Physician burnout is a problem that is not going away. A Mayo Clinic study found that in 2021, 62.8% of physicians had at least 1 manifestation of burnout. This is similar to a Kaiser Family Foundation and Washington Post study, which found that 55% of frontline healthcare workers reported burnout, with this number increasing to 69% for workers between the ages of 18 and 29 years old. Clinician burnout has negative effects on everyone in healthcare, and enacting solutions to prevent burnout is long overdue.
While health tech is often considered a contributor to burnout, it can also help reduce it. The need for solutions doesn’t just apply to attending physicians — medical students on clinical rotations are already feeling many of the same pressures. Long hours, steep learning curves, and the challenge of navigating different EHR systems can make task management overwhelming. Learning how to use the right tools early in your career can help protect against burnout, keep you organized, and set you up for success in residency and beyond.
Why Task Management Matters in Clinical Rotations
Rotations challenge students to juggle multiple layers of responsibility at once:
- Patient care tasks: Following up on labs, prepping for rounds, updating problem lists.
- Documentation and notes: Writing H&Ps, organizing SOAP notes, and preparing for case presentations.
- Learning goals: Tracking new conditions, procedures, and pearls of wisdom from attendings and residents.
Without a clear system for managing all of this, it’s easy to fall into reactive mode — scrambling to remember what needs to be done, re-writing notes in different places, or even missing details. Over time, this can increase stress and mimic the same burnout patterns seen in fully practicing clinicians.
That’s why task management for medical students isn’t just about productivity — it’s about maintaining focus, confidence, and balance during some of the most formative years of your career.
What Gets in the Way of Staying Organized?
Several common barriers pop up during rotations:
- Learning new EHRs every few months: Just as you figure one system out, you move to a different site with a completely different workflow.
- Scattered notes: Many students default to Google Docs, texts, or paper — methods that are often insecure, inefficient, and non-compliant with HIPAA.
- Administrative overload: Even as students, you spend a surprising amount of time charting, copying data, and documenting, all of which can eat into study or rest time.
Practicing clinicians report similar challenges, with surveys pointing to bureaucratic tasks and inbox management as leading drivers of burnout. If seasoned physicians are struggling with these issues, it’s no wonder medical students feel the strain.
Strategies for Effective Task Management
Here are some approaches to make rotations more manageable:
- Create a single source of truth. Whether digital or analog, consolidate your to-dos, notes, and patient data in one place. Switching between platforms creates mental clutter.
- Structure your notes consistently. Use repeatable formats (like SOAP) so you don’t waste time figuring out how to present information each time.
- Leverage templates and shortcuts. Even small efficiencies — pre-made note headers, common phrase shortcuts — can save minutes that add up.
- Prioritize tasks visually. Color coding, flags, or simple urgency markers help you quickly decide what to tackle first.
- Integrate learning into your workflow. Add a space to jot down “teaching pearls” or conditions you want to review later, so learning doesn’t get lost in the shuffle.
How Technology Can Help
Health tech, often blamed for clinician burnout, can also be part of the solution — especially when it’s designed to reduce administrative work, improve interoperability, and streamline communication. For medical students, technology that supports task management during clinical rotations can be a game-changer.
HIPAA-compliant platforms like CareAlign allow students to:
- Keep patient tasks and notes organized across different EHRs.
- Collaborate with the clinical team in real time.
- Build a structured, portable system that travels with them from one rotation to the next.
By adopting these tools early, students not only make rotations less stressful but also build habits that will serve them in residency, where efficiency and organization become even more critical.