This document discusses patient record systems and nursing documentation. It provides definitions of key terms like records, reports, and different methods of documentation and reporting. The objectives of accurate and comprehensive records are to communicate patient information, plan care, and support clinical decision making. Records must be factual, legible, signed, dated and maintained according to legal and organizational guidelines. Shift reports are used to convey patient status between nurses. Different documentation tools are used in patient records to record assessments, care plans, progress notes and discharge summaries.