Sentara’s AI cuts clinician burnout, boosts efficiency in EHR overhaul
VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES — Sentara Healthcare’s AI-driven electronic health record (EHR) enhancements are transforming acute care delivery, reducing clinician burnout while improving documentation accuracy.
The health system’s phased rollout, backed by physician champions, has achieved over 75% adoption—far exceeding initial expectations.
AI-powered EHR optimization enhances clinical workflows
In a published article by Laura Dyrda in Becker’s Health IT, she wrote that Sentara Healthcare’s AI pilot, launched three years ago, equipped hospitalists with an engine that scans a patient’s entire EHR history, flagging potential conditions for review.
Clinicians may either accept or reject the suggestions made by the AI, which would simplify note-taking and enable practitioners to spend more time with patients.
Such a tool’s success prompted wider implementation, and now discharge summaries are auto-generated using historical data, which allows post-acute care providers to maintain continuous work.
Initial challenges, including AI hallucinations in discharge notes, were resolved through iterative model training. Today, the system is operational across all 12 of Sentara’s acute care facilities, with plans to expand to other service areas.
Tim Skeen, Chief Information Officer (CIO) of Sentara Healthcare, credits the tool for improving documentation quality, safety, and revenue capture by ensuring comprehensive billing.
“We found that to be very beneficial in terms of proving quality, safety and financial benefits in terms of being able to fully build the work that was done more comprehensively, and it’s something we’ve rolled across to all of our 12 acute facilities,” said Skeen.
Physician champions drive unprecedented adoption rates
Facility-specific champions helped redesign processes, emphasizing reduced burnout and more patient-facing time—critical selling points for skeptical staff.
Skeen noted that traditional tech rollouts often struggle to hit even 25% adoption, making this a standout success.
The model has since been replicated for other AI initiatives, including ambient voice tools. Sentara’s One Sentara framework now prioritizes projects with measurable return on investment (ROI), combining metrics, such as revenue recovery, with softer gains, like burnout reduction.
Implications for healthcare systems
The activities of Sentara in integrating AI align with the use of scale, ethically authorized technology, striking a balance between efficient technologies and ethical oversight by clinicians.
The fact that the health system focuses on measurable ROI, both monetary and operational, provides a guide for other organizations implementing AI.
“Let’s get those resources and grab the next thing that has the biggest ROI that we want to bring in that brings value to our business as well as the consumer,” Skeen stated.
By centering on physician buy-in and iterative testing, Sentara has transformed potential skepticism into a system-wide asset, demonstrating that AI’s real value lies in augmenting—not replacing—human expertise.
