What You Should Know: 

– Truveta, a data company dedicated to “Saving Lives with Data,” announced today the launch of the most comprehensive mother-child electronic health record (EHR) dataset ever assembled. 

– Truveta’s dataset surpasses traditional claims-based datasets, which often lack clinical details and have reporting delays. By offering comprehensive, longitudinal EHR data, Truveta empowers researchers to conduct more rigorous and impactful studies, ultimately improving the lives of mothers and children.

Revolutionizing Research on Mothers and Children

Truveta’s dataset offers researchers a unique opportunity to study the complexities of maternal and pediatric health. Key areas of investigation include:

• Understanding the Link Between Maternal and Neonatal Health: Researchers can explore how maternal health impacts birth outcomes, long-term child development (including neurodevelopment), and childhood conditions up to age 5.
• Post-Market Drug Safety Monitoring: Truveta’s data can be used to evaluate the safety of medications and vaccines taken by mothers during pregnancy. This allows researchers to identify potential risks associated with specific medications and guide future clinical decisions.
• Studying Category C Medications: Category C medications have potential risks for fetuses, but limited research exists on their effects in humans. Truveta’s data can help determine the safety and efficacy of these medications for pregnant women.
• Investigating Pediatric Conditions: Researchers can analyze connections between maternal factors (demographics, health history, pregnancy outcomes) and the development of childhood conditions like asthma and eczema.

Unparalleled Data Depth and Security

Truveta’s mother-child dataset offers several key advantages:

• Comprehensiveness and Timeliness: Truveta leverages data from over 30 healthcare systems, providing a complete picture of patient journeys. This includes clinician notes, medical images, claims data, social determinants of health (SDOH) indicators, and mortality data – all updated daily.
• Longitudinal Patient Data: With access to over five years of longitudinal data on over 1 million mothers and their children, Truveta offers researchers a rich resource for in-depth analysis.
• Accuracy and Completeness: Truveta’s data accurately links mothers with their children, preserving crucial details like demographics, medical history, and pregnancy outcomes. Additionally, comprehensive child data is available, including delivery details, diagnoses, procedures, and immunizations up to age 5.
• Unmatched Privacy and Security: Truveta prioritizes data privacy and security. Their de-identification process adheres to the strictest HIPAA regulations, and they employ robust security protocols to protect patient information.

 “Perinatal women and their children have long been excluded from clinical trials and other retrospective data sources, and we can’t understand the full effects of medications, vaccines, and diseases on their connected health outcomes,” said Terry Myerson, CEO and co-founder of Truveta. “Truveta now offers the largest mother-child EHR dataset, empowering researchers to advance care for all mothers and children with complete, timely, and representative data.”

What You Should Know: 

– Particle Health, a healthcare data platform company, is addressing concerns about a reported data access disruption with electronic health record (EHR) giant Epic. 

– Particle Health emphasizes that the vast majority of its customers continue to receive data from Epic uninterrupted, despite recent announcements suggesting otherwise.

The Dispute and Its Impact

However, Particle Health acknowledges a dispute with Epic that began in March 2024. While the nature of the dispute is unclear, it appears to involve three specific Particle Health customers. Unfortunately, Epic’s response has impacted a larger group of unrelated Particle Health customers, hindering their ability to access patient data. These customers haven’t been accused of any wrongdoing.

Particle Health highlights the negative impact this has had on patient care, as some treatments rely on this data access.

Efforts to Restore Connections

Particle Health has been actively pushing Epic to restore connections for all affected customers. They report some success, with connections already re-established for several customers. Efforts are ongoing to restore service for the remaining impacted parties.

Transparency and Adherence to Standards

Particle Health emphasizes its role in the Carequality interoperability network, a system facilitating data exchange in healthcare. They maintain a positive and constructive dialogue with Carequality and assure they consistently adhere to all network guidelines.

Uncertainties Remain

While Particle Health clarifies the situation, the specific details of the dispute with Epic remain unclear. It’s also uncertain how long it will take to restore connections for all affected customers.

