Clinicians’ burnout and electronic health records use: implications for health data management

Abstract

Background/Objective: This study sought to review association between electronic health records (EHRs) use and clinicians’ burnout. Methods/Design: This is a narrative review of literature. The study reviewed 59 published articles and texts on clinicians’ burnout and EHRs use. Results: The review shows that lack of EHRs in this information-driven and technologically advanced health care environment can hinder quality of health data and may lead to poor health care quality. The use of EHRs though enhances health care service provisions, poses on clinicians, ergonomic problems such as eye strains, wrist pain, back pain, stress and most importantly, clinicians’ burnout. This is largely due to poorly designed software solutions, ambiguous workflows and unnecessary documentation requirements for non-clinical purposes. Conclusion: Clinicians’ use of EHRs and other Health ITs has become a necessary part of health care delivery systems for its ease of use and inherent enhancement of care process. Nevertheless, EHR-related stress, dissatisfaction and burnout due to ill-defined software solutions, ambiguous and onerous workflows, and unnecessary documentation requirements have become the order of the day. Clinicians’ burnout is a threat to care process, a burden on the clinicians who provide the care, inimical the health of health care consumers and an impending systemic havoc to the overall goal of health care delivery systems. Therefore, all health stakeholders should ensure that EHR solutions are purposively redesigned, only essential documentation requirements maintained, welfare of every healthcare provider is given top priority and EHR-based continuing education is provided at work environment.