Study: Telehealth could increase physicians' after-hours work

Researchers found physicians who provided more care through telemedicine also increased their time spent on after-hours EHR-based clinical and administrative work. The report, published in JMIR in July, found that time spent on work-related tasks outside clinical hours, often referred to as "work outside work" (WOW), increased "significantly" for those physicians who spent a larger proportion of their time providing care via telemedicine. "Our study found that telemedicine was less efficient than in-person-based care and increased physicians' WOW burden," the researchers noted. "This suggests that telemedicine, as currently delivered, may be less efficient than in-person-based care and may increase the after-hours work burden of physicians."