Scribes, EMR please docs, save $600,000

Abstract

The leaders of the ED at Tri-City Medical Center have come up with an initiative that has saved them $600,000, generated a billing increase of 10% per provider per hour, and won over physicians: using physician scribes in concert with their electronic medical record (EMR). It eliminates the concern that EMRs will slow them down. They have seen a 6.45% increase in productivity based on patients seen per hour. The physicians can focus on the bedside and look at the patient at the same time the scribe enters information into the electronic chart. Scribes prepare the discharge forms, including medication reconciliation, so they are ready for the doctor to sign.