By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    magnesium water can be good for your health but you can't have too much
    Is Drinking Magnesium Water Good for Your Health?
    October 17, 2023
    common misconseptions about brain injuries
    4 Common Myths and Misunderstandings About Brain Injuries
    February 5, 2023
    get a career in medical device sales
    What Are the Benefits of Attending Medical Sales College?
    April 10, 2023
    Latest News
    How Probate Planning Shapes the Future of Your Estate and Family Care
    July 17, 2025
    Beyond Nutrition: Everyday Foods That Support Whole-Body Health
    June 15, 2025
    The Wide-Ranging Benefits of Magnesium Supplements
    June 11, 2025
    The Best Home Remedies for Migraines
    June 5, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Elective Coronary Stenting: A Case in Context
    August 3, 2011
    PSA screening: Does It or Doesn’t It?
    March 16, 2012
    Rick Perry Needs To Make Up His Mind
    September 19, 2011
    Latest News
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
    How Health Choices and Legal Actions Intersect After an Injury
    July 17, 2025
    How communities and healthcare providers can address slip and fall injuries with legal awareness
    July 17, 2025
    Let Your Lawyer Handle the Work Before You Pay Medical Costs
    July 6, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: To Increase Physician Productivity, Focus on Tools for Support Staff First
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > Hospital Administration > To Increase Physician Productivity, Focus on Tools for Support Staff First
Hospital AdministrationMedical EducationTechnology

To Increase Physician Productivity, Focus on Tools for Support Staff First

ShahidShah
ShahidShah
Share
4 Min Read
SHARE

 

Productivity loss and workflow disruptions are commonplace as our industry gets on the Meaningful Use bandwagon and is starting to adopt EHR systems at a slightly more rapid pace than in previous years (things aren’t really as rosy as many think, but the pace is picking up). The reason we have productivity loss is that we focus changing the behaviors of our most expensive resources too early in our automation journeys – we go after doctors first.

 

Productivity loss and workflow disruptions are commonplace as our industry gets on the Meaningful Use bandwagon and is starting to adopt EHR systems at a slightly more rapid pace than in previous years (things aren’t really as rosy as many think, but the pace is picking up). The reason we have productivity loss is that we focus changing the behaviors of our most expensive resources too early in our automation journeys – we go after doctors first.

More Read

What’s Next for “Chronic” Cancer Patients?
Do All of Us Really Have to Change?
Mobile Health Around the Globe (Bonus Post!): Six mHealth Companies Bringing Health Technology to Developing Countries
How Youth Uses Technology for Health Education. ‘The ISIS White Paper’.
Google Glass – Day 3: Future Healthcare Applications

My experience, and some basic math, shows that if you want a physician to be more productive you first make sure their supporting staff have the tools they need to reduce the physician’s burdens. Only after you’ve optimized those around a physician do you then go after improving the physician’s productivity.

According to research done by GE, you need (on average) about 5 supporting resources per physician to help manage patient records and a bit more to support patient care. What if we focused on building software and systems for optimizing the work of the 5 resources around the doctor first? What if we offered more capabilities for patients, with proper verification and validation by a professional through simple tools, to self-manage their data directly in EHRs? Not just through portals, but real collaborative care management tools.

Physicians are highly trained, which means they have years of things to “unlearn” if you change their workflows and they are (generally speaking) well paid which means if you any mistakes and disruption in their workflows is far more expensive than for supporting staff. Of course, the opposite is also true: if you get the automation right, the return on the investment is certainly worth it; the problem is, while ROI might be high, the risk of loss is also high.

This advice may seem obvious, but the architecture, design, user experience, and implementation of existing health IT apps don’t always heed it. I’m sure we all see, over and over again, that many apps are being written to increase documentation and data entry requirements by doctors – instead of using system integration, medical device connectivity, and other simple technologies like worklist management to reduce the workload.

As I mentioned above, productivity loss and workflow disruptions are commonplace with EHR implementations – drop me a note below about how you think vendors should change their products to make things better.

TAGGED:medical teamproductivity
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
Global Healthcare Policy & Law
July 17, 2025
paramedics in surgical gloves and masks
How Health Choices and Legal Actions Intersect After an Injury
Health care
July 16, 2025
a woman giving a key
How Probate Planning Shapes the Future of Your Estate and Family Care
Health
July 16, 2025
a woman with kinesio tapes on her back arm
How communities and healthcare providers can address slip and fall injuries with legal awareness
Health care
July 16, 2025

You Might also Like

doctor next to patient's bed
Health careHospital Administration

3 Tips To Improve Your Healthcare Customer Service Team

May 20, 2021
Medical InnovationsTechnology

VR Health Clinic Applications for Occupational Therapies

November 2, 2021

TEDxCambridge 2011 Twitter Feed

November 20, 2011
robots play an important role in hospital settings
BusinessHospital AdministrationTechnology

Robotic Technologies Can Improve Hospital Working Conditions

November 23, 2022
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?