True stories about the impact that AI is making on providers’ lives by combatting clinical documentation burden.
There is no denying the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare.
There is also no denying the burden clinical documentation can create in providers’ lives.
But how can AI combat the documentation burden and the burnout it causes?
Beyond how it functions and how it increases efficiency, AI-powered technology should make a positive impact for the healthcare providers who leverage it every day.
What is clinical documentation?
Clinical documentation is the process of recording patient encounters, diagnoses, treatments, medications, and care decisions in the EHR to support patient care, regulatory compliance, and reimbursement.
Before the electronic medical record, providers completed paper charts in the office. Now, with ongoing mobile access to charts via the EHR and patient portals, providers are finding themselves completing notes and charts longer and taking this work home with them.
Why does clinical documentation contribute to physician burnout?
Healthcare professionals face unique work-life balance challenges because of long hours, high-stakes decision-making, and the growing burden of clinical documentation.
Sometimes referred to as work-home interference, many physicians experience this when the demands of work and home life clash, or when the pressure from one affects the other. Thus, many providers find it nearly impossible to fully disconnect from work and fully connect to their personal and familial lives, causing burnout.
Provider burnout is especially present when providers bring work home with them and complete clinical documentation on weekends and on their days off.
Of the top four causes of burnout, the top reason is time pressure, especially related to patient visits or clinical documentation. In 2025, 41.9% of physicians reported at least one symptom of burnout.
Combating this burnout requires technology that is not only designed for efficiency but is also crafted with its users' real lives in mind.
How NextGen Clinical AI reduces documentation burden
At NextGen Healthcare, when we say we’re developing AI that will end after-hours charting, it really means we have the opportunity to give providers time back to spend on themselves and with their families, rather than on clinical documentation.
NextGen® Clinical AI and AI Scribe save providers up to 2.5 hours per day by transcribing patient and provider conversations and turning them into structured SOAP notes that automatically integrate into the NextGen EHR.
NextGen Clinical AI:
- Saves providers 2.5 hours per day
- Reduces after-hours charting by up to 57% (University of Delaware)
- Minimizes PAQ sign-offs after 5 PM by up to 57% (Rheumatology Specialty Center)
But for the doctors that we support, the real value is in how this translates into their real lives. NextGen Clinical AI:
- Gets them home early to their families
- Allows them to leave their computer behind during family getaways
- Alleviates the mental burden in and out of the clinic
For us, AI is about the impact. For providers, this impact is about making a difference in their lives.
Hear from real providers about the difference AI is making in their daily lives.
Real provider stories: Life beyond after-hours charting
Across orthopedics, OB/GYN, and podiatry, physicians see the difference that NextGen Clinical AI makes through reduced after-hours charting, improved work-life balance, and spending more time with their families.
“I’m not doing notes anymore.”
When Dr. Keval Parikh started as a foot and ankle surgeon, he found himself staying at the office until 7:00, 8:00, or even 9:00 in the evening to complete all his clinical notes. Eventually, he decided to start going home after he saw patients. However, he was still spending his evenings completing notes after dinner alongside his wife, who is a physical therapist.
“I always saw myself at that point kind of catching up. I spoke with my partner like, ‘there has to be a better way.’” After researching different options, Dr. Parikh signed on for a trial of NextGen® Office Clinical AI to see if it could help reduce his after-hours charting and allow him to stop playing catch-up.
“After about two weeks [of the trial], I decided…I’m just going to get my own license because I kind of like it. From there, I think I've changed the way that I've been practicing. Now I feel like I'm asking more questions. I'm being more clinical. I'm talking to the patients more. I'm explaining more, and I'm seeing that in my notes.
“So the difference from then to now is that now, when I go home, only my wife is doing notes. I'm not doing notes anymore. My notes are done. Either before I leave or I sign them the next day. They're pretty much fully done.”
“My life is a complete 180.”
As a practicing gynecologist for 21 years, Dr. Bani Bajaj remembers when paper notes were full of illegible chicken scratch, but at least they were left at the office, and she went on with her day.
Since transitioning to the EHR in 2009, she slowly realized how much of her life clinical documentation began to take over. “I was literally drowning.”
On a typical day, she would wake up at 4:30 AM to review portal messages and labs. After her day in the office, Dr. Bajaj says she “would do charts at home throughout the evening. Never see my kids, not cook dinner, not do anything. Then go to bed at 9 –10 PM.”
Then, she started using NextGen Clinical AI and AI Scribe. “My life is a complete 180.”
Now, Dr. Bajaj shuts off her computer 30 minutes after her last patient, leaving her time to spend with her kids, cook family meals, and enjoy life outside of work.
“It’s been a game changer for me.”
Dr. Keith M. Nord is the only orthopedic hand surgeon at his practice, Sports Orthopedics & Spine in Jackson, Tennessee. This brought his patient volume to around 45 patients on an average day.
Sometimes, he was also left without a scribe, leaving him with over an hour’s worth of clinical documentation to complete after clinic hours. This overtime took away quality time with his family and led to early signs of burnout.
Once he implemented NextGen AI Scribe, he now sees his last patient at 4:30 and is out the door by 5 PM, getting him home for dinner and bath time with his kids. “It’s absolutely changed my sense of well-being and honestly prevented burnout…But not only that, I think my family’s happier, my wife’s happier because I get to come home early.”
“You look at the note and go, ‘oh my gosh, this is amazing.’”
Dr. D’Andra D. Bingham has been in private practice in gynecology and obstetrics for over 20 years. Upon transitioning to the EHR, she watched her after-hours clinical documentation increase and saw colleagues pursue other careers as the demands of documentation became too overwhelming. “Many just couldn’t take it.”
However, with the implementation of NextGen Clinical AI and AI Scribe, Dr. Bingham feels an improvement in her professional and personal life.
In the clinic, AI Scribe allows her to quickly complete notes after the visit. “I’ve had a really good time with it because you come out of the exam room and you look at the note and go, ‘oh my gosh, this is amazing.’ We’ve really enjoyed it at the office.”
Outside of the clinic, AI Scribe has allowed Dr. Bingham to fully enjoy her time off. She typically travels to her lake house twice a month with her family, and before AI Scribe, she would bring her laptop along with her. “Normally on the weekend, I’ll spend four to six hours on Saturday and four to six hours on Sunday, maybe more, charting.”
Now, with less than an hour of charts to do after clinic, she’s leaving the laptop at home – for the first time in seven years.
It’s about more than clicks
As we remain focused on advancing technology, the growth of AI, and how these advancements will impact the future of our world, our NextGen Healthcare team is committed to Responsible AI that is embedded throughout the entire lifecycle.
Our approach to AI is built around end-to-end solutions that solve the real challenges providers and practice staff face. Our AI is human-centered, secure by design, built on trusted data, and continuously monitored.
Our goal is AI that is connected, governed, scalable, and purpose-built for healthcare, because healthcare technology is more than just what it does or how many clicks it reduces — it’s about what it gives back to you.
Discover the impact that NextGen Healthcare AI solutions can make at your practice. Schedule time to discuss with our team.