“We will address our dispute with Epic through procedural channels,” said Jason Prestinario, CEO of Particle Health. “The remaining customers impacted by the failure to respond are not involved in this dispute and Epic has not even suggested that they have done anything wrong. We sincerely hope that Epic’s failure to respond to queries of these customers was unintentional and will be resolved shortly. We expect that Carequality will resolve the dispute in Particle Health’s favor. Our priority has and will remain enabling safe and effective access to medical records to facilitate better patient care. Any suggestion otherwise indicates a gross misunderstanding of our company values and the mission of Particle Health,” Prestinario emphasized. 

What You Should Know: 

– Press Ganey, a provider of healthcare experience measurement and data analysis, announced a collaboration with Epic to integrate nurse-sensitive indicators (NSIs) and outcomes directly into Press Ganey’s National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators (NDNQI). 

– The strategic integration partnership will significantly improve efficiency for nursing leaders and ultimately enhance patient care.

What is the NDNQI?

The NDNQI is a comprehensive database used by over 2,000 healthcare organizations. It collects and analyzes nursing data, allowing nurse leaders to:

• Benchmark Performance: Compare their performance against over 53,000 units and clinical settings nationwide.
• Assess Quality: Evaluate performance on over 600 measures, including 250+ nursing-sensitive indicators like falls, pressure injuries, and hospital-acquired infections.

Benefits of the Integration

The integration streamlines NSI reporting by automating data transfer from Epic to the NDNQI. This will:

• Save Time: Nursing leaders can spend less time on manual reporting and more time focusing on quality improvement initiatives.
• Support Nursing Excellence: Automated reporting empowers nurse leaders to make data-driven decisions that elevate nursing care.
• Accelerate Patient Care Improvements: Faster access to quality data allows for quicker identification of areas for improvement, ultimately leading to better patient outcomes.

Focus on Key Safety Indicators

The initial integration will focus on five key nursing-sensitive indicators:

• CAUTI (Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infections)
• CLABSI (Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infections)
• Falls (Inpatient and Outpatient)
• Pressure Injuries

This collaboration builds upon Press Ganey’s existing partnership with Epic through the “PX Connect Suite.” This suite integrates patient experience data with electronic health records, enabling healthcare providers to deliver personalized care and ensure patient safety.

Future Developments

This collaboration marks a significant step towards a more comprehensive data ecosystem in healthcare. Press Ganey and Epic will continue working together to:

• Connect More Data Points: Integrate additional process and quality measures from Epic into the NDNQI.
• Actionable Insights: Provide healthcare providers with even more robust data and insights to drive continuous improvement in patient care.
• Client Input: Gather ongoing feedback from healthcare providers to guide future developments in the integration process.

By streamlining data collection and analysis, this collaboration between Press Ganey and Epic empowers nurses and healthcare leaders to focus on what matters most: delivering exceptional patient care.

What You Should Know:

– Greenway Health, a leading provider of electronic health record (EHR) solutions, and DrFirst, a health technology pioneer, have announced a strategic integration partnership focused on improving medication adherence.

– The integration aims to leverage automation technology to address a critical issue in healthcare: patients not picking up or following through with prescribed medications.

Seamless Integration for Improved Patient Outcomes

The partnership integrates DrFirst’s RxInform technology directly into Greenway’s Intergy EHR platform. This seamless integration benefits both clinicians and patients:

– Clinicians: Physicians can utilize RxInform within their existing workflow to improve patient care.

– Patients: Upon receiving a new prescription, patients are automatically notified with pharmacy information, educational materials, cost-saving options, and the ability to schedule medication pick-up reminders.

DrFirst’s RxInform solution boasts a high satisfaction rate of 95%, with over 20 million positive patient ratings over the past six years. This positive feedback reflects the improved connections between practitioners and patients, ultimately leading to better health outcomes.

“It’s easy for patients to forget to pick up prescriptions or have questions about the medications they were prescribed at their last office visit,” said G. Cameron Deemer, CEO of DrFirst. “Our new partnership with Greenway Health will help thousands of providers close gaps in medication adherence and empower millions of patients with reminders, educational information, and cost-saving resources that put them in control of their care.”

What You Should Know:

• Health Information Management Systems (HiMS) unveiled AxiomEHR, an all-new, AI-powered electronic health record (EHR) solution with a unique architecture that supports data-based decision-making, flexible care coordination, and overall resilience to drive quality-based care.
• Tailored specifically for behavioral and integrated health care providers, AxiomEHR features AI-driven automation, which streamlines inefficient workflows and drastically reduces the screen time that conventional systems demand. Organizational data, shared and surfaced in a new highly customizable user interface, informs every health care decision. In pilot tests, AxiomEHR saved clinicians two hours a day on average compared to other solutions.

