I used to think my ability to multitask was a superpower. I was proud of the fact that I could do a callback for one patient while charting for another, all while bouncing back and forth between my inbox and text messages. Ironically, I was in the middle of multitasking when I learned that multitasking itself is somewhat of a fallacy.
It turns out that outside of some routine nominal activities, the brain can only truly concentrate on one cognitively demanding task at once, and what feels like multitasking is actually your brain rapidly switching back and forth between tasks. The costs of this context switching are slower response times, decreased accuracy, and reduced neural resources for each task. As your attention is divided between multiple subjects, the brain fatigues more quickly, and deep thinking and creative problem-solving diminish. You are never fully present in one task, as you’re constantly thinking about what’s next, and a lack of presence increases miscommunication and decreases endurance for complex problem-solving.
As an internist, I am commonly asked to perform consults for our emergency and general practice doctors. Initially, I would attempt to do these “quick consults” while performing ultrasounds or even performing more complex procedures like endoscopy; however, I eventually learned that I was much better equipped to give clinical advice when I was sitting at a computer with the pet’s chart +/- treatment sheet open in front of me so I was fully engaged. For this reason, I’ve communicated to my staff that unless it is an urgent question, these consultations can wait until I am not actively participating in a procedure.
Now, most of us practicing clinical medicine live in the reality of seeing more than one patient simultaneously, like on a Friday night in the emergency clinic. In clinical scenarios like this, changes in priorities and urgent interruptions are part of appropriate patient care. Managing multiple patients is not the same as dividing your attention across multiple demanding tasks simultaneously. While necessary, switching between patients still means reorienting to the previous task and remembering exactly where you left off.
The area that we can control is unnecessary switching, or rather, protecting our attention during high-risk tasks. We can also make the transition of changing necessary tasks as safe as possible. This might include a brief note indicating where you left off, a checklist, and/or clear expectations with team members about which interruptions require an immediate response. If you’re looking to start small, consider reducing how often you check your phone during the workday; one study found making this change could save you up to 2 hours of productivity per day.¹
The goal isn’t to manage one patient at a time until everything is finished, but rather to focus attention on the task at hand with deliberate reprioritization when circumstances allow.