Defining Documentation Burden (DocBurden) and Excessive DocBurden for All Health Professionals: A Scoping Review.

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Clinical Documentation
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Documentation burden (DocBurden) impacts health professional (HP) wellness and patient safety.
• Lack of precise definition hinders national efforts and measurement of DocBurden.
• Excessive DocBurden is an emerging concern in healthcare.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish a standard definition for DocBurden.
• To define the concept of excessive DocBurden.
• To differentiate between baseline and excessive DocBurden.

Main Methods:

• Conducted a scoping review of literature on DocBurden definitions.
• Searched six databases for scholarly and gray literature.
• Utilized the American Nursing Informatics Association's Six Domains of Burden Framework for concept clarification.

Main Results:

• 153 articles were included; only 18% provided a definition for DocBurden.
• Defined excessive DocBurden as stress from misaligned documentation system usability and activities.
• Noted that existing literature lacks distinction between baseline and excessive DocBurden.

Conclusions:

• Existing literature fails to differentiate baseline DocBurden from excessive DocBurden.
• The proposed definition of excessive DocBurden highlights the distinction.
• This definition supports the development of meaningful measures for intervention.