While a doctor’s notes often document a patient’s diagnosis, nursing notes track a patient’s symptoms, vital signs, and overall health status.
These notes are key to documenting care in more detail. They help identify both primary and secondary treatments and support accurate and continuous patient care.
However, great nursing notes must be structured, relevant, and focused to be relevant and effective. As explained in this Reddit comment by a health care provider:
To improve clarity, efficiency, and regulatory compliance, we’ve curated a list of structured nursing notes templates designed to support accurate documentation.
Free Nursing Notes Template for Accurate Patient Documentation
What Are Nursing Notes Templates?
Nursing notes templates are structured tools that support accurate nursing documentation and symptom objectives, promote continuity, and help meet legal and professional standards.
A well-designed nursing documentation template ensures that observations, interventions, and patient responses are consistently and thoroughly recorded.
Here’s how:
- ✅ Includes fields for vital signs, medications, assessments, and patient’s response to care provided
- ✅ Supports different formats like narrative notes, SOAP, PIE, and EHR-integrated entries
- ✅ Helps nurses capture both subjective and objective data during the nursing process
- ✅ Improves communication among interdisciplinary team members, family members, and other healthcare professionals
- ✅ Ensures regulatory compliance and provides a legal record of the treatment and evaluation
What Makes a Good Nursing Notes Template?
So, you know the fundamentals of nursing notes. However, a strong nursing notes template can simplify the documentation process and protect your license.
Here’s what separates really good nursing notes from the rest:
- Objective and factual language: Avoid assumptions or blame. Document the patient’s condition, symptoms, and response clearly (e.g., “Dressing removed; purulent drainage noted; wound cleansed and redressed.”)
- Simplified structure: Include what’s essential to patient care—vital signs, interventions, assessment, medications, and care provided. Skip redundant or irrelevant entries
- Legally defensible documentation: Ensure your nursing notes meet regulatory compliance, support continuity, and hold up in court if needed
- Efficient charting: Avoid over-documenting. Keep it concise, focused, and aligned with what’s already in flow sheets or the patient chart
- Facilitates collaboration: Clarify for other team members, interdisciplinary team members, and healthcare professionals reviewing the record
20 Best Nursing Notes Templates
Whether you’re a new grad or a seasoned nurse, writing nursing notes with go-to templates supports better patient care. Here are the top 20 templates you can use across different clinical situations.
1. Notes Template
Though not designed by default for the healthcare sector, the Notes Template is a great tool for nurse managers, educators, or anyone handling healthcare projects or initiatives.
This template from helps organize everything from orientation schedules and shift protocols to quality improvement projects—especially when multiple team members need access.
Think of this note template as your command center for non-clinical nursing documentation, perfect for admin-level documentation and managing multidisciplinary initiatives.
✨ Ideal For: Nurse managers and educators organizing shift protocols, onboarding doctors, and non-clinical team workflows.
2. Medical Chart Template
If you’re in a clinical setting where speed, accuracy, and clarity matter (read: everywhere in healthcare), the Medical Chart Template offers a clean, digital way to manage patient records.
This template is especially useful for outpatient clinics, telehealth providers, or private practices looking to simplify documentation. With searchable cloud storage, quick-access features, and customizable fields, this template helps nurses and providers spot red flags quickly—like high-risk medications or complex histories.
Another plus point is that the Medical Chart Template can complement other features, such as organizing non-EHR data, planning care workflows, or prepping notes for team huddles.
✨ Ideal For: Nurses in clinics, private practices, or telehealth settings who need digital, structured patient records.
3. Nursing Concept Whiteboard Template
When you’re juggling care plans, guidelines, clinical protocols, and patient education, sometimes you just need to see it all laid out.
A study showed that while 96% of nurses felt care plans improved patient states and care quality, only 16% of patient files contained one.
The Nursing Concept Whiteboard Template addresses that disconnect with a visual, intuitive space to organize nursing concepts.
Whether you’re outlining nursing diagnoses or mapping care priorities, this template helps you break big ideas into digestible chunks. Think of this template as a flexible brainstorming canvas that turns abstract nursing concepts into actionable steps.
✨ Ideal For: Nursing students and instructors visualizing care plans, diagnoses, or education content in a collaborative space.
🧠 Fun Fact: The symbol of nursing—a lamp—comes from Florence Nightingale, who earned the nickname “The Lady with the Lamp” for her nighttime rounds during the Crimean War.
4. CNA Report Sheet Template
When you’re responsible for multiple patients in a busy shift, clarity and consistency are everything. The CNA Report Sheet Template gives Certified Nursing Assistants a structured, easy-to-use format to track all the essentials—vitals, observations, and completed tasks—in one place.
