Recent research published by JAMA Network Open found that primary care physicians commonly worked in the EHR during their vacations.
Sam Weiner, MD, CMO of Virtua Medical Group, says there is concern about physicians at Virtua Health's medical group working in the EHR during their time off.
"There is a metric that we call time outside of scheduled hours, which is simply how much time physicians are spending in the EHR outside of the patient schedule. Our physicians are scheduled to see patients from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.," Weiner says. "The other euphemism for this is 'pajama time,' which is the time physicians spend at night finishing up documentation, answering patient inquiries, and refilling medications."
Physicians working in the EHR during their time off, particularly pajama time, is also a concern at Ardent Health, according to the Nashville, Tennessee-based health system's CMIO, Bradley Hoyt, MD.
"It happens all the time," Hoyt says. "It's just the way things are. I did it for years."
There is a primary consequence of physicians working in the EHR during their time off, Hoyt explains.
"It is increasing burnout," Hoyt says.
Christopher Cheney is the CMO editor at HealthLeaders.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
To alleviate worry about patient care during vacations, primary care practices at Virtua Medical Group have a coverage system in place for absent physicians.
Virtua Medical Group has adopted "in-basketologists," nurse practitioners who mine electronic in-baskets for messages that do not need a doctor's attention.
At Ardent Health, AI ambient listening technology has had the biggest impact on limiting physicians from working in the EHR during their off time.