Related Experiment Videos
[When time counts--hospital physicians' use of time and work assignments]
1SINTEF Unimed NIS Ledelse, organisasjon og samhandling 7465 Trondheim. kjerstina.rohme@unimed.sintef.no
Summary
Physician time allocation shows significant variation, with only 25% of clinical time spent directly with patients. This highlights challenges in standardizing physician productivity and time management.
Area of Science:
- Medical practice management
- Healthcare operations research
Context:
- Physician productivity is declining, prompting investigations into time utilization.
- Studies indicate physicians spend less time with patients, raising concerns about healthcare efficiency.
Purpose:
- To analyze physician time allocation and work assignments.
- To investigate variations in how physicians use their time in clinical settings.
Summary:
- A one-week study involving 91 physicians combined field observation and self-reporting to track time use.
- Physicians dedicated 60% of their time to clinical tasks, with 25% of that directly involving patient contact.
- Significant inter-physician variations in time use were observed, even after accounting for organizational factors, complicating the establishment of average time-use norms.
Impact:
- Work measurement, while descriptive of physician organization, may not be a fruitful approach for ensuring effectiveness or setting time-use norms.
- Findings suggest a need for nuanced approaches to understanding and managing physician time beyond simple averages.