Intelligent Automation Gives Providers More Time with Patients

AxiomEHR streamlines workflows from data capture to analysis, starting with the most time-consuming task: clinicians’ notes. By leveraging advanced natural language processing, the software transcribes and organizes clinicians’ discussions with consenting patients, extracting key information and converting spoken words into structured data.

Utilizing office-visit dialogues, AxiomEHR automatically fills in numerous critical data fields, including patient ailments, history of present illness (HPI), diagnoses, treatment options, and social determinants of health. It also gauges patient sentiment during visits and, if applicable, generates comprehensive profiles of bodily systems discussed.

“ChangePoint Integrated Health has developed a true collaborative partnership with HiMS over the years, and the value they bring to our operations is unparalleled,” said Jeff Oakes, CEO, ChangePoint Integrated Health. “AxiomEHR stands out among other EHRs, leading the charge in functionality and quality-based care. The future of health care includes AI, and AxiomEHR is on the forefront of innovation and process improvement.”

Moreover, the system handles service plans, appointment scheduling, and lab test arrangements. To enhance accuracy and relevance, its AI is trained on the provider’s data and continually learns from it.

AxiomEHR’s AI-powered automation extends to back-office tasks like revenue cycle management, addressing issues such as under-coding, contract management, and missed claims appeal opportunities. In trials, billing codes were 23% more accurate and 33% more comprehensive than those generated by the leading market solution.

Recognizing the uniqueness of each organization and role, AxiomEHR offers full configurability and customization. Users, whether clinicians, nurses, billing clerks, or social workers, can tailor the platform to their responsibilities and preferences, organizing functions, features, and apps intuitively and even controlling it via voice commands.

These capabilities meet contemporary healthcare demands for reduced screen time, enhanced intelligence, and increased automation. Users can access any feature with a single click through a user-friendly dashboard designed to optimize workflow navigation, drawing inspiration from gaming principles for an engaging interface.

For senior executives, AxiomEHR revolutionizes data insights. Traditional challenges in extracting meaningful information from EHR systems are overcome with the integration of a ChatGPT-style chatbot, capable of providing straightforward answers to queries about organizational data, such as diagnosis prevalence, progress-note completion rates, claim volumes, or patient cancellation probabilities.

What You Should Know:

– MEDITECH, a provider of Electronic Health Records (EHR) systems, is taking a significant step towards reducing clinician documentation burden by integrating ambient listening technology into its Expanse EHR platform.

– The AI-powered solution aims to streamline workflows and free up valuable time for healthcare professionals.

Reducing Documentation Burden with Ambient Listening

The AI solution integrates with existing voice assistant vendors, allowing clinicians to leverage ambient listening during patient encounters. Large language models and natural language processing automatically generate draft clinical visit notes based on the conversation between clinician and patient. Clinicians retain control, with the ability to review, edit, and approve the notes using voice, typing, or macros before finalizing them within the Expanse EHR.

Vendor-Agnostic Approach for Flexibility

MEDITECH’s open system allows healthcare facilities to choose their preferred ambient listening vendor, providing flexibility and future-proofing. Clinicians can access the ambient listening solution through various methods, including mobile devices, desktops, and browser extensions.

Early Adopters Show Promise

St. Mary’s Healthcare (Amsterdam, NY) and Decatur County Memorial Hospital (Greensburg, IN) are among the first facilities to implement ambient listening with MEDITECH. These early adopters demonstrate the potential of this technology to improve workflow efficiency in diverse healthcare settings.

Open Platform Enables Future Expansion

The company plans to further expand integration points with third-party vendors through FHIR APIs, allowing access to data via the Expanse Now mobile app and web-based physician solutions. Integrations with Augmedix and Nuance DAX™ Copilot are currently under development. Future plans include extending this technology to nurses and home care staff, further alleviating documentation burden across the healthcare spectrum.

What You Should Know:

– Emory Healthcare is making waves in the healthcare industry by becoming the first health system in the US to deploy Epic’s EHR on a large scale using MacBook Air via a new native Epic Hyperspace app.

