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Penn Medicine Nudge Unit

United States, North America

The Penn Medicine Nudge Unit, established in 2016, is the world's first behavioral design team embedded within a health system. By changing default options in electronic health records (EHRs), the unit increased generic prescribing from 75.4% to 98.4% (saving millions), reduced opioid prescriptions by 22.8% in emergency departments, and decreased unnecessary daily imaging in palliative care. The approach focuses on making the "right choice the easy choice" for both clinicians and patients.

Behavior Goal

Improve clinical decision-making and patient outcomes by embedding behavioral nudges in electronic health record systems

Target Audiences

Healthcare Workers

Implementers & Partners

  • Penn Medicine
  • University of Pennsylvania Center for Health Care Transformation and Innovation

Donors & Sponsors

  • Penn Medicine Internal Funding
  • NIH
  • AHRQ

Key Takeaways

  • 1Default options in EHRs powerfully influence prescribing behavior
  • 2Embedding behavioral scientists within health systems enables sustained change
  • 3Small changes to choice architecture can save millions and improve patient safety
  • 4Clinicians are subject to same cognitive biases as patients

Sources

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