"How Do I Do All These Notes?!"

6 ways to escape the documentation monster - without sacrificing your sanity.

Photo by Christin Hume on Unsplash

However long you’ve spent in this field, you probably know the pain of progress notes by now. It doesn’t sound that hard, and maybe it isn’t. But most jobs don’t require tasks like this. Imagine having to do whatever you normally do at work, but every time you do it you also have to write about it - in medically coded language that is vague enough to protect privacy, but also specific enough to prove medical necessity. It’s tedious, draining, and it gets old.

Documentation is a necessary evil, but that doesn’t make it any less unpleasant. Almost every therapist I know has either been behind, or is currently super behind on their notes. And it’s not just session notes. There are treatment plans, intake assessments, contact logs… the list can go on, especially depending on your setting.

I’m no stranger to putting off my notes on purpose, or falling behind on them unintentionally. Maybe I had a bad week, or was really busy, or just didn’t feel like it. It happens. So over the years, I’ve developed several strategies that have worked to prevent this from happening, and to address it when it does.