– This strategic initiative marks the first time Epic will be available to clinicians on the Mac App Store beginning March 7. The deployment offers clinicians the ability to access patient health information directly through a Mac for the first time.

Responding to Clinician Needs, Driving Savings, Enhanced User Experience

Emory’s initiative empowers clinicians to choose the computer that best suits their needs by offering them a choice and direct access to Epic on Mac.  MacBook Air offers an ideal solution with its built-in security features, energy-efficient performance, and extended battery life – perfect for demanding clinical environments.

The decision to adopt Mac technology stems from Emory’s commitment to address clinician preferences and optimize efficiency.  Equipping thousands of clinicians with MacBook Air throughout 2024 complements the iPhones and iPads already used extensively within the organization.  Emory’s analysis revealed substantial cost savings associated with this switch, projecting a yearly savings of $300 per device due to reduced software licensing and support fees.

This landmark integration eliminates the need for additional application delivery layers, such as virtual desktops, for accessing Epic on Mac.  Emory’s Digital team thoroughly validated this solution within their Apple Digital Innovation and Testing Lab, paving the way for a seamless transition.

“The MacBook Air is a powerhouse for all kinds of work — consumers and employees alike love its iconic thin and light, portable design, incredible display and all-day battery life,” says Susan Prescott, Apple’s vice president of enterprise marketing and worldwide developer relations. “We’re thrilled to see the all-new Epic app come to the Mac App Store for the first time, which enables Emory Healthcare to provide the 15-inch MacBook Air to thousands of their clinicians — and for hospitals globally to select Mac as their device of choice when caring for patients.”

Sustainability Aligned with Innovation

Beyond cost savings and user experience, Emory’s selection of Apple products aligns with their commitment to sustainability.  Apple products incorporate recycled and renewable materials and boast a 50% reduction in energy consumption, bringing Emory closer to achieving the sustainability goals outlined by The Joint Commission.

“In an era where technology is helping shape the future of health care and digital transformation, our deployment of Epic on MacBook Air is more than just a technical achievement; it’s a statement,” says Scott Smiser, chief technology officer for Emory Healthcare. “It underscores our dedication to pushing the boundaries of what’s possible and reaffirms our role as catalysts for positive change in the industry.”

What You Should Know:

– Genesys®, a provider of cloud-based experience orchestration solutions powered by AI, has announced a strategic integration with Epic to enhance patient communication and care experiences. 

– Through Epic’s Workshop program, the companies will integrate the Genesys Cloud™ platform with Epic’s Cheers customer relationship management (CRM) suite. This integration aims to create a more unified and seamless experience for both patients and healthcare providers.

The Need for Unified Communication in Healthcare

Patients today expect secure, effortless, and empathetic interactions with their healthcare providers across all communication channels. Genesys Cloud empowers Epic users by providing access to crucial information gleaned from patient interactions. This comprehensive view fosters higher quality patient journeys, leading to improved outcomes, greater patient satisfaction, and stronger adherence to care plans.

Genesys Cloud/Epic Integration Benefits

Emerging technologies like generative AI are rapidly transforming the healthcare landscape.  By integrating Genesys Cloud with Epic, healthcare organizations can seamlessly connect patient engagement data with critical clinical data across various systems and departments. This fosters a more consistent and connected experience for patients interacting with their care teams.

Proven Success and Future Potential

Over 600 healthcare organizations currently leverage Genesys Cloud, generating over 130 million patient, member, and customer interactions monthly.  Additionally, six of the top ten US health systems rely on Genesys to enhance the patient experience.  Existing deployments of the Genesys Cloud and Epic integration have already yielded positive results in areas like access, revenue cycle automation, and AI-powered intent identification and validation.  Genesys’ participation in Epic’s Workshop program promises further advancements in the communication experience.

“In an ever-evolving healthcare landscape, the ability to meet the dynamic needs of patients with empathy is paramount,” said Tara Mahoney, vice president of the global healthcare practice at Genesys. “The Genesys Cloud integration with Epic provides a flexible and scalable communication solution, allowing healthcare providers to stay ahead of the curve, respond effectively to changing patient preferences and create a more personalized care experience.”

