Scribes Liberate Providers, Provide ROI
Study indicate use of medical scribes allows doctors to interact more with patients
A study performed by Northwestern University, as reported by Health IT Outcomes, determined doctors spend approximately one-third of patient visits looking at a computer screen rather than the patient. While the many benefits of EHR systems are clear, the Northwestern study points out the technology is far from perfect.
As an experiment, James Trotter, M.D., hired a pre-med student to follow him as a medical scribe for a day to see how it would change his experience treating patients, particularly how much time he would have spent staring at a computer screen. Healthcare Daily reports Trotter said “using a medical scribe has been liberating.” Trotter has since hired King as a scribe.
“‘The electronic medical record has fundamentally changed how doctors interact with patients,’ he said. “Despite the [vendors' claims of efficiency], EMRs have slowed the clinical interaction between patient and doctor. EMRs task physicians with becoming typists.”
Trotter enlisted Harriet King as his scribe, calling her “role as ‘medical transcription on steroids’ because she updates the medical records and interacts with the patients directly. While many scribes are supplied by outside agencies, Trotter preferred to hire his own for the sake of continuity. King has worked for Trotter for 18 months.” He estimates “Texas Health Resources now employs more than 200 scribes, of which 80-90 percent are in EDs. He noted that about 15 current THR ED physicians were scribes for the system."
Healthcare Daily notes, “According to a Journal of Urology study, patient satisfaction rates rose slightly with the presence of a scribe, but dramatically increased physician satisfaction from 19 percent to 69 percent.” Trotter - who pays for King’s services himself - concurs, saying, “I get it back in psychological well-being, as well as financially. Now all my colleagues want one, too.”
An additional benefit listed by Healthcare Daily is that scribes deliver a return on investment, determined by citing two pilot studies conducted by the Vancouver (Wash.) Clinic from October 2011 to January 2013 “which proved to be successful. They garnered an ROI of 15-20 percent when the scribes were used during the workday. Their presence of the scribes also decreased a physician's workday by at least one hour because of fewer tasks they have to perform, such as record-keeping. The clinic also found greater patient satisfaction.”