Primary Care Physicians' Experiences With and Strategies for Managing Electronic Messages

Area of Science:

• Medical Informatics
• Primary Care Medicine
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Electronic communication has increased patient access to physicians.
• Primary care physicians (PCPs) report electronic inbox management as a significant source of work-related stress.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe PCPs' experiences with electronic inbox management.
• To characterize strategies used by individual physicians and practice groups to manage electronic inboxes.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative study involving semistructured interviews with 24 PCPs across 8 medical centers.
• Thematic analysis of transcribed interviews to identify key themes and subthemes.

Main Results:

• PCPs experience increased patient expectations for rapid electronic message responses.
• Electronic message management leads to stressors like eroded work-life boundaries and anxiety.
• Individual strategies include multitasking and delegation; group strategies involve dedicated clinic time and team-based coverage.

Conclusions:

• Physicians and practice groups employ diverse strategies for electronic inbox management.
• High message volume and rapid response expectations create new stressors in primary care.
• Health systems should support PCPs by sharing management strategies and developing team-based coverage.