I wonder if there is a difference between older and younger physicians when it comes to how much time they spend, and would prefer to spend, with patients.

In 1984, fresh out of residency, I was the young man trying out a position in Livermore Falls, Maine. The two 50-something family doctors wrote their notes by hand, standing up at the counter in a shared area. There wasn’t a whole lot of other paperwork to do.

Now, I read statistics from the American Medical Association that doctors spend more than 50% of their time with their electronic medical records (EMRs) systems, which at least, to a degree, means away from their patients. I guess I’m a little slow, but it’s finally becoming clear to me why I am always behind on my charts.

Being old school, I have little patience for the fact that I am expected to tear myself away from my patients – worried, suffering fellow human beings – because the technology I’m required to use is pathetically clumsy and obviously not created by people like me who know and respect what I need in order to help my patients.