Gender and Academic Rank Disparities in Electronic Health Record Burden Among Otolaryngologists
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: OBJECTIVES: The electronic health record (EHR) has benefits but also adds documentation burden that is not equally shared between academic faculty. We hypothesize that male gender and senior academic rank are associated with decreased EHR burden compared to female and junior faculty. METHODS: Demographics from faculty at participating organizations were combined with 3 years of provider efficiency data. Multivariate analyses were performed to evaluate the differences in EHR burden between genders and academic ranks, clustering for otolaryngologist and institution. RESULTS: Forty-six institutions with 914 otolaryngologists (female, n = 283, 31%) were included for analysis. Median hours per day (h/d) spent in EHR tasks related to outpatient visits were 4.3, 3.5, and 3.4 h/d for female assistant, associate, and full professors, respectively; and 3.4, 2.7, and 2.3 h/d for males, likewise in ascending academic rank. These differences between median h/d in ambulatory time were significant across all six subgroups of gender and academic rank (p < 0.002). Academic seniority, but not gender, was associated with less time in ambulatory tasks after work and on days without scheduled appointments (p < 0.002). Males and otolaryngologists with higher academic rank were more likely to receive help with notes and orders (p < 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: For a typical clinic day, female assistant professors in academic otolaryngology spent nearly twice as much time as their male full professor counterparts did in the EHR completing tasks related to ambulatory patient care. The differential likelihood of faculty receiving help with notes and orders may play a role in this disparity.
Source: The Laryngoscope
DOI: 10.1002/lary.70431
Authors: Theresa Kim, Yassmeen Abdel‐Aty, Sarah R. Akkina, Greg Ator, Megan Ballard, Mihir K. Bhayani, Lauren A. Bohm, Hayley Born, Paul Bryson, Thomas L. Carroll, Orly Coblens, Alissa Collins, Christine E. DeMason, Karuna Dewan, Colin Edwards, Christina H. Fang, Nyssa Fox Farrell, Meha Goyal Fox, Katie Geelan‐Hansen, Carla Giannoni, Jennifer Gross, Anna H. Grosz, Elizabeth Guardiani, Agnes Hurtuk, Hongzhao Ji, Richard Kelley, Ashley Elizabeth Kita, Natalie A. Krane, Priya Krishna, Maggie Kuhn, Brian C. Lobo, Lyndsay L. Madden, Stephanie Misono, Nadia Moyhuddin, Matthew R. Naunheim, Miriam O'Leary, Sachin Pawar, Nicholas C. Purdy, Mindy Rabinowitz, Anaïs Rameau, Katherine Rieth, Jose W. Ruiz, Melissa Scholes, Alice L. Tang, Neelu Tummala, Andrew M. Vahabzadeh‐Hagh, James Wang, Lyndy Wilcox, Kathleen Yaremchuk, Vivian Yu, John Paul Giliberto
Institutions: Seattle Children's Hospital, University of South Florida, University of Utah, University of Kansas, Johns Hopkins University, Rush University Medical Center, University of Michigan, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Cleveland Clinic, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard University, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Duke University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Louisiana State University in Shreveport, Dartmouth–Hitchcock Medical Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center, Washington University in St. Louis, Baylor College of Medicine, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Texas Children's Hospital, Emory University, Kaiser Permanente, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Loyola University Medical Center, Loyola Medicine, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, SUNY Upstate Medical University, University of California, Los Angeles, Oregon Health & Science University, Loma Linda University, University of California Davis Medical Center, University of California, Davis, University of Florida Health, University of Florida, Wake Forest University, University of Minnesota, Houston Methodist, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Tufts University, Medical College of Wisconsin, Geisinger College of Health Sciences, Thomas Jefferson University, Weill Cornell Medicine, University of Rochester Medicine, University of Miami, University of Mississippi, University of Cincinnati, George Washington University, University of California San Diego, Northwestern University, Vanderbilt University, Henry Ford Health, Henry Ford Hospital, University of Washington
Language: English
Subfield: Health Information Management
Field: Health Professions
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $4,840
OpenAlex ID: W7129648456