Psychology like many allied health services requires session notes to be organised, secured safely, and retained for 7 years or if a client is under 18 years old then at least til 25 years old (according to our code of ethics).
When I graduated university I went straight into private practice. This meant I also went straight into handwriting sessions notes with paper and pens. If you saw the amount of lined sketch paper and black ball point pens I went through that first year you'd be overwhelmed. On my days off I would spend them typing out my handwritten notes. NOONE has time for that.
Welcome the greatest time saving process ever!! Here is what I use to get notes done in the 10 minutes between clients.
An iPad air or pro, I have found the air is nice and lightweight for note taking.
An Apple Pencil or digital pen that is bluetooth connected to your iPad.
Paperlike screen protector - this is a matte finish screen protector which mimics a paper texture to make writing easier and clearer.
Nebo app - this is a note taking app which is amazing! Highly recommend.
There are a couple of things I really like about the Nebo app. Firstly, if you work across a few clinics like myself you can set up separate notebooks for each clinic. Within each notebook there is an unlimited amount of notes you can take.
At the start of each day I like to go in and create a note for each client of that day. Then I add in text from the last session with the plan or goal of the current session. Then I write away while in session. As you are writing Nebo is scribing. At the end of each session I convert my handwriting to text.
As you can see the handwritten notes are perfectly converted into text. From there I copy the text and add to the practice software.
This process and system allows me to get my notes done in the 10mins between clients most days. This saves time on the day and my day's off become actual day's off.
Confidentiality Clause - a note on confidentiality my ipad is password protected, all of my notes are de-identified when being written. I do not use or write down personal details in these notes. I know the clients based on codes and dates, I can add in personal details which are important when they are added into the practice software. Once they are uploaded onto the practice software they are also deleted off of the ipad.
If you've got any questions about this process or note taking in general ask away. Always here to help and share some useful tips to save time and energy for the important stuff!
Leilanie Pakoa
Sport & Exercise Psychologist
Principal Psychologist of Surge Performance + Wellbeing