What frustrates clinicians most about EHRs

EHR-related complaints that may sound mundane — extra clicks, redundant alarms and data scattered across systems — can reflect a deeper frustration, healthcare executives told Becker’s. 

 Michelle Charles, DNP, RN, chief nursing informatics officer for Fort Wayne, Ind.-based Parkview Health, said each upgrade often adds new screens and notifications while leaving outdated ones in place.

“System upgrades often introduce numerous changes, leading to the same information being located in multiple areas,” she said. “While new features and information are frequently added, it is rare that any elements are removed.”

At Chicago-based CommonSpirit Health, which spans more than 20 states, Linda Goodwin, MSN, RN, system senior vice president of nursing and CNIO, hears the same refrain: documentation that takes too long, alarms that intrude and the inefficiency of coordinating care when patient information is split between multiple platforms. Such obstacles, she said, can slow decision-making and delay the moment a patient is discharged or transferred.

“The lack of integration particularly hinders the efficiency of care coordination and final patient disposition,” Ms. Goodwin said.

Speed is not the only issue, either. At Akron, Ohio-based Summa Health, CNIO Marc Benoy, BSN, RN, said clinicians struggle to sift through notes swollen by regulatory requirements and copied text.

“Clinicians face information overload: relevant details are buried among duplications, lengthy notes and poorly organized data,” he said. For nurses, physicians and therapists who each have different priorities, the EHR often presents information in the same undifferentiated way. That slows decisions and heightens the risk of missing something important.

Mr. Benoy said the rigid templates at the core of many systems also work against the grain of bedside care. Documentation designed for billing and quality reporting does not always connect with how clinicians think.

“This disconnect makes documentation feel like busywork rather than a reflection of real clinical reasoning or patient context,” he said.

At Tampa, Fla.-based Moffitt Cancer Center, CNIO Marc Perkins-Carrillo, MSN, RN, said the theme is similar. Clinicians at the health system describe the effort required to reach critical data as one of the biggest burdens of the system.

“The sheer volume of data presented, often without prioritization, makes it difficult to quickly identify what is most relevant,” he said. The interface, he added, leaves little room for flexibility, pushing clinicians into one-size-fits-all views that rarely fit the work they do.

The complaints reflect a broader tension in how EHRs have evolved. Built in part to satisfy billing and compliance needs, they have become dense repositories where communication between clinicians can get lost.

“Documentation has become heavily shaped by quality reporting, billing and regulatory requirements,” Mr. Benoy said. “While important, this emphasis crowds out the goal of lean, clinically useful notes.”

For the CNIOs, the answer is not more features but fewer. What clinicians ask for most often is not the next upgrade but relief from the clutter already there.

“Optimizing the EHR is paramount to reducing documentation burden and supporting clinician well-being,” Dr. Charles said.

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