What You Should Know:

– Highmark Health announced a collaboration with Epic and Google Cloud to revolutionize payer-provider collaboration and personalize the patient experience.

– The strategic integration leverages Epic’s Payer Platform and Google Cloud’s data analytics capabilities to empower both health insurers and healthcare providers.

Breaking Down Communication Barriers

Highmark Health leverages Epic’s Payer Platform, which fosters collaboration between payers and providers.  By connecting to Google Cloud’s data analytics tools (BigQuery and Healthcare Data Engine), valuable insights can now be shared effectively:

– Actionable Insights for Patients: Highmark members will receive personalized guidance on their healthcare journeys through integrated digital channels like the My Highmark member portal.

– Enhanced Clinician View: Clinicians using Epic will gain a more comprehensive picture of their patients’ health through payer-derived insights. This includes medical history, coverage details, and potential care gaps.

– Reduced Out-of-Pocket Costs: Accurate insurance information empowers providers to select high-quality, covered services, minimizing surprise billing for patients.

Streamlining Administrative Tasks

Automated information exchange through Epic’s platform facilitates smoother workflows:

– Faster Care Authorizations: Automated processes expedite service approvals, reducing wait times for patients.

– Improved Care Management: Identification of care gaps allows for proactive intervention, potentially leading to better health outcomes.

– Efficient Communication: Automated notifications streamline communication between health systems and Highmark regarding patient events (e.g., emergency room visits, admissions, discharges). This eliminates time-consuming methods like phone calls and faxes.

“Epic’s Payer Platform is a powerful resource that enables payers and providers to work more effectively together. Pairing that resource with Google Cloud’s technology gives Highmark Health the ability to change the paradigm,” said Tony Farah, MD, executive vice president, chief medical and clinical transformation officer, Highmark Health. “It’s another step forward in achieving better experiences for both consumers and clinicians, while improving health outcomes and lowering cost of care.”

What You Should Know:

– iRhythm Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: IRTC), a leader in digital healthcare solutions for cardiac arrhythmias, today announced a collaboration with Epic to simplify access to its Zio long-term cardiac monitoring services for healthcare providers using Epic’s electronic health record (EHR) platform.

– The partnership between iRhythm and Epic is expected to significantly simplify access to Zio services, potentially impacting millions of patients and improving the efficiency of cardiac arrhythmia detection and management.

Enhanced Efficiency for Clinicians

This partnership leverages Epic’s Aura platform, a suite specifically designed for managing specialty diagnostics and devices. Through Aura, iRhythm estimates that integrating Zio services into existing Epic systems can be achieved 75% faster than traditional methods.

Integration Benefits for Healthcare Organizations

– Improved workflow: Streamlined integration reduces administrative burdens for clinicians.

– Cost savings: Healthcare systems can potentially save hundreds of thousands of hours and millions of dollars in staff time previously required for integration.

– Increased access: Zio services become readily available to a wider range of healthcare providers using Epic, potentially impacting over 250 million patients in the US.

Building on Existing Success

iRhythm has already surpassed 1.5 million registrations for Zio services through EHR-integrated systems, demonstrating the value of streamlined workflows. This new collaboration with Epic is expected to further expand access and simplify integration for even more healthcare providers.

Availability

iRhythm is partnering with select early adoption customers to integrate Zio services into Aura by Q4 2024. The solution will be available to all existing and new Zio customers starting early 2025.

“Our work with Epic aligns with our goal to optimize clinician workflow efficiencies and provide seamless access to our Zio services. By integrating Zio services into healthcare providers’ EHR platforms, we are not just simplifying operations but empowering our health system customers to devote more time to patient care,” said Quentin Blackford, president and chief executive officer of iRhythm. “We believe this integration facilitates improved patient care, ensuring that our customers and their staff can focus on what truly matters—patient health. We are committed to continuous investment in our systems and services to make healthcare more efficient, secure, and patient-focused.”

What You Should Know:

– MEDITECH, a leader in healthcare information technology solutions, announces the release of its redesigned Expanse Pathology solution. This innovative tool, part of the company’s comprehensive     

– Expanse EHR, empowers pathologists with cutting-edge technology to tackle increasingly complex cases and collaborate seamlessly with other healthcare providers for improved patient care.

