7 Amazing Hacks For Family Physicians To Cut After-Hours Work

September 04, 2024

7 Amazing Hacks For Family Physicians To Cut After-Hours Work

Family physicians today face an overwhelming administrative workload. Tasks like prior authorizations, quality reporting, and the EHRs take up hours that could be better spent on patient care. As a result, many physicians find themselves working long after clinic hours, leading to increased dissatisfaction and burnout. But, it doesn’t have to be this hard. Imagine ending your day without the stress of taking extra work home. Yes, you can bring about a balance with the right strategies. In this blog post, we will explore 7 amazing hacks that can help family physicians reduce their after-hours workload and reclaim personal time.

Extra Hours On EHRs

A recent study across four specialties, including family medicine, found that physicians in outpatient settings spend one to two hours every night on EHR tasks or paperwork. This figure doesn’t even account for the additional time they spend on these tasks during their regular work hours. Yet, another study revealed that family physicians spend close to 30 hours each month on EHR tasks beyond their regular working hours. This work often peaks on weekends, with increased activity around 10 a.m. and again at 10 p.m. This trend is often called “date night with the EHRs” and significantly impacts their work-life balance. Hence, physicians need to look for ways to regain control over their time and avoid burnout.

7 Hacks To Reduce Family Physicians’ After-Hours Work

Start Your Day with Purpose

How you kick off your day matters the most. Arriving at the office early gives you time to review your schedule, respond to messages, or meet your team briefly. Being proactive, helps you stay ahead. If you prefer, do some prep work at home before heading to the office. To stick with this habit, focus on your end goal. Why do you want to finish work on time? Maybe it’s to spend evenings with family or pursue your favorite hobbies. A clear “why” keeps you motivated and helps balance work with personal life.

Plan Visits in Advance

Previsit planning helps you start each patient visit ready to go. Here’s how.

Preorder Labs and Tests: Anticipate what tests a patient might need at their next visit and order them in advance. This way, patients can get their tests done before the visit, so you’ll have results ready when you see them.

Visit Preparation: Have your medical assistants or medical scribes review the patient’s record before the visit to take care of any prep work.

Maximize Every Minute

With limited time in the exam room, use every moment wisely. Build rapport quickly, avoid interruptions, and set an agenda with patients to keep visits on track. Encourage your staff to gather patient concerns before the visit and help prioritize them. Use downtime between visits effectively. Instead of letting spare minutes slip away, complete tasks like charting, prescription refills, responding to messages or signing off orders. Teach your team to do the same. This can significantly reduce your end-of-day workload.

Delegate Tasks Wisely

Not every task needs to be handled by you. Decide which tasks can be delegated to your team. For example, MAs can manage certain vaccinations, handle prescription refills, help with documentation or conduct basic patient screenings. Similarly, medical scribes can handle documentation and update patient records with precision. Letting your team to take on more responsibilities not only lightens your load but also enhances overall practice efficiency.

Streamline Documentation

Documentation can be time-consuming, but there are ways to make it more efficient:

Focus on being clear and concise. Capture essential information without unnecessary details.
Utilize EHR templates or macros to streamline data entry and save time.
Use a team documentation model, where nurses or MAs can assist with documentation during patient visits.
Use scribes, whether live or virtual, to lighten your documentation load.
Aim to complete your documentation during the visit rather than leaving it for later. This helps prevent a backlog of work at the end of the day.

Manage Messages Efficiently

Handling messages can eat up valuable time. To manage them effectively:
Set up your messaging system to automatically route messages to the right person, so you don’t have to manage everything.
Read each message, take action right away, and move on. Avoid revisiting messages.
Have your nurse or MA sift through messages and deal with what they can, so only the important ones come to you.

Support Each Other

Too much work after clinic often points to system or process issue or an individual’s need for support. If one physician consistently falls behind on charting while others stay current, it can affect billing and create liability risks. To help, approach the situation with empathy and support. Set clear charting deadlines and enforce them. Work with the struggling physician to identify and address barriers, such as scheduling time for charting, EHR training, or delegating charting responsibilities to scribes. Avoid piling on pressure and offer guidance to help them get back on track.

By implementing these seven hacks, family physicians can better manage their time, reduce after-hours work, and enjoy the practice of medicine without the stress of unfinished tasks. Remember, you have the power to make changes that can improve your workflow and overall well-being.

If you are looking to cut down on after-hours work and get more personal time, try using Scribe4Me's family medicine scribes. By delegating your documentation and administrative tasks to our expert scribes, you can focus more on patient care, increasing productivity and revenue. With our family practice scribes completing charts in real-time, you’ll be able to finish your day on time and leave office without the stress of unfinished tasks. Get started with Scribe4Me and see how we can make your workday easier!