[4 MIN READ]

In this article:

• This year, Providence launched the Office of Transformation, which is designed to quickly and effectively improve our caregivers’ lives so they can better care for you.

• Our Conversation and Navigation Platform, developed in-house, reduces non-clinical, administrative in-basket messages by more than 27%. 

• More than 1,200 of our caregivers use AI voice technology to help with chart documentation, allowing them to have more patient availability and interact with patients more directly.

Office of Transformation helps caregivers better help you

As caregivers, we work hard to help you feel better. We also understand that this work extends beyond exams and prescriptions. We want to be able to respond to your questions quickly and comprehensively, and it is always our aim to be fully engaged during your visits.

Caregivers experiencing burnout – feeling mentally, physically and emotionally drained due to consistent stress – is an ongoing issue. According to a new study, 45.2% of physicians experienced burnout in 2023 and remain at an increased risk for burnout compared to other people who work in the U.S. 

At Providence, caring for our patients begins with caring for our caregivers. To that end, we recently launched the Office of Transformation. “Transformation” means significant, dramatic change, just like the Transformers action figures. And transformation truly is our goal. 

For years, health systems worldwide have leaned heavily on technology to help ease caregiver burnout. But technology alone is not enough. The Providence Office of Transformation is taking a much broader view, looking at how new technology, operational, clinical and financial changes can improve our caregivers’ lives so that they can serve our patients better. 

Read on to learn more about how our exciting plans are revitalizing the practice of medicine.

Our vision

In large organizations, different functions tend to work independently. After all, the finance department is quite different from IT. To truly transform quickly and effectively, we must strategically connect the dots between all aspects of our health system and make changes without adding red tape. Through the Office of Transformation, we are looking at ways to:

• Make technology work for our clinicians and our patients
• Simplify and streamline operations and workflows using AI
• Expand the places and ways that care is delivered
• Offer our patients highly individualized care experiences

How it works

First, we identify areas within Providence where we can have the biggest impact. Then the Office of Transformation forms a team that works with groups of people throughout our organization to discover opportunities and quickly make decisions that will change how we do things for the better.

Each initiative is highly individualized. Some projects may require expertise in technology and innovation. Others may need special attention paid to privacy and security. Still others may need in-depth analytics or someone to effectively communicate how we plan to change a long-held operation. We know that making changes for people never works. Instead, we are dedicated to partnering with the operational teams at Providence to ensure all voices are a part of the transformation effort.

Our 2025 goals

The time your doctor spends with you, virtually or in person, only represents a fraction of the time they spend on your care. Significant time is also spent reviewing your records, writing notes, working on your chart and answering emails and messages.

With that in mind, we are working on scaling two significant initiatives this year: Clinical in-basket management, and documentation and charting support. Our goal is to reduce administrative burden for our physicians and clinicians (meaning less paperwork and more time for patients) through AI and technology-driven innovations.

In-basket management

Our caregivers get a lot of messages through their MyChart in-basket. However, many of these emails would be better answered by someone other than the caregiver. Physicians who spend time reading messages that can be handled by nurses or other medical staff tend to experience burnout more often and struggle to spend as much time as they’d like with each patient. Knowing this is an issue across our health system, we have developed and deployed two new technologies to address this concern.

• Our Conversation and Navigation Platform has been proven to reduce non-clinical, administrative in-basket messages by more than 27%. This platform helps route patient emails to the right person, whether it’s a doctor, nurse or front-office staff.
• Provaria kicks in once your message hits someone’s in-basket. This technology enables our care teams to manage their in-basket more efficiently and answer your message more quicky.

Documentation and charting support

Our caregivers spend a lot of time on EMRs or electronic medical records. EMRs hold essential information, such as your medical history, test results, diagnoses and treatment plans. This is important work. However, these days, our caregivers also spend a lot of time managing compliance requirements and performing administrative duties related to charting but not specific to your care.

Today, more than 1,200 of our physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants use ambient technology while charting. Ambient charting is an amazing technology that uses AI to automatically draft the notes the caregivers need to put into the EMR. The result? Our caregivers spend 13% less time documenting after hours, saving close to six minutes of charting per appointment, allowing them to increase their appointment availability by 8%. And possibly most important, they are able to look you eye-to-eye during your appointment, rather than at a computer screen doing data input.

In 1865, Mother Joseph and four Sisters of Providence transformed the Northwest by establishing hospitals, schools and orphanages. At Providence, we aim to keep their spirit alive, continually transforming our care to ease the way for our caregivers and patients. And we can’t wait to see where the next 170 years will take us.

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This information is not intended as a substitute for professional medical care. Always follow your health care professional’s instructions.