Guidance – Time Input and Display
Introduction
The Design Guidance – Time Display document
provides you with guidance and recommendations for implementing and displaying time
in clinical applications. It enables unambiguous time display, while enhancing patient
safety and clinical application usability, by:
- Eliminating ambiguity at noon and midnight
- Distinguishing between the last minute of the day and the first minute of the next
day
- Representing clearly the individual elements of the time
- Displaying a period of time
- Displaying duration
- Displaying the clock using 24-hour notation unless otherwise stated
- Removing the confusion between AM and PM
The Design Guidance – Date and Time Input document provides you with guidance and
recommendations for entering time information in clinical applications.
The accurate entry of time is a fundamental function within clinical applications,
and, in many cases, has safety implications for patients within clinical and administrative
processes. The guidance given enables unambiguous time entry, while enhancing patient
safety and clinical application usability by:
- Providing a clear mechanism for guiding the user towards entry of an accurate value,
therefore reducing human error
- Providing efficient input controls for the user to enter values in a fast and easy
manner
In August 2008, the documents Design Guidance – Time Display and Design Guidance – Date and
Time Input were updated. The controls corresponding to this guidance have not been changed. The controls
published in January 2008 fully comply with this guidance.
Summary of Guidance
The Time Display guidance focuses on displaying the time element and includes recommendations
for:
- Displaying exact and fuzzy time
- Displaying the time period
- Displaying the time duration
- Incorporating the date and time
The Time Input guidance focuses on time input and includes recommendations for:
- Entering unknown, exact, fuzzy, or arithmetic shortcut values using free text
- Entering exact and fuzzy values using a ‘spin’ control
- Entering the time elements independently
- Entering time periods
- Disambiguating free text time entries
- Displaying instructional text for the different types of time entry
- Labeling the time entry controls
- Combining date and time controls