Stop Trying to Catch Up: A Better Way for Physicians to Get Their Work Done

What if “catching up” is keeping you behind? It has been hours since your last patient left the office. You still have charts to finish. Your inbox is full. Messages are piling up. You tell yourself, “I just need to catch up.”

What if trying to catch up is actually making your work feel harder than it needs to be? The instinct of wanting to catch up is understandable. Physicians want to provide excellent care and finish what needs to be done. How about stop trying to catch up and start focusing on doing the work that needs to be done? This does not mean ignoring your work or allowing tasks to pile up.

What does “stop trying to catch up” actually mean? There is a subtle but important difference. “Doing the work” focuses on what needs to be done next. “Catching up” focuses on how to get back to zero. When you think you are behind, every unfinished task becomes evidence that you are not keeping up. The goal becomes reaching an imaginary finish line where the inbox is empty, every chart is complete, and there are no outstanding tasks. In medicine, that finish line constantly moves. More patients arrive. More results come in. More messages appear. More charts need to be completed. You can complete everything currently on your list and still have more work tomorrow. Therefore, “caught up” is often a temporary state, not a sustainable way to approach your workday.

The catch-up mindset keeps you focused on being behind. When you are constantly trying to catch up, thinking “I’m behind”, “I should have finished this already”, “I can’t leave until I catch up”, or “I’ll just finish these few more charts” – this creates urgency even when everything on the list does not need to be completed immediately. You may jump from task to task because you are trying to reduce the feeling of being behind rather than intentionally deciding what deserves your attention. The result may be more switching, more mental fatigue, and longer evenings. The problem is not necessarily that you are not working hard enough. You may be working hard while operating from the belief that you are perpetually behind.

Instead of “how can I catch up?” Ask, “What needs to be done?”

Then ask, “What needs to be done first?”

And, “What is the most efficient way to do it?”

Identify what is truly urgent versus what can wait. Prioritize patient-care-related tasks properly. Batch similar work when possible. Complete one task before unnecessarily switching to another. Delegate tasks that do not require you personally. Use EMR tools, templates, shortcuts and workflows that reduce repetitive work. Notice tasks you are doing out of habit rather than necessity. Focus on completing today’s important work rather than trying to erase every sign that you have ever been busy.

You do not have to get to zero every day. I would like to invite you to challenge the belief that a successful physician should end every day with zero unread messages, zero charts, zero results or zero tasks. A sustainable workday is not necessarily one where nothing remains. The goal is to create a system where important work gets done, patients are cared for, priorities are addressed, and you can leave work without feeling that you failed because something remains. You are allowed to have work tomorrow. Having unfinished work does not automatically mean you were inefficient today.

Find ways to do the same work more efficiently. Once you stop obsessing over catching up, you have more mental space to examine how you are working.

Where are you losing time?

What tasks take longer than they should?

What are you repeatedly doing manually that can be automated?

What can you delegate?

Where are you getting interrupted?

What decisions could be made once instead of repeatedly?

What EMR features could save you time?

Efficiency is not about working faster at everything. It is about changing the way you work so the same necessary work requires less time and energy.

Shift away from “catching up”. Catching up implies you are behind. Instead, focus on “I am moving forward”. Examine your internal dialogue and reframe.

Instead of “I’m so behind”, think “What is the next important task?”

Instead of “I have so much to catch up on”, think “I know what needs my attention”.

Instead of “I can’t leave until everything is done”, think “I can prioritize what needs to be done today”.

You do not have to feel caught up to be productive. You do not have to finish everything to have had a successful day. You are where you are. Start there.

You will get the work done. You can improve how you do the work. You can create better systems. You can become more efficient without constantly pushing yourself harder. The goal is not to stop working. The goal is to stop spending your evenings and weekends trying to prove that you are finally caught up.

You do not need to catch up. You need a better way to move forward.