use of templates....help plz!

[johncarter]

I've heard mixed reviews about using H&P templates in medical school.

Some say that it's bad, and some say that it's good.

Good because: It acts as a prompt, speeds things up, provides organization for those who may not write neatly, universal.

Bad because: "just filling in a chart", not thinking etc.


personally, I like the use of a template, and I've attached a sample as PDF


can I get as much feedback from you guys as possible it would be a big help !

thnx!!

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[johncarter]

bump....


anyone?

 

[johncarter]

bump

 

[Haemulon]

I didn't look at your pdf, but your right that there are pros and cons as you suggested. Bottom line for me is that EMR's with the many efficient template features available can make rounding / charting much more efficient. And paper templates can help beginning students avoid forgetting important parts of an H&P for sure. As long as one uses a template as a tool and not a crutch or a shortcut, it is fine, even necessary at times depending on the situation. However, every doc / student should be able to sit down with nothing but a pen and blank paper to construct good notes from scratch, it just takes practice. Plus it forces one to distill down to the essentials to avoid writing forever. And by memorizing all your H&P questions and getting good at the interviews, you will eventually be more efficient than just filling in lines on a form. Also, with EMR templates there is a danger in just "copying forward" your A/P over and over from previous days without adequate attention to re-assessing and editing, and it takes extra vigilance on our part to avoid getting lazy. Like I said though, use a template as a tool and not as a crutch or shortcut and you will be fine.