Group Notes Template
Explore this group note template for your sessions to ensure you capture all essential information. Aid excellent recovery, and generate higher healthcare solutions for your clients.
Fact Checked by RJ Gumban.
What Is A Group Note Template
Group note templates are a great way to document the progress of clients within a group setting. You can write individual notes for each participant in the session, without having to draft separate progress notes for each person - although this is also welcome too. With group notes, you can accurately assess the dynamics, as well as specifics according to each participant. Group sessions are an integral component of many therapy practices, and so having this option can elevate the quality and standard of your notetaking practices. Using a group note template allows you to produce rich insight pertaining to the health of your clients.
Each group note covers the summary of the purpose of the session, the interventions used, as well as personal details for each participant, in addition to their individual responses and treatment goals. It encompasses behaviors, moods, and appearances, as well as any issues, significant interactions and reactions, and other influences. Group notes can be adapted to meet your specific needs, and can be altered to suit your preferences.
Printable Group Notes Template
Download these templates for group notes to improve clinical documentation, streamline workflow and healthcare outcomes.
How To Use This Template For Group Notes
There are various group note example templates out there, however, to avoid common pitfalls, it’s best to stick to this simple step-by-step guide to using this template.
Access the PDF template
The first step is to download the group notes template, which should open automatically within your PDF reader software. Once you have accessed the resource, you can edit and customize the template to suit your needs. If you prefer to handwrite, you can also print the document.
Fill in your and your client's credentials
Because group notes involve a number of personal details, depending on the number of clients in your session, it’s important that you take the time to double-check all information. Make sure that names are spelled correctly, the right birth dates are listed, and so on.
Complete all sections
Of course, you need to fill out all the group note sections to complete the note. Make sure you’re observant, and include all significant details to maintain and produce rich insight that aids in treatment and recovery. Be concise, and succinct.
Step Four: Securely store your notes
Once you've completed all sections of the group progress notes, you need to store the information within a secure platform that has encryption services in place. This is absolutely non-negotiable, as it means you stay HIPAA compliant and at minimal risk from data hacks.
Group Notes Example (Sample)
It can sometimes be overwhelming to know where to start when it comes to healthcare. After all, there is an abundance of information out there, which can be challenging to filter through. To help you on the right path, we’ve created highly robust group note template structures, so you can hit the ground running. Additionally, we’ve also created a sample group note template so you can better understand group notes within a real healthcare context. Feel free to check both out for free.
Download this Group Notes Example here:
Who Can Use this Printable Group Note Template?
Group notes are a less conventional format than individual patient notes, however, they’re highly effective for those within the mental health and therapy space. Group notes are great for counselors implementing group therapy sessions, and can work towards high-quality care for a variety of different specialties. Group notes typically fall under professions where social components are part of the recovery process, and where clients would benefit from discussion and group exercises to increase inclusivity. Sometimes it helps to put their problems into perspective, and discuss with others what they’re going through for support. Some of these include the following:
- Counselors
- Grief counselors
- Therapists
- Psychotherapists
- Psychologists
- Life coaches
- Substance abuse therapists
- Addiction therapists
This is just a handful of mental health professionals who may incorporate group therapy as part of their treatment plans. Essentially, if you find yourself wanting to facilitate group components, and wanting to bring clients together who face similar problems, then group notes are for you. Don’t overthink the specifics, as every note will look different depending on the specific needs required, and the goals needing to be accomplished.
Why Is This Template Useful For Therapists
There are various reasons why group note templates are useful for therapists, and can increase the practicality and efficiency of their practice. This includes:
- Track progress of multiple clients - The great thing about group notes, is that you can successfully attend to the health concerns of more than one patient at once. You can facilitate treatment across clients at the same time, without having to compromise on quality.
- Greater organization - Writing notes about more than one patient at once seems like a challenging task, but through this group note template, you can achieve the impossible. You can have simplified notes that capture all critical aspects of a client’s health status, and in a clean format that allows you to assess multiple patients.
- Structured sessions - Using group note templates, you can have more structure to your group sessions, in terms of what you’re recording, and what interventions are needed. This is always a plus, especially in group settings when sometimes therapists can get a bit off track when balancing ad coordinating discussion across multiple people.
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Why Use Carepatron For Group Notes?
Carepatron is an excellent choice for creating group notes and storing them securely within a HIPAA-compliant platform. You can access the wide resource library to peruse through hundreds of relevant healthcare templates, samples, and guides, to ensure that you’re executing group notes of the highest quality. Create your template in seconds, and store it within your client portal, which is also embedded with encryption services. Receive 24/7 support, and join a network of over 10,000+ healthcare professionals who rely on Carepatron for their healthcare businesses.
You can also experience many other sophisticated features, including appointment booking, appointment reminders, patient portals, medical billing and coding services, video consultations, messaging channels, online payments, and much more. You can enhance various areas of your business beyond just note-taking, and consistently prioritize the needs of your patients - no matter the size of your practice, or how many clients you’re seeing. Take the leap, and elevate your practice with Carepatron.
Commonly asked questions
Group therapy can include any number of individuals, but typically refers to 5 to 15 patients. They can meet for any health purpose, such as anxiety, depression, or addiction, and may meet once or twice weekly. The sessions can be open or closed, and last anywhere from one to three hours. They may include group exercises, discussions, general support, or question and answers, however, group therapy is an incredibly diverse treatment method and can entail a variety of different methods for different purposes. They will look different depending on the type of field you’re in, and what is needing to be achieved.
Group notes collate more than one individual’s treatment within the same document. They should only be used for sessions where more than one individual is meeting at the same time, on the same day, in the same room. There are fewer HIPAA and APA guidelines for group notes, however, you should maintain the same practices and standards to comply with privacy, confidentiality, and quality rules.
Group notes are considerably longer than other types of notes, due to multiple individuals being assessed at once. They will typically be 2+ pages long, with each client needing to be evaluated, in addition to general information. There’s no limit to how many pages group notes should be, however, there should be at least 3 clients on one page.
