Interviewee | Stance on abbreviations | Justification |
Consultant A | Would abbreviate a prescription | Habit ‘I would be used to writing “IM” and “SC” and “PO”’ |
Consultant B | Would abbreviate a prescription | Common knowledge ‘… everybody knows what “PO” and “IV” mean’ |
Registrar | Tries not to abbreviate | Habit ‘I’m trying to stick to guidance as much as I can but it’s with any of these things, sometimes you’re so used to doing it a certain way’ |
FY1 A | Tries not to abbreviate | Lack of space on Kardex ‘I try and avoid things like “TDS” and “QDS” if possible because I think it’s easily misinterpreted so I try and avoid those. Again, sometimes space is an issue so even words like “maximum”; I’m going to cut that down to ‘max’ because there’s no box in that Kardex that you can fit “maximum” into’. |
FY1 B | Would abbreviate a prescription | Lack of space on Kardex ‘there’s no space to write that so I write ‘Four times a day’ and I know the nurses know what that means’ ‘… I do use the 1 and a circle (°) for hourly and I know you’re not supposed to do that but sometimes it’s just not feasible’ |
Staff Nurse A | Confidence with reading abbreviations depends on doctors’ handwriting quality | Depends on Handwriting ‘Most of them I know but sometimes it will be like—sometimes it depends on the doctor’s writing as well—it can look like something else as well, it can look like something else and you don’t know what it’s meant to say. Same with numbers and things as well, sometimes the way doctors write their numbers … it can look like a completely different number if you know what I mean’. |
Staff Nurse B | Is content with doctors using abbreviations | Experience ‘I mean, I use PO when I’m doing it. Yeah, IM and SC and everything, I’m fine with that. Again, maybe brand-new staff would need to have it written out a bit better but I’m certainly okay with it because I know what they all mean. But someone might not know what Three times a day or BD means which is automatic because the doctors always put that, they’re not going to put ‘twice a day’ or anything. I’m personally okay with it because I know what they all mean’. |