Reducing EHR headaches with virtual scribes

Scribes are someone who works offsite or in a different area of the practice (i.e., not in the exam room) to document important aspects of the encounter so the physician or other provider can focus on providing patient care and working more efficiently. Ellen Hight, M.D., a family medicine physician in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, says the electronic health record (EHR) completely changed her practice, and not necessarily in a good way. “When our practice started using an EHR, I began to feel a distance between myself and my patients because I was constantly staring at the computer,” she says. Her work-life balance also took a hit as she began to spend Saturday mornings finishing her notes from the previous week. When the Rhode Island Primary Care Physicians Corporation (RIPCPC), an independent practice association to which her practice belongs, approached her about piloting a virtual scribe program and said it would pay for the first two months of participation she jumped at the opportunity.

Medigy Insights

Scribes are individuals who document important aspects of a medical encounter, allowing physicians and other providers to focus on providing patient care and working more efficiently. This can help doctors to see more patients in a day without putting in extra hours, and also reduce the need to take work home at night or on weekends. A pilot program of virtual scribes at the Ridgeview Internal Medicine and Pediatrics and Convenient Care Center (RIPCPC) in Kansas City, Mo. reported that the program was a huge success and prompted the physician who participated to continue working with the scribe.