Date of Conferral

1-23-2026

Date of Award

January 2026

Degree

Doctor of Healthcare Administration (D.H.A.)

School

Health Sciences

Advisor

Miriam Ross

Abstract

Primary care physicians face high rates of burnout, with electronic health record (EHR) documentation identified ass a significant contributing factor. EHR systems consume substantial physician time, diverting attention from meaningful patient interactions toward administrative tasks and increasing documentation burden. The purpose of this study is to identify and evaluate best practices for minimizing the documentation burden on primary care providers. The review question centered on how best practices can be implemented by healthcare administrators to reduce the physician documentation burden in primary care. This integrative review used the sociotechnical systems theory framework to identify and evaluate effective strategies to alleviate physician documentation burden in primary care setting. The review examined 25 empirical and non-empirical articles published from years 2020 - 2025 and assessed their relevance and quality using the John Hopkins evidence-based practice model. Through thematic analysis, five main themes emerged with 10 supporting subthemes. The five main themes are structured leadership to improve culture, optimizing team structure and functioning, leveraging advanced technology, improving EHR usability, and training and development. A few subthemes included supporting technological infrastructure, simplifying workflow design, and providing continuous training. Three recommendations emerged from the review: (a) implement advanced technology integration, (b) develop a multidisciplinary team to ensure patient-centered care and documentation support, and (c) cultivate leadership support. When healthcare organizations can foster a more sustainable work environment that ultimately enhances healthcare delivery and contributes to broader societal health improvements, positive social change will emerge.

Download

Share

 
COinS