How Can Physicians Prioritize Patient Connections?

Physicians face a growing challenge: how to connect meaningfully with patients amidst increasing administrative demands and time constraints.

In a recent episode of How I Doctor, Dr. Tina Shah offered a powerful reminder: “Resist the temptation to go to the EHR first. Go to the bedside.”

Tina is a pulmonary critical care specialist and chief clinical officer of Abridge, a technology company that leverages generative AI to support physician note taking and clinical documentation. In this podcast episode, Tina and Dr. Graham Walker, Offcall co-founder and an emergency physician in San Francisco, dive into actionable strategies to create a more sustainable work environment for doctors.

Tina’s push for physicians to go directly to the bedside highlights a critical question: How can we as physicians prioritize getting to know our patients given the constraints of practicing today?

Some physicians report spending nearly twice as much time on EHR and clerical tasks as they do with patients. This administrative burden not only impacts our ability to connect with patients, but also contributes to high levels of burnout.

We know that even brief moments after patient appointments allow physicians to process insights and connect more deeply with patients' stories, thereby fostering empathy and reducing the sense of repetition that can come with high patient volumes ... but this is easier said than done in practice.

You can listen to this episode of How I Doctor with Tina and Graham above, and access the full transcript here.

Join the Discussion

So what do you think? Is it possible to balance the bedside with the demands of modern medicine? How so? And what can hospitals and healthcare systems provide to better facilitate more meaningful doctor-patient relationships? Or do you think it is up to individual physicians to prioritize these interactions? Share your thoughts in the comments below.