ACP issues challenge to cut task burden and put patients first

(HealthDay)—In a position paper published online March 28 in the Annals of Internal Medicine, recommendations are presented to address the impact of administrative tasks and reduce the administrative burden on clinicians.

Using a cohesive framework for analyzing different aspects of administrative tasks, Shari M. Erickson, M.P.H., and colleagues from the American College of Physicians (ACP) Medical Practice and Quality Committee, developed recommendations to address the adverse effects of administrative tasks on physicians, patients, and the health care system.

The researchers developed seven statements and recommendations as strategies to reduce excessive administrative tasks and put patients first. The ACP calls on external stakeholders to provide financial, time, and quality-of-care impact statements for administrative tasks for public review and comment; tasks that have a negative effect on quality and patient care should be challenged, revised, or removed. Administrative tasks that cannot be eliminated should be reviewed, revised, aligned, and/or streamlined. Stakeholders, including public and private payers, should collaborate with professional societies, clinicians, patients, and electronic health record vendors to minimize unnecessary clinician burden and maximize patient centeredness. All key stakeholders should collaborate to improve existing health information technologies. Stakeholders should review and streamline or eliminate duplicative administrative requirements.

"These guidelines are particularly important as the health care system evolves from one based on the volume to one based on the value of services provided," the authors write.

Copyright © 2017 HealthDay. All rights reserved.