12 ways to cut your physicians' pajama time in the EHR

Family physicians are spending fewer nights finishing charts at the kitchen table, but the drop is modest. The share reporting substantial pajama time, defined as three or more hours a day of after-hours EHR work, fell from 41 percent in 2024 to 34 percent in 2026, according to a new analysis from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT published Sept. 30.

That still leaves about one in three physicians working a second shift on notes, messages and records from other organizations. The same data show 38 percent still report substantial burden tracking down outside health information. And the fix many practices are counting on hasn't closed the gap by itself: a multisite study in JAMA of 8,581 clinicians found ambient AI scribes trimmed documentation time but did not significantly change after-hours EHR work.

Most of what keeps physicians logged in at night is a workflow problem. Messages route to the wrong person, templates pad every note and outside records arrive after the patient does. Much of that can change with tools a practice already owns. Here are 12 places to start.