DOCUMENTS AND RECORDS
DEFINITIONS
Documents are formatted information that can be accessed and used by a
person. They have a beginning and an end and may be represented through
alphanumeric text, vector data, a digital map, spreadsheets and databases,
moving images or audio data. Regardless of format, documents serve the purpose
of conveying information.
Records are document that have been set aside as evidence and protected
from alteration or change. The critical factor is how “set aside” is
defined. In paper “being set aside” means placing a document into a filling
system from which it can be retrieved. With digital technologies, the same
result is achieved by transferring an electric document from an operational
environment into a record keeping system.
ELEMENTS OF RECORDS
Content is the information in a record, the idea or concept, the facts about an
event, a person, an organization or other similar act that are recorded to
document the transaction itself.
Structure refers to the physical and logical attributes of records.
Physical attributes of a record include such things as the size and style of
type, line spacing, page margins and the agency logo. Logical attributes consist
of the logical arrangements of the record. For example, the structure of a
memorandum would include a header (the name of the sender, the date, the subject
of the memo and the recipient of the memo), a body (the actual content in one or
more paragraphs) and the authentication (Signature).
Context explains the “why” of the record. A single record derives its trustworthiness and usefulness from its association with other records that collectively tell the story of an event or activity.
DOCUMENTATION IN OT/PT
A written/printed paper furnishing information or evidence or a legal official
paper furnishing details of records.