Ethics

Notetaking for Therapists: Best Practices and Innovations

Understand the critical role of notetaking in mental health care, including best practices and innovative technologies such as AI-powered transcripting.

By Mental Health Academy

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This article underscores the critical role of notetaking in mental health care, offering insights into best practices and innovative technologies that can enhance clinical effectiveness.

Related articles: Ending the Therapeutic Relationship: Best Practices, The What and Why of the Therapeutic Alliance, Taming Imposter Syndrome: Strategies for Therapists.

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Introduction

In the field of mental health, notetaking is an essential practice that extends beyond merely jotting down a client’s words. It is a professional, ethical, and often legal obligation that serves to document the therapeutic process, track client progress, and facilitate effective treatment planning. Effective notetaking requires an understanding of its multifaceted role. It provides an accurate record of client interactions, supports clinical decision-making, serves as a defence in legal situations, and helps meet ethical and regulatory requirements. Moreover, with recent technological advances, clinicians now have access to tools like AI-driven systems to ease the burden of notetaking.

In this article, we’ll explore the importance of notetaking for mental health clinicians, highlight best practices supported by case examples, and examine modern technologies that facilitate this task, with a specific focus on AI-powered solutions.

Why therapists need to take notes

Notetaking is critical to delivering high-quality mental health services. It supports the therapeutic alliance, ensures ethical compliance, and helps clinicians maintain a structured and organised record of their clinical work. Below are some of the key reasons why notetaking is indispensable in mental health practice.

Documenting client progress

Clinical notes provide a structured and detailed account of the client’s mental health journey. They help track progress, setbacks, and overall treatment outcomes, which is crucial for modifying treatment plans over time. Regularly reviewing notes can offer insights into patterns, behaviours, and responses to therapeutic interventions.

Legal and ethical requirements

In many countries, notetaking is a legal requirement that protects both the client and the clinician. Clinical notes can be used in court to demonstrate due diligence and provide an account of services rendered, as well as to comply with insurance requirements. Additionally, professional bodies such as the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) and industry associations emphasise that clinicians must document their sessions to meet ethical guidelines.

Promoting continuity of care

When multiple clinicians are involved in a client’s treatment, whether within a multidisciplinary team or during transitions between providers (including termination; you can read more about that here), notes are critical for ensuring seamless care. Clear and comprehensive documentation allows new or consulting clinicians to understand the client’s history, goals, and previous interventions without requiring a detailed verbal handover.

Supporting treatment planning and decision-making

Therapists often reference past notes to inform decisions about future treatment. Notes help clarify issues that require more focus or determine what interventions are working effectively. This evidence-based approach strengthens the treatment process.

Risk management

Clinicians often work with clients who are at risk for harm to themselves or others. In these cases, clinical notes serve as a critical tool for documenting risk assessments, decisions, and actions taken by the therapist. Accurate documentation can also protect therapists from legal liabilities and professional complaints.

Best practices in notetaking for therapists

To ensure that clinical notes are effective, organised, and ethically sound, mental health professionals should adhere to a set of best practices. These strategies not only streamline the notetaking process but also ensure that clinicians capture the most critical information in a professional manner.

Use a structured format

Adopting a standardised notetaking format ensures consistency and comprehensiveness. Popular formats include SOAP (Subjective, Objective, Assessment, Plan) and DAP (Data, Assessment, Plan). These structures help clinicians stay focused and ensure that important elements such as client symptoms, therapist observations, and planned interventions are included.

Example: A therapist treating a client with anxiety may use the SOAP format to track subjective feelings (e.g. “client reports increased worry in social settings”), objective observations (e.g. “client appeared visibly tense during session”), assessments (e.g. “symptoms indicate moderate social anxiety”), and plan (e.g. “introduce graded exposure techniques in next session”).

Document promptly

Timely documentation ensures that clinicians accurately capture the details of the session while their memory is still fresh. Delayed notes can result in forgotten details or inaccuracies, which can affect the continuity of care.