Expanse Pathology Key Features

The pathology industry is undergoing a significant shift, with a growing emphasis on specialized imaging, advanced integrated reporting, and genetic data integration. Expanse Pathology meets these demands head-on, providing pathologists with:

– Streamlined Workflow: A new, intuitive, and customizable interface reduces cognitive burden, allowing pathologists to focus on critical tasks.

– Web-Native Navigation: Designed for seamless integration with existing web-based resources, ensuring efficient information access and analysis.

– Future-Proof Technology: Built to adapt to emerging advancements in the pathology field, keeping laboratories at the forefront of innovation.

Enhanced Clinical Collaboration for Better Outcomes

Expanse Pathology fosters seamless collaboration between pathologists and other healthcare providers:

– Real-Time Sharing: Key findings can be easily shared with clinicians, ensuring everyone involved in the patient’s care has access to critical information.

– Integrated Genomics: Seamless integration with Expanse Genomics pushes essential genetic data to the forefront, aiding diagnosis and treatment decisions.

– Synoptic Reporting: Streamlined staging data flows directly to Expanse Oncology, empowering oncologists and other clinicians with accurate information for informed decision-making.

“As clinicians everywhere face burnout, the ability to leverage user-tailored worklists, capture findings efficiently using the latest technologies, and easily edit and sign out cases will save pathologists valuable time,” said MEDITECH Manager of Clinical Strategy Jennifer Ford.

“Pathologists are such an important part of a patient’s care team,” said Ford. “MEDITECH Expanse Pathology removes silos by providing pathologists with the tools necessary to increase efficiency and easily communicate information across the entire pathology department and beyond — from OB to Oncology — ensuring timely access to the most relevant information.”

What You Should Know:

– A new survey reveals that the healthcare industry is making significant strides towards interoperability, thanks to the adoption of standards-based application programming interfaces (APIs).

– The research, conducted by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), reveals that a majority of digital health companies are using the FHIR standard to integrate with electronic health records (EHRs).

The Rise of FHIR

The Cures Act Final Rule mandated the use of FHIR for certified APIs, promoting data standardization and simplifying connectivity between EHRs and third-party applications. The survey data demonstrates that both EHR vendors and digital health companies are complying with these regulations, paving the way for smoother information exchange.

Most Digital Health Companies Embrace Standards-Based APIs for EHR Integration, But Challenges Remain

Key findings of the survey include:

– 73% of surveyed digital health companies use standards-based APIs, primarily the FHIR standard, to integrate with EHRs.

– Companies connecting with multiple EHRs exhibit higher FHIR adoption (75%) compared to those with single EHR integrations (25%).

– Despite widespread adoption, concerns about high fees, lack of testing data, and limited data elements hinder broader API utilization.

– ONC initiatives like Lantern, Inferno, and the recent HTI-1 rule address barriers and expand data access through standardized APIs.

Looking Ahead

This survey offers valuable insights for stakeholders across the healthcare landscape. Developers, providers, and policymakers can leverage these findings to address remaining challenges and accelerate the realization of seamless electronic health information exchange.

What You Should Know:

– Mile Bluff Medical Center has taken a major step towards reducing clinician burden and improving patient care by implementing MEDITECH’s new AI-powered Expanse search and summarization capabilities powered by Google Health.

– The new functionality leverages natural language processing (NLP) to seamlessly pull information from both structured and unstructured data sources, including scanned documents, faxes, and legacy records. for over 150 users across the health center’s network, including the hospital, outpatient clinics, ambulatory, emergency department, and urgent care.

AI-Powered Search and Summarization

The new capabilities, embedded within Mile Bluff’s Expanse EHR, leverage natural language processing (NLP) to intelligently extract information from both structured and unstructured data sources, including scanned documents, faxes, and legacy data. This comprehensive approach provides a more complete picture of patients and their medical history.

Google Health’s advanced summarization capabilities then synthesize and organize this data, presenting it to clinicians in a clear and concise manner. This allows them to quickly access relevant information, saving valuable time and improving their ability to make informed decisions.

“I used to spend about 15 minutes per patient cleaning up problem lists, especially for new patients or patients transferred to me from other providers,” explained CMO Angela Gatzke-Plamann, MD. “The search and summarization functionality will help me cut this time down significantly.”

