After completing a well-received pilot with physicians and clinical documentation specialists, UNC Health has started a phased rollout of Evidently, a new AI-powered clinical summary tool.
Evidently captures and organizes information from Epic medical records, Care Everywhere, and scanned documents in the Epic Media tab. In seconds, the tool produces summaries that not only save time – the output can enhance care and improve clinical documentation. Evidently supports a wide range of workflows, such as processing referrals, managing prior authorizations, and identifying potential research participants.
“Medicine is fundamentally an information-processing discipline. Yet today, we are drowning in information but still starved for knowledge,” explained Dr. Spencer Dorn, a gastroenterologist and UNC Faculty Physicians’ executive medical director of care innovation. “In the past, I’ve typically spent nearly three hours the night before clinic reviewing medical records to prepare for the next day. With Evidently, I spend half as much time and occasionally see information I may not have found on my own.”
Dr. Dorn was not alone in his Evidently experience: During UNC Health’s pilot phase using the tool, Hospitalists reported saving 15-minutes per admission while Specialists reported saving up to 30 minutes per half-day clinic. Nearly 90% of users reported feeling satisfied with the tool and believed it helps them provide better care.
UNC Health’s pilot phase also highlighted how Evidently streamlines and enhances the work done by our operational teams in areas such as improving documentation integrity by our clinical documentation specialists, drafting admission denial appeals by our physician advisors, doing complex chart reviews for trauma and other surveys, and more.
Phased Implementation and Responsible AI-Tool Management
UNC Health has begun a broad rollout of Evidently across the Triangle—making it one of the first health systems in the country to do so. Leaders are committed to a thoughtful, responsible implementation.
Select departments in UNC Health Triangle locations started using the tool with at-the-elbow ISD support, with a goal to maintain a high standard of responsible vetting and integration of AI-tools.
“Evidently is a powerful tool with a lot of potential to help our clinical and operational teams,” explained Vineeta Khemani, the system’s executive director for information technology. “The use case for each job function and specialty is different. Our intentional, phased roll out allows us to support clinicians and teammates in a precise manner while informing how we might scale appropriate trainings and the tool for wider organizational use in the future. It is our plan to make this tool available to all Epic users with chart access at scoped locations by the end of June.”
Need to Know
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Scoped locations include:
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UNC Hospitals Chapel Hill and Hillsborough campuses
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UNC Health Rex
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Rex Holly Springs Hospital
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UNC Health Medical Group clinics in the Triangle
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UNC Health Medical Group specialty clinics in Smithfield and Clayton (Johnston County)
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Clinicians and teammates will hear from department leaders if their team is included in the early phases of the roll out.
Questions or want to learn more about Evidently?
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Check the Evidently Intranet site for more information. You may also access the site from Epic by clicking “References” on the toolbar and selecting Epic@UNC Training Library
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For additional questions, please contact one of the following colleagues:
This initiative is part of Forward Together 2030. Thanks to members of the Ease of Practice work group – supporting our Strengthened Physician Organization – for their efforts on this project.