Patient Care and Electronic Medical Record Entry Demands on Physical Therapists

Abstract

The work of physical therapists (PTs) is physically and cognitively demanding, though prior research has primarily focused on physical aspects of their work and associated musculoskeletal (MSK) symptoms. The goal of this study was to provide a more indepth view into PTs working in outpatient settings, the largest area of practice. Of primary interest was learning about cognitive demands, particularly those associated with electronic medical records (EMRs) documentation. There is little information on the workload associated with this essential part of the PT’s responsibilities. Interviews were conducted with 10 licensed PTs. Thematic analysis was conducted on transcripts from interviews. Analysis revealed several areas of concerns including significant portions of each day spent on documentation, poor organization of EMR content, inefficiencies from hardware choices, as well as opportunities for improvement such as means for providing visual evidence of a patient’s performance progress and providing for side-by-side comparison of reports.