Protected EHR time cuts after-hours work with little productivity loss, study finds

Medical Economics December 10, 2025
Austin Littrell Fact checked by: Keith A. Reynolds, Cheney Gazzam Baltz

A study published in JAMA Network Open examines what happens when doctors get built-in time for inbox work.

A December JAMA study examines what happens when physicians get built-in time for inbox work.

A new study in JAMA Network Open takes a close look at a simple but increasingly popular idea in physician practices: setting aside protected time during the workday for electronic health record (EHR) tasks.

Instead of pushing inbox work into nights and weekends, one ambulatory network reserved a dedicated appointment slot each half day for activities such as patient messaging, prescription refills and prior authorizations. Researchers tracked what happened to productivity, after-hours work and message volume over nearly three years.

The results suggest that small scheduling changes...

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