Resistance to documentation--a nursing research issue.

In this case study, the views of a sample of four hospital nurses were elicited to determine underlying causes of persistent antipathy towards documentation in patients' charts. The results of this review supported a common belief that resistance to charting is influenced by extrinsic, or environmental factors, such as inflexibility of charting systems and insufficient allocation of time. In addition, intrinsic factors or cognitive and psychosocial factors, not emphasized in earlier studies, such as lack of confidence about written expression, a tendency to succumb to group norms governing charting and difficulty in articulating the nature of nursing practice, surfaced as impediments to documentation. This review suggests that a broader study approach is required; one that addresses intrinsic, as well as extrinsic, factors.