To advance patient and clinician well-being, the healthcare system should recognize electronic communications as essential aspects of clinician productivity. Although billing for these services may be a good first step, further codification of the appropriate use of the inbox will be needed to balance both patient and clinician priorities. Electronic healthcare reform itself will need to be bundled with other initiatives to allow clinicians to thrive and optimize patient care.
James Topilow, MD, is a second-year rheumatology fellow at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore. Following his fellowship, he will join Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, New Jersey.
Yvonne M. Golightly, PT, MS, PhD, is a professor and assistant dean for research at the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Allied Health Professions, Omaha. She is a musculoskeletal epidemiologist and a physical therapist with 20 years of experience in research and over a decade of clinical practice.
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