So, instead of dealing with a million sticky notes or trying to remember patient updates, this template simplifies everything into a single workflow.
✨ Ideal For: CNAs who want a quick, organized way to track vitals, tasks, and observations during fast-paced shifts.
5. Bedside Shift Report Template
A study revealed that only 57.6% of nurses were satisfied with their current handoff process. So, what’s happening with the rest?
Effective patient handoffs rely on clear, structured communication—exactly what the Bedside Shift Report Template delivers.
This template offers a straightforward, reliable format for sharing essential patient details at the bedside. It ensures communication between shifts by recording vitals, care updates, medications, and concerns in a clear, organized format.
As a result, nurses can review, update, and confirm information on the spot, right where it matters most.
✨ Ideal For: Nurses handing off care between shifts who need a reliable, at-a-glance format for patient updates.
6. Patient Management Template
Anybody in patient care is familiar with its many moving parts—appointments, conditions, treatment plans, test results—the list goes on. The Patient Management Template is built to simplify everything, giving healthcare teams a centralized, customizable hub to keep everything organized and accessible.
With pre-built views like List, Board, Calendar, and Form, this template makes it easy to visualize progress, coordinate care, and schedule key events. From intake to follow-ups, the Patient Management Template simplifies staff collaboration and improves care continuity.
✨ Ideal For: Healthcare teams managing multiple patient touchpoints like intake, treatment plans, and follow-ups.
7. Patient List Template
And it all starts with having the right tools—like a well-structured patient list. The Patient List Template offers a smart way to consolidate and manage patient data so your team can work efficiently and focus on care delivery.
With features like searchable filters, custom fields, and multiple viewing options, this template turns a simple list into powerful patient management software. Everything, from medical history to contact details, is stored in one secure location, making updates and access effortless.
✨ Ideal For: Clinical staff maintaining large volumes of patient data, histories, and records in a single dashboard.
8. Nursing Note Template by Template.Net
The Nursing Note Template by Template.Net offers a no-frills, professionally formatted space to record essential patient information, interventions, and outcomes.
Whether documenting a new symptom or tracking progress post-intervention, this template guides you through each key section: patient report, vital signs, assessment, interventions, and plan.
✨ Ideal For: Staff nurses who need a simple, printable form to document vitals, assessments, and interventions.
9. Case Note for Nursing Template by Template.Net
Detailed, comprehensive, and clinically sound—that’s what the Case Note for Nursing Template by Template.Net brings to the table.
This template is ideal for nurses who must document complex patient cases involving multiple diagnoses, medications, and care interventions. The Case Note for Nursing Template supports continuity and quality of care from admission to home with structured sections for assessments, interventions, and care outcomes.
✨ Ideal For: Long-term or complex care nurses document ongoing progress, medications, and multidisciplinary input.
10. Nursing Concept Note Layout Template by Template.Net
It may not be common knowledge, but nurses also engage in nursing research, policy planning, or program development. The Nursing Concept Note Layout Template by Template.Net can be your foundation for those purposes.
This template is meticulously designed to help nurses and educators articulate problems, propose solutions, and justify interventions with evidence—all in a professional, organized format.
The Nursing Concept Note Layout Template is helpful for those submitting proposals to institutions, grant funders, or academic panels.
✨ Ideal For: Nurse educators and researchers planning studies, programs, or policy proposals in academic settings.
11. Nursing Progress Note Template by Template.Net
Clarity, structure, and patient-centered care—come together in the Nursing Progress Note Template by Template.Net. With a defined objective and plan section, this template enables quick decision-making and supports continuity of care.
This template also serves as a communication bridge between nurses and other healthcare providers by documenting patient updates in a clear, professional tone.
✨ Ideal For: Nurses documenting day-to-day patient progress with a focus on clarity and communication.
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12. Nursing Soap Note Template by Template.Net
Patient encounters are usually difficult to write down because they can be nuanced. So, for nurses who need a precise and systematic way to document patient encounters, the Nursing SOAP Note Template by Template.Net delivers a tried-and-true format.
This template follows the classic subjective, objective, assessment, and plan (SOAP) structure, which seamlessly helps arrange patient information.
This template by template.Net is particularly effective for tracking ongoing symptoms like dizziness or managing chronic conditions such as hypertension and diabetes.
✨ Ideal For: Nurses who need a structured way to document symptoms, assessments, and care plans—especially for recurring visits.
