Reflections on the Documentation Burden Reduction AMIA Plenary Session through the Lens of 25 × 5

Abstract

Documentation burden, defined as the excessive effort expended on health care documentation, is associated with a number of adverse outcomes, including clinician burnout, reduced quality ofmedical care, and disruption of clinical data contained in the electronic health record. With the growing concern for the wellness of the clinical workforce, documentation burden is receiving national attention. The American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) has taken the lead by establishing the 255 Task Force ("Task Force") in December 2021, which aims to reduce clinician documentation burden to 25% of the current state in the coming 5 years. Aligned with the timing of the Task Force launch, the AMIA Clinical Informatics Conference (CIC) 2022 co-chairs, Rosemary Kennedy (Connect America) and Paul Fu (City of Hope), conceptualized an opening plenary panel in a "fireside chat" format focused on clinical documentation burden. In this editorial, the authors describe the panel discussion, identify key themes from the panel, and offer recommendations to address documentation burden. The proceedings of the AMIA CIC 2022 Fireside Chat serve as an opportunity to acknowledge those who are engaged and passionate about addressing documentation burden from the vantage point of different stakeholders and institutions.