Examining the Phenomenon of the Administrative Burden in Health Care, Allied Health, and Respiratory Care.

Documentation expectations for allied health professional appears to have changed dramatically in the past decade. The purpose of this essay is to discuss the literature related to clinician perceptions of these documentation expectations and changes in the workload attributable to such administrative duties, review the results of a recent pilot project surveying respiratory therapists' perception of documentation, and reflect upon the potential ramifications of excessive documentation. This commentary also discusses some recommendations for the future in terms of the design of documentation systems and the need for additional research to further explore this area.