EHR workload continues to grow for primary care physicians

The study evaluated recent trends in primary care physicians’ (PCPs) electronic health record (EHR) workload

2024-01-22

(Press-News.org) The study evaluated recent trends in primary care physicians’ (PCPs) electronic health record (EHR) workload. Prior to and early in the COVID-19 pandemic, PCPs spent more time in the EHR and received more messages than physicians in other specialties, but it is unclear if the pandemic further accelerated the growth of PCPs’ EHR workload. Researchers observed EHR usage of 141 academic PCPs practicing family medicine, internal medicine, and general pediatrics within the University of Wisconsin-Madison health system, which cares for nearly 300,000 primary care patients per year. This longitudinal study compared the amount of time participating PCPs spent on EHR tasks during four periods across four years: May 2019–February 2020; June 2020–March 2021; May 2021–March 2022; and April 2022–March 2023. EHR time and inbox message volume were calculated for each PCP and normalized per 8 hours of scheduled clinic appointments. The volume of messages PCPs received increased significantly in May 2019–February 2020 and April 2022–March 2023 for three message types, including MyChart messages (+5.4 messages, 55.5%), prescription refills (+2.3 messages, 19.5%), and eConsults (+0.12 messages, 61.0%), while the volume of patient calls (–2.8 messages, –10.5%) and results messages (–0.3 messages, –2.7%) both decreased. PCPs spent nearly 30 minutes more (7.8%) on EHR tasks per 8 hours of scheduled clinic appointments between the pre-pandemic period (May 2019–February 2020) and the final year of the study (April 2022–March 2023). Time spent on EHR tasks outside of scheduled hours also increased by 6.4 minutes (8.2%) on days with scheduled appointments and 13.6 minutes (19.9%) on days without scheduled appointments.

What We Know: For primary care physicians, completing EHR tasks and responding to patients’ inbox messages take up a significant amount of time, often including working after-hours. Not only do such demands impinge on their clinical and personal time, they also put PCPs at risk of burnout and can factor into their decision to cut back on time in clinic or leave the profession.

What This Study Adds: PCPs’ time in the EHR continues to grow. Although PCPs’ inbox time may be stabilizing, it is still substantially higher than pre-pandemic levels. It is imperative that health systems develop strategies to change the EHR workload trajectory to minimize PCPs’ occupational stress and mitigate unnecessary reductions in effective physician workforce resulting from the increased EHR burden.

More Tethered to the EHR: EHR Workload Trends Among Academic Primary Care Physicians, 2019–2023

Brian G. Arndt, MD, et al.

Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI

PRE-EMBARGO LINK (Link expires at 5 p.m. EDT Jan. 22, 2024)

PERMANENT LINK

END

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Clear and open communication with care teams could improve the birthing experience for Black people

2024-01-22

This study explored the perspectives of Black birthing people on how better communication with care teams may have improved their birth experiences. Researchers interviewed 30 non-Hispanic Black, English-language–proficient, low-income birthing people in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, area, all of whom were insured by Medicaid. All gave birth to preterm infants before 34 weeks gestation, or before 36 weeks gestation to birthing people with a modifiable risk factor such as high blood pressure. The interviews uncovered three main themes regarding the quality of communication with their care teams and the effect on their experiences: ...

A simple three-question screening tool may help to identify precarious employment among primary care patients

2024-01-22

Precarious employment, defined by temporary contracts, unstable employment, or job insecurity, is increasingly common and is associated with inconsistent access to health insurance, lower incomes, and greater exposure to physical hazards and psychological stress. A team of researchers in Toronto, Canada, created and tested a new three-question screening tool to help primary care clinics identify these patients. The screener included the following three questions: 1) non-standard employment (Are you currently employed in a casual, short-term, or temporary position?); 2) violations of occupational health ...

Primary care physicians and urologists work together to provide optimal care for men with low-risk prostate cancer

2024-01-22

This study considers the perspectives of primary care physicians (PCPs) and urologists on what facilitates and what creates barriers to active surveillance (AS) care for men with low-risk prostate cancer. Researchers conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 19 PCPs (9 female, 4 in community practices, 15 in academic medical centers) and 15 urologists (3 female, 5 in private practice, 3 in academic medical centers) between June 2020 and March 2021. Their goal was to assess interviewees’ knowledge of AS, what factors they felt influence adherence to follow-up ...

