Question
Should notes taken during therapy be typed and filed as an official record at the school? Are handwritten notes considered acceptable?
Answer
Unfortunately, I do not think there is one answer to that. I do not think it would be considered an ethical violation either way. However, you would want to be certain that you are following the protocols of your school system. Each state has different licensing laws so it is difficult to give a specific answer to that. Ethically and professionally, you need to assure that you are following the procedures and protocols of the state that you are in. They may not want notes to be handwritten. In terms of a state system or an ASHA system, under the Code of Ethics, there is no ruling about handwritten notes, and I would assume in state law, there would be no ruling about that as well.
Wren S. Newman, SLP.D., CCC-SLP is Executive Director for the Programs in Speech-Language and Communication Disorders at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She was named a Fellow of ASHA in 2006. Dr. Newman recently served on ASHA’s Board of Ethics.