13. Nursing Handover Note Template by Template.Net
A smooth shift change can make all the difference in patient safety and care continuity—and that’s where the Nursing Handover Note Template by Template.Net shines.
Designed with structure and clarity in mind, this template helps nurses relay essential patient updates in a clean, comprehensive format. Everything is organized to facilitate quick and comprehensive communication, from vital signs and medications to lab results and pending tasks.
This template also highlights safety flags like fall risks and allergies, which are useful for busy shifts and high-stakes environments.
✨ Ideal For: Nurses working in high-acuity units needing clear, concise updates between shifts.
14. Sample Discharge Note from Nursing Home Template by Template.Net
Contrary to popular belief, discharge planning is more than just a formality. The Sample Discharge Note from Nursing Home Template by Template.Net clarifies and documents the process well.
This template outlines key components like treatment summaries, current health status, and post-discharge care plans. With thoughtful recommendations for follow-up care and support services, this nursing notes template promotes continuity and minimizes the risk of readmission.
✨ Ideal For: Long-term care staff preparing residents and family for discharge and coordinating follow-up care.
15. Nursing Home Skilled Notes Template by Template.Net
The Nursing Home Skilled Notes Template by Template.Net is a comprehensive and structured tool for capturing a picture of a resident’s condition.
This template thoroughly addresses all clinical aspects, from patient complaints and comprehensive physical assessments to wound care updates. It is helpful for both monitoring subtle changes and planning long-term strategies.
✨ Ideal For: Skilled nursing facility teams capturing detailed care notes, including wound care and mobility updates.
16. Nursing School Concept Note Template by Template.Net
Nursing schools are practically society’s foundation for a high-quality healthcare promise. However, to launch a nursing school, one needs more than just passion.
The Nursing School Concept Note Template by Template.Net lays a clear foundation for anyone planning to establish a top-tier nursing education program. This template ensures nothing is overlooked, from curriculum design and target audiences to partnerships, simulation labs, and phased implementation.
✨ Ideal For: Healthcare entrepreneurs or academic leaders drafting plans for new nursing education programs.
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17. SBAR Nursing Notes Template by Template.Net
When communication needs to be sharp, clear, and quick, the SBAR Nursing Notes Template from Template.Net has your back.
Built around the trusted SBAR framework—situation, background, assessment, and recommendation (SBAR)—this template simplifies critical information exchange, especially during shift changes or emergencies.
This template prompts nurses to document issues precisely, provide essential context, and recommend actionable next steps.
✨ Ideal For: Nurses in critical care or fast-paced environments, who need a quick and standardized communication method.
18. Nursing Notes Templates by Text Expander
Rather than relying on manual input or generic EHR templates, the Nursing Notes Templates by TextExpander lets nurses create personalized, time-saving snippets that auto-populate structured documentation formats like SOAP or DAR notes.
The true power of this tool is that it adapts to your workflow. This template ensures that every note, from admission assessments to discharge notes, is timely, compliant, and complete.
✨ Ideal For: Tech-savvy nurses or admin teams wanting to speed up note-taking with custom shortcuts and templates.
19. Nursing School Notes Template by Notion
The demands of nursing school can be overwhelming, and managing your notes alone can seem like a full-time job. That’s where Notion’s Nursing School Notes Template shines.
This digital command center was created especially for students who balance lectures, clinics, tests, and everything else in between. This template includes thoughtful tools, such as an end-of-semester countdown, a motivating affirmation space, and a study playlist to keep your brain in gear.
The system’s heart is a robust note database where you can sort by subject, date, exam, or topic—and even attach files or study materials.
✨ Ideal For: Nursing students manage course notes, exam prep, and study schedules in one digital hub.
20. Nurse Note Template by Carepatron
Carepatron’s Nurse Note Template is a welcome relief if you have ever felt overwhelmed by handwritten nursing notes and disorganized records.
Designed for busy nurses, this template provides a structured, digital-friendly format for capturing everything from vital signs to patient progress while staying compliant. This template walks you through the note-taking methods: documenting patient complaints and history to recording interventions and observations.
The Nurse Note template is also optimized for real-time charting and includes prompts for managing daily care, coordinating handovers, or preparing for audits.
✨ Ideal For: Nurses and clinics looking for real-time, digital-first note-taking that’s easy to update and audit-ready.
Give Your Nursing Notes an Upgrade with
SYZYGY’s Senior System Administrator, Philip Storry, shared how his team uses to keep chaos at bay:
Custom templates, smart automations, real-time collaboration, email + EHR integrations, and flexible fields that work the way nurses do. That’s the promise.
Make nursing documentation the most effortless part of your shift by signing up on !
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