Clear, contemporaneous records are essential to support patient care. Dictated notes may pose problems if:

records are not transcribed quickly enough
key information, such as the doctor's name, has been omitted
notes are inaccurate or incomplete.

Team considerations

When treatment is being provided by a multi-disciplinary team, other health professionals must be able to rely on the accuracy of information recorded in the patient notes about medication and treatment.

If information about the previous clinical encounter is not readily available to the next treating clinician, it may adversely affect patient care.

Good record-keeping

The GMC states that, "formal records of your work (including patients' records) are clear, accurate, contemporaneous and legible" and include:

relevant clinical findings
decisions made and actions agreed
the information shared with patients
concerns or preferences from the patient relevant to their ongoing care
drugs, investigations or treatments proposed, provided or prescribed
information about any reasonable adjustments and communication support preferences
who made the record and when.

If a problem arises later, it may be difficult to defend a doctor's actions if transcribed notes are incomplete or inaccurate, and the doctor is understandably unable to recall the consultation.

Third-party risks

If possible, the doctor who dictated the notes should also transcribe them as soon as possible after the consultation has taken place.

When records have been transcribed by a third party, problems with the quality of recording or simple misunderstandings of medical terminology can lead to transcription errors.

For this reason, the doctor responsible for the patient's care should have the opportunity to check and sign entries before they are added to a patient's notes.

Doctors may also decide to include their GMC number alongside their signature, so there is no doubt as to who made the entry.

In addition, reports and letters should be seen, evaluated and initialled by the doctor concerned before being filed in the patient's records. Most test results are electronically transmitted, so take care to record abnormal findings in the clinical records and document any appropriate action.

Patient safety

If hospital trusts are relying on clinical staff or external providers to transcribe dictated notes, it's important the person or agency this is delegated to is trained and competent to carry out the task.

If you believe patient safety is being compromised by inaccurately transcribed records, you should draw the matter to the attention of your employer so it can be addressed, although it may be appropriate to discuss with your consultant first.

Dictated notes and best practice

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