Doctors are drowning in paperwork. Remote talent may be the lifeline

Burnout among primary care physicians has become one of the most urgent and persistent challenges in American health care. While rising patient volumes and workforce shortages often dominate the headlines, a quieter, more insidious problem is eroding both physician well-being and practice performance: administrative overload.

Today’s physicians are spending nearly as much time on paperwork as they are with patients. According to the 2023 Medscape Physician Compensation Report, doctors report dedicating an average of 15.5 hours per week to administrative tasks — from charting and coding to prior authorizations and insurance verifications. In a separate study by the Association of American Medical Colleges, more than one in eight physicians now cite administrative work as their primary source of stress. And in Medical Economics’ own 2024 Physician Report, doctors said the burden of paperwork/quality metrics was No. 1 among the top 10 issues facing physicians today.

This bureaucratic burden is more than just frustrating — it’s deeply destabilizing. It’s a key driver of burnout and an accelerating factor behind the U.S. primary care shortage, which is projected to reach 86,000 physicians by 2036. But the consequences extend far beyond the physicians themselves.

When tasks like documentation, scheduling and follow-ups are mismanaged — or left to already overextended providers — the entire system begins to fray. Patient wait times grow, insurance claims get denied, and critical details get lost in documentation errors. The doctor-patient relationship suffers, not because of clinical gaps but because physicians simply don’t have the time or energy left to offer the personalized care that patients expect — and that doctors want to provide.

A recent Wall Street Journal article captured this tension well, highlighting how many physicians are cutting back hours or exiting the field entirely — not due to a lack of passion for medicine but because the day-to-day demands of running a modern practice have become unmanageable.

Rethinking support: The rise of remote talent

While structural reform in health care will take time, some solutions are available now and are already delivering results. One that’s gaining significant traction is the use of remote administrative talent: trained professionals who take on the critical but time-consuming nonclinical work that bogs down practices every day.

Remote support is not about outsourcing in the traditional sense. Today’s leading models integrate HIPAA-compliant, pre-vetted remote staff who become true extensions of the in-house team. These professionals manage appointment scheduling, patient intake, insurance follow-ups, billing and electronic health record documentation — functions that are essential to a practice’s health but do not require a medical degree.

By shifting these responsibilities to dedicated remote team members, practices can restore focus and time to the people whose attention matters most: the clinicians.

A scalable solution in action

At DHR Health, one of South Texas’ largest health care systems, the administrative pain points were familiar: high turnover, gaps in front-office staffing, and an overwhelmed clinical staff forced to cover both patient care and paperwork.

In 2023, DHR partnered with Edge, a platform that matches health care practices with skilled remote administrative talent. Over the course of a year, the organization integrated 75 remote professionals across 13 departments, with onboarding averaging just 15 days — a fraction of the typical 60- to 90-day timeline for in-person hires. The results were both operational and financial: more than $900,000 saved annually in staffing costs and, more importantly, a marked improvement in physician satisfaction and workflow.

The success of DHR Health underscores the tangible benefits of leveraging a remote workforce to alleviate administrative burdens. By streamlining clerical tasks, the organization has enhanced physician satisfaction and retention — critical factors in delivering high-quality care. This approach aligns with findings from a 2021 study published in Health Services Research, which demonstrated that administrative burdens negatively impact patients’ experiences of care. By minimizing administrative stress, physicians can devote more attention to patient interactions, fostering stronger doctor-patient relationships and providing more personalized, attentive care.

Protecting the doctor-patient relationship

In an era when technology is often sold as a cure-all, the simplest and most sustainable solution may be to reallocate work to the right people. Remote administrative support doesn’t just reduce physician stress — it protects the essential human connection that defines great care.

It also enables practices to respond more flexibly to seasonal surges, staff absences or sudden demand spikes without overburdening the core team. With reliable, scalable remote help, practices maintain continuity of care, reduce staff burnout and avoid the revenue loss that comes from claim denials or delayed processing.

What’s more, this model is accessible. It doesn’t require massive infrastructure overhauls or long implementation timelines. It’s an operational shift that meets practices where they are and gives physicians the breathing room they desperately need.

A smarter way forward

Physician burnout is not inevitable. While systemic reform in health care delivery, reimbursement and policy remains critical, we can’t afford to overlook practical interventions that work today. Remote administrative talent is one of those levers that is powerful, proven and ready to scale.

The doctors keeping our communities healthy don’t need more tools or dashboards. They need time. Time to listen, to think and to care. Giving it back to them may be the smartest investment a practice can make, not just for physician well-being but for patient outcomes, financial sustainability and the future of primary care itself.

Iffi Wahla is co-founder and CEO of global hiring platform Edge, which is on a mission to make global hiring and working easier than local and aims to democratize access to fair wages and jobs around the world.