Facts - Piles of Paperwork

…the average BC physician spends 10.5 hours per week on paperwork.

Cut down on paperwork.

Physicians in BC work an average of 51.4 hours per week (in contrast, the average Canadian works 36 hours per week).  While that number has not changed significantly over the past 4 years, the breakdown of how that time is spent is shifting.  Doctors are spending less time on direct patient care and more time on administrative work, practice management, and indirect patient care such as form completion, charts, and phone calls. 

While it’s impossible to completely eliminate paperwork, there are several programs that can help reduce the administrative workload on physicians, most notably the use of Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) in place of a paper filing system. Currently less than half of BC physicians are using an EMR-based system. EMRs have the potential to reduce administrative burden, decrease costs, and increase quality of patient care. PITO, the Physician Information Technology Office, offers technical advice, financial incentives, and ongoing support for physicians transitioning to EMRs. For more information, visit www.pito.bc.ca