Did you know doctors and nurses spend more than a third of their work week on paperwork? This includes maintaining detailed patient records, completing insurance forms and referrals, documenting procedures performed, organizing documentation for claims and inputting claim information into the system. A study published today by Google Cloud and The Harris Poll sheds light on the extent of this burden — and it also highlights how generative AI (gen AI) can help.

Clinicians, including doctors and nurses in the United States, report that nearly 28 hours of each week are lost to administrative tasks, leaving less time for what truly matters: patient care. It’s no wonder that 82% of clinicians report feeling burned out. This isn’t just a doctor problem: Insurance staff face an even bigger mountain of paperwork, spending 36 hours a week on administrative duties, such as maintaining member records and compiling documentation for claims.

Burnout, errors and less time with patients

This administrative overload is contributing to many of healthcare’s biggest challenges:

• Burnout and staffing shortages: 82% of clinicians, 81% of medical staff and 77% of claims staff agree that administrative work contributes to feelings of burnout. Furthermore, 85% of provider executives and 78% of insurance company (payor) executives report that excessive administrative work has led to staffing shortages.
• Reduced time with patients: 8 in 10 providers say administrative tasks detract from time spent with patients, and 68% believe this negatively impacts the quality of care. This sentiment is echoed by 93% of clinicians, 88% of medical staff, and 94% of claims staff, who believe they could dedicate more time to patient care if their administrative burden was lessened.
• Increased risk of human error: Two-thirds of providers and 89% of payors express significant concern about human error in administrative tasks, with 22% and 49%, respectively, being “extremely” concerned.

Generative AI solutions

However, there is a promising solution to help with many of these tasks: gen AI. The study found that healthcare professionals are open to using generative AI, with 91% of providers and 97% of payors saying they feel positively about AI’s potential to ease administrative burdens. The general public feels the same, with 72% of respondents saying using AI is a worthwhile way to allow their healthcare providers more time to talk to them. Here are a few ways gen AI can help:

• Making it easier to search patient documents and medical records
• Creating clinical documents, like discharge summaries, progress notes and referral letters, giving clinicians more time to focus on reviewing and finalizing the documents
• Getting prior authorizations approved faster by pre-populating forms, flagging potential issues and suggesting relevant clinical guidelines
• Speeding up turnaround times in medical imaging by creating initial drafts of reports, allowing radiologists to prioritize complex cases and collaborate more effectively

While AI can’t replace human compassion and expertise in healthcare, it can support healthcare professionals, allowing them to focus more on people, not paperwork. By easing administrative burdens, AI can pave the way to a more efficient, accurate, and human-centered system where the needs of patients are always at the forefront.