Physicians’ electronic health records use at home, job satisfaction, job stress and burnout

Abstract

Objective: To determine how electronic health record (EHR) use at home impacts physician job satisfaction, job stress and burnout.

Methods: This study looks at survey responses from 1,048 physicians in New York in 2016 to see how time spent on EHRs at home affected physician’s job satisfaction, job stress and burnout.

Results: Accounting for demographic and practice values, physicians’ moderately high to excessive time spent on EHRs at home did not significantly affect job satisfaction but did significantly increase their odds of experiencing job stress by 50% and burnout by 46%. However, length and degree of documentation requirements and extension of work life into home by means of e-mail, completion of records and phone calls significantly correlated to decreased job satisfaction and increased job stress and likelihood of burnout.

Conclusions: Although technology allows for physicians to work on electronic devices in various locations, healthcare administrators, policy makers and physicians alike should be aware of negative implications of excessive EHR use, documentation completion, e-mails and phone calls at home. Greater attention is needed on the human factors in the delivery of care and the importance of joy in the practice of medicine. Suggestions for organizational interventions are discussed.