleagues what drug they think is written down. I can usually guess by looking at the patients diagnosis, but that is not optimal practice. I have been known to call the pharmacist and ask what drug the Dr had written. Failing that I page the Dr and they have to come and re-write the chart. I'm sure they would get narky if they couldn't read my notes - well the same goes. Yesterday I actually had a drug misspelt on the chart - not slightly, but way off. I knew what the Dr meant in this case, but I'm not passing another drug incase this was infact a new drug. I paged the Dr and over 3 hours later he arrived (grrr). Luckily this was a drug able to be given slightly later. You must back yourself in these cases - you are an educated person, and if you can't read it then it has to be re-written - NO IF'S, BUT'S OR MAYBE'S!!!!!! They should learn quickly that it's neat, or repeat! (haha)

All the best

Rachel