Public Health Nursing Documentation Guidelines - Indian Health ...

Documentation and Coding Guidelines for Public Health Nurses
6.3 Activity and Travel Time
“AT” means activity time, which
is the length of time it took to
perform the service. This is also
a mandatory field.
Figure 6.3. Date and Time, Location, Activity
Time, and Travel Time
• Activity time includes
planning time as well as
documentation time.
• Time is documented in
minutes, such as 15 or
120. Do not use fractions
of minutes, such as 91.5.
“TT” means travel time, which is the total number of minutes it took to travel to and
from the location. While it is not mandatory, travel time is useful information in
RPMS-generated reports. In the case of several stops at different places, travel time
may be entered on one visit or divided by the total number of visits and put on each
PCC.
6.4 Clinic
Often confused with the location
field, the clinic field is a two-digit
or digit-and-letter code that signifies
what kind of service was
provided.
Figure 6.4. Date and Time, Location, Activity
Time, Travel Time, and Clinic Code
“Location” is where the
service was provided;
“clinic” is what service
was provided.
Most Common Clinic Codes
for Public Health Nurses
11 = Home Care
This includes all visits that take place at any site that can be defined as
where the patient “lays his or her head down at night.” For example, if the
contact was made at a dormitory, jail, or even an outdoor location where the
patient sleeps at night, then this is his or her “home.” If the patient is not
found, then the clinic code is 11. Nurses should consult the data entry staff
Indian Health Service Page 6-2