EPIC Computer Program

[al7139]

Hi,

Does anyone's hospital use the EPIC system for charting?

Our hospital is going to this system this month, and I am really interested in how other nurses feel about it. For me, it is very difficult to learn, and I feel like I will be spending more time on the computer than with my patients.

We keep hearing how much easier it will be, but right now, it doesn't seem easy at all.

I am used to hard copies of charts, and the system we use now in the computer for charting allows for a busy night where I may not look at a computer until the end of my shift. And finding things in the EPIC system is very complicated for me.

Anyone out there that can ease my anxiety?

Amy

[mydesygn]

I have read quite a few comments about hospitals not having competent IT staff. As both a nurse and IT, I am and have been on both sides. Most hospitals do not have enough IT staff. Hospitals are notoriously bad about hiring IT. I Often hear stories of one person responsible for building and maintaining multiple clinical modules - there is no way you can begin to do the level of support and troubleshooting. So, before being judgmental - consider that many hospitals barely staff enough nurses to care for patients - I can assure you they put even less resources into IT.

[scimajor]

Does anyone have comments about whether or not real time charting has to happen, because as night shift it is nice for patient sanitation if I can assessment as quickly as possible and then chart at the desk a bit later.

[guest2210]

as long as you can remember the time of the assessment, you can go to the doc flowsheet and insert a column-which will allow you to enter the time and date of the assessment. if you go to add a column, it will put in the current time and date. but there is always the concern that if something happens to a patient and there is no assessment, the old addage of "if it's not charted, it wasn't done" comes to mind.

[Woodenpug, BSN]

I just want to bookmark this thread. The icon does not show.

[rninformatics, DNP, RN]

Greetings al7139

The issues you report are not unique to EPIC and may have more to do with the change from paper to electronic charting/documentation and information gathering, entry and seeking.

Have you contacted the folks responsible for training/education or even asked your Nursing Manager if you can have some addtional training on the system? - Additional training, working with a super user, partnering with one of your colleagues who works the same shift as you but feels more comfortable with the system - these interventions, more than anything else , may ease some of your anxiety.

Good Luck

[takkit]

early on it seemed the younger nurses had no problem, it was their language. i felt overwhelmed, but after about a couple of weeks i finally started getting it. little by little i learn something new each day . this is from someone that the instructors said i don't think you will be able to do this.