Less Time in your In Basket — The Great 8!

Johns Hopkins Medicine is going through a change initiative to off-load physician/faculty In Basket work by empowering staff to manage more messages, and by teaching everyone to be more efficient. The Great 8 In Basket Optimization Initiative has three phases, starting with general education and training of clinical support staff, managers and providers (Phase 1), followed by at-elbow coaching to reinforce the new workflows (Phase 2), and longer-term reinforcement, re-education and evaluation (Phase 3). 

All Johns Hopkins faculty, physicians/APPs, managers and clinical support staff members in our ambulatory practices should register for training.

Questions? Email: [email protected]

FAQS & Guides

See below for Great 8 In Basket resources including eLearnings, FAQs, job aids, reference guides, and more.

Download the In Basket Scope of Practice

Ambulatory In Basket Overview Video (26 minutes)

In Basket Upgrade Overview Guide
In Basket - Comprehensive Guide
In Basket - In Basket Quick Start Guide
In Basket FAQs

For Physicians/APPs:
JHM | The Great 8 | eLearning | Providers | Introduction to In Basket Optimization
Optimize your In Basket
In Basket Management for Providers

For Managers
JHM | The Great 8 | eLearning | Managers | Introduction to In Basket Optimization
Epic In Basket for Managers
In Basket Management Strategy for Clinical Departments

For Clinical Support Staff
JHM | The Great 8 | eLearning | Staff | Introduction to In Basket Optimization
Clinical / Non-Clinical In Basket Management

Need additional resources?  Please visit the Epic Training Portal for more.

Maturing the Message

The goal of the Great 8 In Basket Optimization Initiative is to empower staff to work to the top of their scope of practice and to create a culture of ‘maturing the message.’

'Maturing the message' encourages each member of the care team to maximize their contributions by adding value to the message before forwarding to the next recipient with goal of setting the recipient up for success. Maturing the message may include pending a refill order, pending a referral order, pre-populating a letter or documenting key information using a standard smartphrase. Over the next five weeks we will be releasing our Mature the Message in a Minute video series. These 1-min videos will show you how maturing the message works to promote team-base care for In Basket management. Each video will also be accompanied by the corresponding Quick Tips video for step-by-step Epic instructions.  Work with your clinical teams to ensure these workflows are in place in your practice.

For more information on how your practice can implement mature the message guidelines, see our Best Practices for In Basket Management and a sample Guidelines document. Any questions or to schedule an In Basket Sprint for your area, email [email protected]. 

In Basket Sprint

At the heart of every healthcare team's success lies effective task management, especially when it comes to In Basket tasks. We understand that managing test results, refill requests, patient medical advice, durable medical equipment, referrals, scheduling, and paperwork can be a complex and time-consuming endeavor. That's why we've developed the "Great 8" workflows, which are a set of tried-and-true processes designed to streamline and simplify common In Basket tasks. These workflows cover a spectrum of responsibilities, from handling test results to managing paperwork, and their primary aim is to make your team's work more efficient and safer. 

We believe that teamwork is the cornerstone of success, and the Great 8 training is all about ensuring that your entire team collaborates seamlessly to complete these tasks. Efficiency and safety go hand in hand, and we're here to help your team achieve both.  But we don't stop at training. Our In Basket Sprints take it a step further. We work closely with physicians, APPs, and staff, providing personalized coaching sessions to tailor the In Basket to your unique needs. The goal? To ensure every team member operates at peak efficiency, reducing the time spent on each In Basket message.  We're not just about individual efficiency; we're about optimizing the entire team's performance. By enabling each team member to work at the top of their scope, we free up capacity for the team as a whole to tackle more messages. It's about working smarter and delivering the best care possible.  And finally, our efforts extend to assisting leadership in implementing operating procedures that bolster team-based care. We're here to provide the support and guidance you need to make this transition seamless.

Ready to Transform Your Workflow?

If you believe your department or division could benefit from an In Basket Sprint and the Great 8 workflows, don't hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected]. We're excited to partner with you on this journey towards more efficient, safer, and patient-focused healthcare.

Let's get started on optimizing your In Basket tasks and revolutionizing your team's approach to healthcare delivery.

Webinars, Articles, Publications

Learn more about In Basket Management and Well-Being

Webinars
Taming the In Basket with Kaiser Permanente Colorado: Walk Before You Run – Starting to Crawl 
Taming the In Basket with Epic: MyChart Messaging - What's Next Development Road Map 

Articles & Publications
Physicians’ Well-Being Linked To In-Basket Messages Generated By Algorithms In Electronic Health Records
Electronic health records and burnout: Time spent on the electronic health record after hours and message volume associated with exhaustion but not with cynicism among primary care clinicians
Organizational Evidence-Based and Promising Practices for Improving Clinician Well-Being

Additional Links
Combating Clinician Burnout
AMA STEPS Forward® Practice Toolkits
JHM Office of Wellbeing