Project RENEW: A Nursing Informatics Led Initiative to Reduce Documentation Burden.

Documentation burden within the United States has grown to unprecedented proportions. Poor usability of the electronic health record has been identified as one of the root causes of documentation burden. By using a structured review process, the nursing informatics team at Northwestern Medicine Healthcare identified opportunities for improved usability. Solutions were generated and proposed to a team of nurse experts for review and approval. The approved solutions were implemented into the electronic health record through this efficient and agile process. Project RENEW impacted documentation burden by reducing unnecessary nursing tasks, improving usability of flowsheets, and reducing clicks to complete documentation.