This is inspired by another thread. How do you sign your name when you sign off on stuff at work? I use my first initial and full last name. Like this: O. Bobcat, RN I have a pretty unique last name, and there are no other nurses in my state with my first initial and last name.
My boss at my previous place of employment told me I needed to use my full name when I signed, but I never changed the way I sign after she told me that (I'm such a rebel!)
I use my full name including middle initial when I sign non-nursing related things.
Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.
First name-Middle Initial- Last name, Designation
I think my penmanship is perfectly legible, however, I've been told, the capital 'S' looks like a 'J', and the final 'h' looks like an 'l'. I also have a lot of the letter 'n' in both maiden name (which is my middle initial) and last name. Sometimes I lose track and the 'n's' start resembling a wavey line not unlike the line that someone might draw to indicate water.
Specializes in Palliative, Onc, Med-Surg, Home Hospice.
I sign CelticGoddess, RN. Except in emails to my manager, who requires our credentials in our emails. So, when I email her, it's CelticGoddess BSN-RN.
Some of my co-workers have certs so it's Nurse Lastname BSN-RN, certs. It's amusing reading the list of alphabets after names when mass emails are sent from manager.
Your boss cannot tell you how to sign your name. If you wanted to make an X to represent your signature, it's perfectly legal, as long as you keep it consistent. It was actually my professor at OHSU that suggested we think about our signatures and how to get comfortable writing our names in fast fashion multiple times per hour (the life of an RN).
Many of my peers kept their full names in their signatures but I took my initials and made a signature that is almost impossible to forge and quite distinct. When you see it you know who it is. I changed my driver's license and all my bank signature cards and have kept it for over 20 years. Than of course, electronic signatures are a blessing...:)
I've never timed myself but it's fairly quick to put my John Hancock on a document which takes around 1 to 1.5 seconds. Let me tell you; it became a blessing in disguise.
I have a long name so I abbreviate to initials only followed by RN most of the time. But the things I sign are less and less. The EMR signs my full name on the important stuff.
Sent from my iPhone -- blame all errors on spellcheck
Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.
I had a friend who not only would write RN on checks she signed, but one time she also made out a check to "Lion King" instead of Food Lion. She said the guy at the register looked at it and said to her," You must have little kids.How many times have they watched it so far?"
Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.
Had a 20 y.o. Home Health patient once ( spina bifida and 'delayed mental development' ) who would sign my visit slip with all manner of names like Minnie Mouse, Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Snow White........no one ever​ said a word about it. Guess as long as there was a signature on the 'patient's signature' line, nobody ever even looked at it more closely.
No Stars In My Eyes
5,649 Posts
First name-Middle Initial- Last name, Designation
I think my penmanship is perfectly legible, however, I've been told, the capital 'S' looks like a 'J', and the final 'h' looks like an 'l'. I also have a lot of the letter 'n' in both maiden name (which is my middle initial) and last name. Sometimes I lose track and the 'n's' start resembling a wavey line not unlike the line that someone might draw to indicate water.