Imagine you are working with an established client. The client’s appointment is late in the evening, and you are tired when it ends. You normally take notes during the session and then submit the electronic documentation immediately afterward, when it is fresh in your mind. This time, however, you tell yourself, “It can wait until tomorrow.”

Tomorrow comes, and you forget to submit the documentation. Such an oversight could have ramifications for you as a social worker, for the client, and for the agency. How will you safeguard against poor documentation practices?

you consider the negative effects of improper documentation and potential strategies for documenting correctly.

• Identify two reasons why it is important for social workers to have strong documentation skills
• Describe a situation when improper documentation could have a negative impact on the client.
• Describe a situation when improper documentation could have a negative impact on the agency.
• Identify a strategy for addressing improper documentation, and describe how you would implement this strategy.

reference

Cummins, L., K., & Sevel, J., A. (2017). Social work skills for beginning direct practice: Text, workbook, and interactive web based case studies (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

• Appendix A, “Professional Writing and Documentation Guidelines” (pp. 295-298)