it SUCKS for nurses. At least where I am. We do a ton of double charting. The computer prompts you to chart pedal pulses in three places and you can't complete your assessment unless you've opened every single "system". Also, it is near impossible to find an open computer when you REALLY NEED to check lab values or x-ray results. Instead of peeking in a chart for 2 seconds, you need to sit at a computer, type in your password, open up the program, open the patient's name, find the lab value and close it out. Just to see one number. Not efficient. Our system crashes once a week, too.
Also, since we have computer charting, most of the staff/administration think that computers can be the primary means of communication now. So the aide takes the vitals and then gets lost, so I have to do the whole find-a-computer jazz again just to make sure my patients' vitals are not critical. Hello! Dangerous! The unit I work on has totally abolished verbal report, too. Now we are expected to sign on to a computer and glean all of our information by dissecting the patient's online chart. Again, dangerous and inefficient. The nurses do write a written report, too, but usually it's 3 sentences long and they're halfway out the door by the time you have questions. So frustrating!
I know this is more of nurse-feedback, but thanks for letting me vent anyway! I do love using the computer for trending lab values and looking up consults and histories, so maybe that's why docs might find it more efficient.
amy
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