How long to keep paperwork

meownsmile, BSN, RN · Feb 25, 2006

Im not sure about what your state might ask for. I think id take the more important stuff, flu shot records, pharm reports, QI stuff, and inservice stuff and try to pull it into some kind of order. The put it in a clean file folder label it and put it in the back of the bottom file drawer.

The rest of it,,schedules, assignment sheets, dietician reports, keep it another 6 months in a separate folder and the put it in permanent file storage, (ie.trash) after 6 months. Meanwhile i would still be looking into if it is actually necissary to keep and as soon as i found out whether ya need it or not pitch it. I doubt very much if anyone cares about diet or assignments etc after 6 months has past.

It actually sounds like the DON before you had OCD about this stuff.

Nurse_Pauline · Feb 25, 2006

I think it would depend on the state you are in. I know here in mass most paperwork is kept for 7 yrs. As a manager of a unit, i keep the current year of pharmacy receits,cna assignments,glucometer checks refrig checks ect on the unit in seperate notebooks. After that medical records helps us store them. Maybe your medical records dept could help you with this problem?

debRN0417 · Feb 25, 2006

Be sure you have quick access to stuff from survey to survey also. When the surveyors come in they are looking back from the date of the last survey to the time they enter. This will also help if you have a complaint survey or something else.