2 4 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • O C T O B E R 2 0 1 8
W
ho knew dropdown menus and auto-populating fields could
be so dangerous? For all the benefits of electronic docu-
mentation, EHRs can easily byte us in the emoticon and
land us smack in the middle of a medical practice claim if we're not
careful to sidestep these 5 pitfalls.
Auto-populating fields. We've all heard of "Not charted, not
done." The ultra-convenient auto-fill/auto-population feature on
EHRs has inspired a new charting maxim: "Charted, but not done."
Lawsuits claiming that nurses never performed the care that they docu-
1
Charting Through the EHR MedMal Minefield
5 legal danger zones unique to electronic documentation.
Medical Malpractice
Claire Cyriax, DNP, RN, MSN-Ed, LNC, CAPA
• CHARTING NEW TERRITORY A danger of
dropdown menus, checkboxes and auto-fill is
documenting care that was never done.
