Ambient documentation: Improving the Medication Therapy Disease Management pharmacist’s productivity by decreasing documentation time

Authors: Anthony Olson, Leeann Webster, Stacey Grassi and Duncan Dobbins

productivity by decreasing d Authors: Anthony Olson, Leeann Webster, S Geisinger’s Medication Therapy Disease Management (MTDM) clinical pharmacists devote a sizable share of each workday to documenting notes for their clinical encounters in the electronic health record (EHR). The amount of time and effort pharmacists spend working in EHRs — often extending beyond regular clinic hours — has been associated with burnout and care quality concerns. Research suggests that clerical tasks, such as documentation, consume cognitive bandwidth that could otherwise be directed toward clinical decision-making, patient communication and other high-value activities.

Recent advancements in artificial intelligence have introduced new tools like ambient listening and documentation, which aim to reduce the time and effort clinicians spend working in the EHR.

Geisinger has deployed an ambient listening and documentation tool that auto-generates drafts of EHR notes from audio recordings of patient visits with MTDM pharmacists. Patient consent is required to activate the tool for privacy and transparency, and pharmacists must review and validate each note for comprehensiveness and accuracy before it is finalized in the EHR.

Early research and pilot feedback indicate that such tools help clinicians document more quickly, accurately, clearly and comprehensively. The time saved on documentation can also reduce screen time for pharmacists, creating more opportunities for direct patient engagement — a shift that may enhance the patient’s experience and the provider’s satisfaction.

In February 2025, MTDM piloted ambient documentation with 4 pharmacists practicing across 3 distinct patient populations. Two pharmacists were embedded in MTDM Family Practice, 1 in MTDM Pain Management, and 1 in Geisinger 65 Forward, which focuses on

ocumentation time cey Grassi and Duncan Dobbins senior-focused care. The response from all pilot participants was overwhelmingly positive, citing improved efficiency and reduced administrative burden. Based on this success, 6 additional pharmacists were added to the program, including MTDM Specialty pharmacists.

To date, 43 MTDM pharmacists have used ambient documentation to complete 5,969 notes, saving an average of 2.2 minutes per note and a cumulative total of 216 hours of documentation time compared to manual entry. (Figure 1) This time savings translates into increased clinical availability and reduced after-hours workload. More MTDM pharmacists have expressed interest in joining the program, but the platform currently requires an iPhone to use the app. Later this year, the app is expected to become compatible with Android devices, which will allow broader enrollment across the MTDM pharmacist team.

As Geisinger continues to explore innovative solutions to reduce administrative burden and improve care delivery, ambient documentation stands out as a promising tool to support clinician well-being and enhance patient-centered care.

Figure 1

Documentation time saved 5,696 Ambient sessions 2.2 Avg minutes saved per note Total hours saved