Additional Epic EHR Education Linked to Clinician Satisfaction

Participation in Epic EHR education initiatives, like the Physician Power User and Physician Builders programs, is linked to higher clinician satisfaction, according to a KLAS Arch Collaborative report.

The Epic Physician Power User program provides efficiency courses in the EHR's user setting tools and optimizations, while the Physician Builders initiative provides additional EHR training covering advanced build tools.

Providers who have engaged in these education programs report higher Net EHR Experience Scores (NEES) than peers who have not participated. NEES is an aggregate measure of the EHR's efficiency, functionality, and impact on care.

However, some providers who have completed additional EHR training said they do not have the opportunity or system access to share best practices with peers.

"These individuals recognize that the system could be better leveraged but don't feel empowered to help their organization actualize its potential," the report authors wrote.

Regardless of EHR vendor, efficiency is one of the lowest-rated NEES metrics. For Epic respondents, just 53 percent agree that the EHR enables clinical efficiency.

Additionally, while staffing shortages, bureaucratic tasks, and chaotic work settings are the most common contributors to clinician burnout, EHR efficiency is the NEES metric most closely tied to clinician burnout.

"Given this correlation, EHR efficiency should be a top focus of organizations wishing to reduce burnout and avoid turnover," the authors emphasized.

Epic offers a variety of modules that aim to help clinicians more quickly care for patients without forfeiting quality.

The report measured satisfaction across four EHR features: Brain, Hey Epic!, Rover, and Secure Chat.

• Brain is a feature for inpatient nurses that presents a timeline view of each assigned patient's orders, events, and requirements. Without leaving the tool, nurses can record flowsheet values and scan patient and medication barcodes to document medication administration.
• Hey Epic! allows clinicians to use voice commands to take actions in Epic. The voice assistant can help providers quickly access specific information before seeing a patient.
• Rover is a mobile app that supports hospital-based nursing workflows. Features include flowsheet documentation, MAR documentation, real-time push notifications for time-sensitive updates, and clinical image capture using the mobile device's camera.
• Secure Chat allows providers, nurses, and other staff to send secure messages to colleagues in real-time from Epic's mobile apps or Hyperspace.

For each of the tools, providers reported increased EHR experience scores post-implementation.

"Organizations struggling with burnout may do well to ask themselves whether any of these features could help improve efficiency for their clinicians," the authors noted.