Skip to content
MedXtractMedXtract

The Evidence Behind MedXtract

Peer-reviewed research shows how much time is lost to documentation and how error-prone manual data entry can be.

1. Time Burden

2+ hours of clerical work per 1 hour with patients

Multiple studies consistently show physicians spend more time in the EHR and on desk work than face-to-face care, and this trend has persisted.

For every 1 hour of direct care, physicians spend ~2 additional hours on EHR/desk work; plus 1–2 hours after hours.

  1. Sinsky, C., et al. (2016). Allocation of Physician Time in Ambulatory Practice: A Time and Motion Study in 4 Specialties.. Annals of Internal Medicine, 165(11), 753–760.

PCPs spend ~5.9 of 11.4 daily hours in the EHR; ~1.4 hours occur after clinic.

  1. Arndt, B. G., et al. (2017). Tethered to the EHR: Primary Care Physician Workload Assessment Using EHR Event Log Data and Time-Motion Observations.. Annals of Family Medicine, 15(5), 419–426.

The documentation burden has persisted; EHR time and inbox volume remain high from 2019–2023.

  1. Melnick, E. R., et al. (2024). Trends in Electronic Health Record Time Among Primary Care Physicians, 2019–2023.. Annals of Family Medicine, 22(1), 32–39.

2. Error Rates

~6.6% manual data entry error rate

Manual abstraction introduces avoidable errors that affect billing, compliance, and patient safety. Double-entry helps but is rarely feasible operationally.

Across 93 studies, manual single data entry error rate averaged 6.6%; double entry cut errors to ~0.14%.

  1. Garza, M., et al. (2023). Data entry error rates in medical record abstraction: a systematic review and meta-analysis.. Journal of Clinical and Translational Science, 7, e228.

Findings replicated: manual abstraction error rates cluster around 5–7% across contexts.

  1. Garza, M., et al. (2024). Error rates in clinical data abstraction: a meta-analysis of single vs. double entry approaches.. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 24, 172.

Why this matters

  • Clinicians lose hours daily to clerical work; automation gives time back to care.
  • Manual entry bakes in a 5–7% error rate; automation reduces rework and risk.
  • Better data quality improves billing accuracy, audit readiness, and patient safety.
Back to demo
© 2025 MedXtract