Using K-Means Clustering to Identify Physician Clusters by Electronic Health Record Burden and Efficiency.
Telemed J E Health
; 30(2): 585-594, 2024 Feb.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-37603292
ABSTRACT
Objectives:
Electronic health records (EHRs) have transformed the way modern medicine is practiced, but they remain a major source of documentation burden among physicians. This study aims to use data from Signal, a tool provided by the Epic EHR, to analyze physician metadata in the Montefiore Health System via cluster analysis to assess EHR burden and efficiency.Methods:
Data were obtained for a one-month period (July 2020) representing a return to normal operation post-telemedicine implementation. Six metrics from Signal were used to phenotype physicians time on unscheduled days, pajama time, time outside of 7 AM to 7 PM, turnaround time, proficiency score, and visits closed the same day. k-Means clustering was employed to group physicians, and the clusters were assessed overall and by sex and specialty.Results:
Our results demonstrate the partitioning of physicians into a higher-efficiency, lower-time outside of scheduled hours (TOSH) cluster and a lower-efficiency, higher-TOSH cluster even when stratified by sex and specialty. Intra-cluster comparisons showed general homogeneity of physician metrics with the exception of the higher-efficiency, lower-TOSH cluster when stratified by sex.Conclusions:
Taken together, the clusters uniquely reflect the EHR efficiency-burden of the Montefiore Health System. Applying k-means clustering to readily available EHR data allows for a scalable, efficient, and adaptable approach of assessing physician EHR burden and efficiency, allowing health systems to examine documentation trends and target wellness interventions.Key words
Full text:
1
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Physicians
/
Telemedicine
Type of study:
Prognostic_studies
Limits:
Humans
Language:
En
Journal:
Telemed J E Health
Journal subject:
INFORMATICA MEDICA
/
SERVICOS DE SAUDE
Year:
2024
Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
United States