Successful Pilot Program Paves the Way for Wider Adoption

Mile Bluff began by implementing the technology in pilot groups over several months, culminating in a full rollout in January 2024. With dedicated support from both MEDITECH and Google Health, the team fostered a strong foundation of enthusiastic champions who readily showcased the solution’s benefits to their colleagues. This proactive approach led to an additional 20 users joining the pilot program, demonstrating the immediate value proposition of the AI-powered tools.

These days, technology plays a vital role in improving the quality of life, impacting various sectors, including healthcare. Electronic Health Records (EHR) have revolutionized the way medical professionals access and manage patient data, leading to streamlined processes, improved patient care, and increased cost-efficiency. However, with the rapid adoption of EHR, several challenges have arisen, including physician burnout associated with EHR systems. In this article, we will explore a comprehensive eight-step strategy to mitigate physician burnout caused by EHR, its potential impact on the healthcare industry, and its implications on society as a whole.

The evolution, significance, and benefits of EHR

The introduction of EHR systems has marked a significant milestone in the way medical professionals manage and share patient information. Before the digital era, healthcare providers relied on paper-based records, which often led to inefficiencies and errors in managing and transferring patient data. With EHR in place, healthcare professionals can now exchange crucial patient data electronically, improving communication, reducing errors, and enhancing the overall quality of care.

Healthcare professionals now have quick access to patients’ medical histories, test results, and medications, enabling them to make informed decisions regarding treatments and medications. They can also collaborate and communicate with their peers and patients efficiently and securely using EHR. There is also evidence of improved patient safety as electronic prescription and allergy tracking features in EHR systems can prevent errors and adverse events. 

Despite these benefits, EHR systems have also introduced challenges and unintended consequences, especially for healthcare providers. Chief among these challenges is physician burnout associated with EHR use.

The dark side of EHR: physician burnout

While EHR systems have undoubtedly brought improvements to various aspects of healthcare, they have also introduced a significant burden on physicians. The ever-increasing workload and stress associated with EHR systems have left many physicians feeling overwhelmed. Can we link this directly to EHR? Yes, studies repeatedly show that physicians identify EHRs as the single most important stressor in patient care, and nearly 75% with burnout symptoms identify it as the cause. 

Burnout is defined as “a psychological syndrome characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and a reduced sense of personal accomplishment.” Numerous reports highlight the challenges posed by the volume of documentation and administrative tasks that physicians are required to handle. 

According to a study, physicians are now tasked not only with entering diagnoses, orders, and visit notes but also with managing additional administrative data that is often perceived to have little clinical value. A related study showed that clinicians felt that most of the EHR clerical tasks completed by them do not require a trained physician.  

Concerningly, a separate study revealed that clinicians may require up to an additional two hours of electronic data entry for every hour of direct patient interaction. Furthermore, in certain instances, clinic schedules are intentionally shortened and appointments are canceled to ensure adequate time.

As an Oracle Health EHR consultant and a huge supporter of the technology, we at MediConfig wish to do all we can to address this challenge, and therefore propose an eight-step strategy to mitigate physician burnout caused by EHR. Our plan aims to help healthcare organizations create a more balanced work environment, ultimately improving the well-being of healthcare professionals.

An Eight-Step Plan to Alleviate EHR-Driven Physician Burnout

1. EHR optimization and efficiency training: Healthcare organizations should invest in comprehensive training programs that cover EHR best practices and time-saving techniques, empowering clinicians to work more efficiently with EHR systems. This will help physicians navigate the complexities of EHR systems with ease and reduce burnout. As an example, the training could include tips for using shortcuts, templates, and voice recognition software.

2. Streamlining documentation requirements: Organisations should evaluate their documentation requirements and eliminate any unnecessary or redundant elements. This will reduce the physician’s burden of entering excessive data into EHR systems and allow them to focus on essential patient care tasks.

3. Hire additional staff to take over administrative work: With the increasing demand for patient care, physicians are often required to complete administrative tasks that can be delegated to other staff members. Healthcare organizations should consider hiring additional administrative support staff to handle these non-clinical tasks, freeing up more time for physicians.