Patients who obtained telemedicine medication abortions (TeleMAB) through primary care have positive feelings about their experience

2024-01-22

This study explores patients’ experiences and perspectives on obtaining telemedicine medication abortions (TeleMAB) through their primary care health system. Researchers conducted in-depth phone interviews with 14 English, Spanish, and/or Portuguese-speaking patients, ranging in age from 26 to 42, who received a TeleMAB between July 2020 and December 2021 from a large primary care safety-net community health system in Massachusetts. Thirteen of the interviewees provided demographic information. All 13 identified as female, and 10 had children ...

An update on a 2015 report shows that gabapentinoid usage in the U.S. has continued to climb

2024-01-22

Gabapentinoids are commonly prescribed for an array of off-label conditions, including management of chronic pain. Updating their 2015 report on gabapentinoid usage in the U.S., researchers used the 2002–2021 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) to investigate the proportion of the adult population using gabapentinoids, medications, and diagnoses associated with users, and the likelihood of starting, stopping, or continuing gabapentinoids. They found that gabapentinoid use has increased from 4.0% in 2015 to 4.7% in 2021. ...

The serious risks and high costs of monoclonal antibodies may outweigh the benefits for patients with Alzheimer dementia

2024-01-22

Researchers performed a meta-analysis of randomized trial studies that compared the use of amyloid-reducing monoclonal antibodies (MABs) in patients with Alzheimer dementia at a dose consistent with that used in Phase 3 or FDA approval trials with the use of a placebo. Their purpose was to evaluate clinically meaningful benefits and harms of MABs to these patients. For inclusion in this meta-analysis, the RCT studies had to include adult participants with cognitive impairment or Alzheimer disease of any severity and report at least one clinically relevant benefit or harm to participants after at least one year. The research team identified 19 such publications that evaluated ...

Annals of Family Medicine January/February 2024 Tip Sheet

2024-01-22

EHR Workload Continues to Grow for Primary Care Physicians The study evaluated recent trends in primary care physicians’ (PCPs) electronic health record (EHR) workload. Prior to and early in the COVID-19 pandemic, PCPs spent more time in the EHR and received more messages than physicians in other specialties, but it is unclear if the pandemic further accelerated the growth of PCPs’ EHR workload. Researchers observed EHR usage of 141 academic PCPs practicing family medicine, internal medicine, and general pediatrics within the University of Wisconsin-Madison health system, which ...

A quality improvement intervention links high-risk prenatal patients at safety-net health centers with primary care

2024-01-22

Researchers assessed the development and implementation of a quality improvement learning collaborative’s (QILC) intervention to link high-risk prenatal patients with primary care. The aims of the study were twofold: to identify any quantitative impact of the intervention on postpartum and primary care utilization for high-risk prenatal patients and to explore the Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) participants’ experiences of working with a QI collaborative. Using information from patients’ charts and/or ...

A new drug candidate can shrink kidney cysts

2024-01-22

Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), the most common form of polycystic kidney disease, can lead to kidney enlargement and eventual loss of function. The disease affects more than 12 million people worldwide, and many patients end up needing dialysis or a kidney transplant by the time they reach their 60s. Researchers at MIT and Yale University School of Medicine have now found that a compound originally developed as a potential cancer treatment holds promise for treating ADPKD. The drug works by exploiting kidney cyst cells’ vulnerability to oxidative stress — a state ...

Bone marrow adipocytes provide early sign of progression from MGUS to multiple myeloma

2024-01-22

A new research perspective was published in Oncotarget's Volume 15 on January 16, 2024, entitled, “Bone marrow adipocytes provide early sign for progression from MGUS to multiple myeloma.” Multiple Myeloma (MM) is the second most common hematological malignancy and is characterized by clonal expansion of malignant plasma cells in the bone marrow. In spite of recent advances in the field of MM, the disease has remained incurable. MM is preceded by a premalignant state known as monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS), with a risk of progression to MM of 1% per year. Establishing a scalable approach that refines ...

Wiley advances Knowitall Solutions with new trendfinder application for user-friendly chemometric analysis and additional enhancements to analytical workflows

EHR workload continues to grow for primary care physicians

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: