Stupid mistake that I can't fix

Nurses General Nursing

Published

We are switching over to e-charting and the program does not have spell check:eek:. I made my nursing note clicked save, and immediately noticed I had put "membrain" instead of "membrane". Of course, there is no way for me to fix my spelling (stupid, stupid) error and it is forever in the echart to be read over and over by my fellow nurses so they can get a good chuckle. ARRRRGH.....I need spell check, and I need to not be doing three things at once so I can write clear note:o I wish I could make a big sign to hang above the computer saying "yes I know I did that, and yes I know it was stupid"

Now I will admit I am not a good speller, but I am usually very careful not to let others know that. I keep a dictionary at work and I look up words, and sometimes I write a preliminary draft of my notes on scratch paper so I can go back over them and make corrections.....I don't know what I was thinking "membrain" geeezzzzzz!

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Specializes in PICU, Sedation/Radiology, PACU.

We all make mistakes. Spelling errors are definately forgivable. This patient will be discharged and in a few days everyone will forget about it. No harm done. Don't beat yourself up about it. :)

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Specializes in Renal transplant, vascular, hospice.

I have used e-charting for a few years now, and I have yet to see a note that could not be amended. Please check with your educator for the program, usually they don't let you go without support for a long time with the software. You should have an amend button. It does show each time that the note is changed and usually you are the only one who can amend it. Hope this helps.:)

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A spelling error is embarrassing, but you didn't hurt anybody. :)

It sounds like you're diligent about doing what you can to avoid spelling errors- in this case, there's not much that can be misinterpreted re: your meaning.

Give yourself a break !! :)

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There are a lot worst mistakes you can make. Try not to worry about it. You are after all only human. It is more important you take good care of your patients, and avoid mistakes in that area. Count your blessings, and try and move on. If I am not sure I look it up on the internet for spelling.

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We all make mistakes. Spelling errors are definately forgivable. This patient will be discharged and in a few days everyone will forget about it. No harm done. Don't beat yourself up about it. :)

I was just about to start telling you (actually I typed a pretty long note and had to start over) how this mistake would be around for some time because I work LTC when I remembered:idea:......this resident did go home!!! I stopped by work yesterday to get the August schedule and the nurse on duty mentioned that the residents family had decided to care for them at home:yeah:I am so happy!

I like the e-charting but I don't like that the note can not be changed. I asked everyone (even the administrator) if I could change it, and the best they could offer was adding an addendum. There was no consensus if an addendum would be appropriate for a spelling error.

I really am so relieved! I would just cringe every time I thought about someone reading that note. The whole thread on here about "why don't nurses know how to spell" hasn't helped me feel any better about it either.

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I don't know why this mistake has been tearing me up so badly. I have been a nurse for 9 years now, and I have made 1 or 2 REALLY stupid mistakes unfortunately. Maybe it is because the system is new and I still feel uncomfortable?

I am just so happy that the resident went home! What are the odds of that kind of luck :)

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:yeah:

OH YES! What an awesome mistake! If I'm gonna be heckled by MDs (which won't happen because they never read the notes) I'd want to go down just like that. Sneaky, you got to just laugh at these things, because no matter what, you cannot prevent them if it is in the stars to look silly, you're gonna look silly.

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I think you tearing yourself up because you care about your work. I would not find any fault in that. I also think you would be hard pressed to find a nurse on here who has never made a spelling mistake on thier charting. Plus learning something new like computer charting while working on a unit can be stressful. I am not looking forward to that change in my hospital this October. You may see me starting to start discussions on computer charting then. I am happy for you that the patient was discharged.

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Specializes in Assisted Living nursing, LTC/SNF nursing.

Not a big deal, maybe something your IT person can try to figure out how to put on a spell check.

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Specializes in Certified Med/Surg tele, and other stuff.

:lol2: That's funny in a cute way. You don't even know the dumb typos I have made. Heck, I even make them here.

Try not to beat yourself up over this. If this was a co worker what would you tell them?;)

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You should be able to modify your note. We are able to right-click and "Modify" is an option.

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