4. Utilise scribes or dictation tools: To reduce the burden of EHR documentation, providers can use medical scribes or dictation tools to assist in completing patient records, freeing up time for clinical caregiving. Oracle Health recently announced that it would be introducing voice commands to its EHR to enable clinicians to verbalize what they need, such as bringing up a patient’s test results, ordering medication, or booking future clinic visits 

5. Promote evidence-based interventions: Encouraging wellness initiatives, such as mindfulness programs, physical exercise, and stress management workshops, can be integrated into a broader strategy to address and prevent physician burnout.

6. Improve interoperability: Resolving interoperability issues is crucial to reducing physician burnout. Healthcare organizations should advocate for the development and implementation of standards that would facilitate seamless data exchange between different EHR systems.

7. Prioritise user-centered design: When implementing or updating EHR systems, the healthcare organization’s implementation team should include end-users, such as physicians and nurses, in the design process to ensure an intuitive and user-friendly interface.

8. Consider EHR alternatives: In extreme cases, where physician burnout caused by EHR is severe and unresponsive to other interventions, healthcare organizations may need to consider alternative solutions, such as outsourcing the documentation process or switching to a different EHR platform. Oracle Health Millennium EHR would be a great solution because it prioritizes user-centered design and interoperability.

The potential impact of physician burnout on healthcare

Physician burnout not only affects individual physicians but also has significant implications for the healthcare industry as a whole. Burnout can lead to a decrease in the quality of care, an increase in medical errors, and ultimately impact patient safety. Moreover, physician burnout causes high turnover rates and early retirement among physicians, leading to a shortage of qualified healthcare professionals.

While EHR systems have brought numerous benefits to the healthcare industry, it is crucial to address and mitigate the challenges associated with their use, particularly physician burnout. By implementing a comprehensive eight-step strategy that addresses issues such as training, interoperability, and user-centered design, healthcare organizations can create a more balanced work environment for physicians and ultimately improve patient care. It is essential to continue researching and addressing these challenges to ensure that EHR systems continue to positively impact the healthcare industry and society as a whole and we’ll be there to support them.

About Etienne Boshoff 

Etienne Boshoff is the Managing Director and Founder of EHR Enhancify. He worked within Cerner for 17 years as a Solution and Integration Architect, building and reconfiguring the software, and helping healthcare providers get the best possible experience. MediConfig was founded in 2023 and is an Oracle Health EHR consultancy supporting the IT teams of healthcare organizations across the UK and the US. 

What You Should Know:

– Ensemble Health Partners (Ensemble), an innovator in revenue cycle management, announced its official partnership with Epic, a renowned electronic health records system (EHR) provider, in Epic’s newly launched Rev Cycle Partners program.

– This collaboration between Ensemble and Epic marks a significant advancement in revenue cycle optimization for healthcare organizations. By combining Ensemble’s expertise with Epic’s cutting-edge technology and shared commitment to client success, this partnership holds the potential to revolutionize the revenue cycle landscape and ultimately improve the healthcare experience for both providers and patients.

 Optimizing Revenue Cycle Performance for Healthcare Providers

Ensemble’s inclusion in the program signifies its proven track record in unlocking financial success for healthcare providers and optimizing their Epic system utilization. Through this partnership, Ensemble will gain access to:

• Exclusive Tools and Insights: Strengthened Epic expertise with access to tailored training content, best practice recommendations, and product roadmap insights.
• Enhanced Collaboration: Closer collaboration with Epic on product development and feature implementations, ensuring Ensemble clients stay ahead of the curve.
• Amplified Performance: Leverage the combined power of Ensemble’s proven methodologies and Epic’s cutting-edge technology to optimize revenue cycle outcomes.

“We are proud to be an early adopter in Epic’s Rev Cycle Partners program and build on our shared history of strong performance and commitment to optimizing client and patient experience,” said Judson Ivy, President, Founder and CEO of Ensemble. 

Meeting rigorous partnership criteria that included a history of strong performance, reliable references, regulatory compliance, and demonstrated scalability, Ensemble is well-positioned to succeed within the program.

Ensemble serves as a strategic partner for healthcare organizations seeking to prioritize patient care over the intricacies of payment complexities. The firm manages over $29 billion in net patient revenue (NPR) and collaborates with a wider range of unique health systems than any other revenue cycle management company.