SayPro What to Record

Recording is an attempt to answer the questions of Who?, What?, When?, Where?, and How? This simple approach helps to define those issues that should be committed to writing. One caution is necessary about this journalist’s list: statements about the reasons for a youth’s behavior (the why) should generally be avoided. It is not the responsibility of direct care staff to affix motives to a youth’s behavior or to determine his or her intent. Instead, these questions should be referred to administrative staff or to a team discussion supervised by a qualified staff member.

In answering the six questions above, the following guidelines should be considered:

• Who
  • was involved?
  • discovered the incident?
  • witnessed the incident?
  • responded?
  • took what actions?
  • was in possession of what?
  • was notified?
• What
  • happened?
  • was the youth’s complaint?
  • property was involved?
  • actions did the youth take?
  • were the results of those actions?
  • automatic systems were involved (alarms, automatic sprinklers)?
  • was said?
  • evidence was found and collected?
  • equipment was used?
  • equipment or furnishings were damaged?
  • follow-up is required?
• Where
  • did the incident occur?
  • was evidence found?
  • were staff members and youth located?
• When
  • did the incident happen?
  • was the incident discovered and reported?
  • did various staff members arrive?
  • did back-up help arrive?
  • was the incident brought under control?
• How
  • did the incident occur?
  • was the incident discovered?
  • was information obtained?
  • did the incident occur (accidental or intentional—factual, no opinions)?
  • do you explain the actions that you did (especially if you deviated from the agency’s policies)?

Required documentation is determined by the facility and may vary, based on the type of facility and the requirements of the jurisdiction or parent agency. However, most facilities that serve youth have some basic documentation requirements, which often include anecdotal logs and special incident reports. In addition, there may be specialized reports for particular types of facilities or specific kinds of incidents.