Be concise, but comprehensive

Striking the right balance between brevity and thoroughness is key to effective notetaking. While notes should be concise enough to avoid unnecessary detail, they must also be comprehensive enough to provide a clear picture of the session and any decisions made.

Maintain objectivity

Clinical notes should avoid subjective or emotional language that may introduce bias. Descriptions of client behaviour and therapist interventions should be factual and based on observable data rather than personal interpretations.

Example: Instead of writing, “The client seemed upset and angry,” a more objective note would read, “The client raised their voice and clenched their fists during the session.”

Protect client confidentiality

Given the sensitive nature of mental health information, maintaining confidentiality is paramount. Clinicians must store notes securely in compliance with relevant regulations, such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) in the U.S. or the Privacy Act in Australia.

Highlight critical information

When clients present urgent concerns, such as suicidal ideation, therapists should clearly document these incidents and any corresponding risk assessments or interventions. This ensures that critical information is readily accessible for future reference.

Review and reflect

Periodic review of past notes can help clinicians identify trends or patterns in a client’s behaviour or progress. This reflective practice can enhance clinical decision-making and ensure that therapy remains on track.

Example: A therapist treating a client for depression may review notes from previous sessions to identify trends in mood shifts, which can inform adjustments to treatment, such as introducing cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) strategies.

Clinical Tip: Psychometric assessments can be a great tool to measure client progress over time. There are a number of companies that help clinicians find and administer assessments, collect, score and interpret results, and track progress over time.

Include client collaboration

Where appropriate, clinicians may choose to involve the client in the notetaking process. This can enhance transparency, promote a sense of agency, and help clients gain insight into their own progress.

Be mindful of language

Therapists should avoid using jargon that may confuse clients or other clinicians reviewing the notes. Plain, accessible language is often more helpful in clinical records.

Technological innovations for notetaking

With advancements in technology, mental health professionals can now access tools that streamline notetaking and reduce the administrative burden. These tools are especially beneficial for clinicians who struggle to find time for documentation amid a busy client schedule.

AI-Driven notetaking solutions

Several companies have introduced AI-powered tools that automatically transcribe, organise, and summarise therapy sessions. These tools use speech recognition and natural language processing to create coherent, structured clinical notes from audio or video recordings. Examples include:

  • Upheal: AI‑generated notes for therapists, psychiatrists, and coaches.
  • Heidi AI: A voice-enabled scribe system designed for clinicians.
  • Suki AI: A voice-enabled digital assistant that helps clinicians create accurate, compliant notes quickly.
  • Nirvana AI: An AI-based service that listens to therapy sessions and summarises key points, freeing up therapists to focus on client engagement.
  • Otter.ai: A transcription service that can be integrated into mental health sessions to provide real-time notes, which clinicians can later edit and review.

Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems

EHR platforms, such as SimplePractice and TherapyNotes, offer clinicians the ability to securely store, organise, and access client notes. Many of these systems integrate billing, scheduling, and documentation features, streamlining administrative tasks.

Conclusion

Notetaking is a critical practice for mental health clinicians, serving ethical, legal and clinical functions. By adhering to best practices, clinicians can enhance the effectiveness of their notes, ensure client progress is accurately documented, and safeguard their practice against potential risks. Furthermore, leveraging modern technology such as AI-driven notetaking tools and EHR systems can significantly reduce the burden of notetaking while ensuring that clinicians maintain compliance with professional standards.

Key takeaways

  • Notetaking is an essential practice for documenting client progress, ensuring legal and ethical compliance, and promoting continuity of care.
  • Clinicians should use structured formats like SOAP or DAP to organise their notes effectively.
  • Timely, concise, and objective notes are crucial for maintaining accurate client records.
  • Protecting client confidentiality is critical, and notes should be securely stored in compliance with relevant privacy laws.
  • AI-powered tools and EHR systems can significantly streamline notetaking, allowing clinicians to focus more on client care.

References

  • American Psychological Association. (2023). Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/ethics/code.
  • Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency. (2022). Guidelines for mandatory notifications. Retrieved from https://www.ahpra.gov.au.