As a PICU nurse with our organization, how would you handle a situation where a colleague calls you to ask you to document some patient notes that they had forgotten during their shift?

"First, I would let my colleague know that I was not comfortable documenting any notes in the patient's electronic record. I would certainly thank them for calling and letting me know and I would assure them that I would notify the supervisor on duty right away. My first action after the call would be to make a quick, written note on the PC in the patient's room to ensure another nurse won't administer any further medication or treatments in the meantime. I would then take the issue to the supervisor for the next steps to be determined."

In this real-life "what if" scenario, the correct thing to do is to write down the information that should be formally documented in the EHR and attach a sticky note to the unit in the patient's room so that there is a visual reminder for all staff on duty. This information should be reported to the shift nurse manager for additional guidance on how to manage the situation. Under no circumstances should you sign off on any patient notes that you did not directly handle.