How to Unlock the Full Potential of Epic: Proven Optimization Tactics

Within the currently evolving healthcare technology landscape, implementing Epic is no longer the finish line; it’s the starting point. With Epic now capturing over 42 % of the U.S. acute-care hospital market and securing 176 new facilities in 2024 alone, the system has become the de facto backbone for major health networks. Yet all too many organizations stop at deployment, leaving potential productivity gains, improved revenue-cycle performance and staff satisfaction unrealized. Unlocking the full potential of Epic requires three deliberate actions: aligning strategy with usage, fine-tuning processes and workflows, and securing the right talent and partnerships. In this blog, we walk you through these actionable angles that ensure your Epic investment transforms from ‘live’ to ‘leveraged’, starting today.

Market Momentum & Strategic Imperative

The Big Picture

In the U.S. health-care IT landscape, the dominance of the Epic platform is clear, and for good reason. As of 2024, Epic captured roughly 42.3% of the acute-care hospital EHR market and about 54.9% of acute care hospital beds, according to KLAS. This degree of market penetration means that Epic often defines the baseline for what hospitals expect from an EHR.

Consequently, organizations are not able to afford viewing Epic implementation as a one-and-done project. Instead, they have to embrace genuine Epic optimization as a strategic imperative. In other words, simply having Epic live is no longer sufficient; to remain competitive, efficient and agile, health systems need to actively engage in purposeful EHR optimization strategies and optimization tactics that elevate performance, workflow, and value.

Why Now?

First, the rapid growth of Epic puts pressure on peer institutions. When a vendor holds over 40% of the acute care market, ASTM standards, interoperability expectations and competitive benchmarks shift accordingly. Hospitals that lag in adopting best-in-class workflows risk being judged against a “minimum” set by those who invested in higher-maturity Epic deployments.

Second, the cost of under-utilization is rising. Many organizations discover that despite significant investment in Epic, they have not unlocked the full potential of modules, workflows and analytics. That means missed revenue opportunities, chronic inefficiencies and talent burnout. Recent research emphasizes that true EHR optimization strategies improve usability, provider satisfaction and patient outcomes.

Third, regulatory and value-based care pressures are intensifying. As care moves toward outcome-based reimbursement and interoperability requirements deepen, organizations need advanced optimization tactics embedded in Epic to support the transition. Thus, Epic optimization becomes not just an operational choice but a strategic necessity.

In essence, because Epic now sets the standard, you have to go beyond deployment and adopt purposeful Epic optimization and EHR optimization strategies if you want to remain ahead. With that foundation in place, you are ready to dive into concrete tactics.

Optimization Tactics: From Modules to Metrics

Fine-Tuning Your Platform

Once the strategic imperative is understood, the next step is hands-on execution of Epic optimization. First and foremost, you need to identify priority areas where optimization tactics yield measurable improvement. For example, a large integrated delivery network in California eliminated 58 redundant tasks and reduced clinician “In Basket” message volume by nearly 1,000 per day through focused workflow redesign within Epic.

Key Tactics to Deploy

1. Module Rationalization & Workflow Standardization

   1. Review which Epic modules are live versus which are actually used. Remove or disable seldom-used modules to reduce complexity, thereby advancing your Epic optimization.

   2. Standardize preferred order lists, charge capture workflows, and build templates. This is one of the most effective EHR optimization strategies to reduce clicks and save provider time. For instance, after a build-cleanup, one provider saved 10-20 minutes per clinician per day.

2. Analytics & Real-Time Metrics

   1. Deploy dashboards that show utilization metrics: e.g., percentage of providers using MyChart, number of clicks per encounter, frequency of custom builds. These help you track progress on optimization tactics and create accountability.

   2. Leverage predictive and generative AI tools within Epic: approximately two-thirds of Epic providers are already using generative-AI features to streamline documentation and administrative work, a clear example of advanced Epic optimization.

3. Quick-Win Projects to Build Momentum

   1. Choose one or two tactical projects that deliver results in 90 days: for example, optimize prescription-renewal workflows (a recommended EHR optimization strategy).

   2. Use the results of those quick wins (time saved, reduction in cancelled visits, improved patient portal usage) to secure stakeholder buy-in for larger initiatives around optimization tactics.

Sustaining the Gains

It’s vital to embed monitoring and continuous improvement so that your Epic optimization doesn’t stall. Create governance structures that review dashboard metrics monthly, enable a feedback loop for user suggestions, and integrate new features (such as Epic’s evolving AI capabilities) into your roadmap of EHR optimization strategies. Over time, this disciplined approach to optimization tactics ensures that your Epic investment remains dynamic, not static.

In short, by focusing on module rationalization, leveraging analytics, and executing quick-win projects, you move from basic implementation to true Epic optimization. These EHR optimization strategies and optimization tactics lay the groundwork for measurable improvement in workflow efficiency, provider satisfaction and operational outcomes.

Talent, Partnerships & Change Management

While technology and workflows form the backbone of successful deployments, it is people and partnerships that often determine how fully you achieve Epic optimization. To be precise, effective EHR optimization strategies depend on having certified talent, structured governance, and continuous change-management mechanisms rather than just system build-out.

Successful Epic optimization begins with the right people and governance. Hiring Epic-certified professionals ensures your team has deep, hands-on expertise across modules like Ambulatory, Inpatient, Beaker, and others, expertise that is hard to cultivate internally. Partnering with a specialist staffing firm such as HERS Advisors provides a distinct advantage: the company focuses on recruiting Epic-certified professionals and delivering consulting services that enhance system performance, streamline workflows, and help healthcare organizations maximize their investment in Epic. This form of collaboration becomes a vital optimization tactic when in-house teams are stretched thin or lack module-specific experience. Overall, establishing a cross-functional Epic Optimization Committee, composed of clinical leads, IT leadership, operations, and external partners, creates the governance structure necessary to monitor key performance indicators and adjust your roadmap of EHR optimization strategies on a quarterly basis.

Equally important, sustainable Epic optimization depends on change-management practices that reinforce long-term improvement. Hospitals need to invest in regular training, workflow refreshers, and open feedback loops that allow staff to share real-world insights. Scheduling monthly user forums or “success story” sessions, for example, helps refine optimization tactics in line with clinician needs. Moreover, leveraging a trusted consulting partner like HERS Advisors extends beyond staffing: their expertise in Epic System Implementation, Epic Optimization, and Epic Upgrades & Maintenance connects workforce strategy with measurable performance outcomes. Finally, by using dashboards to track utilization metrics, such as provider adoption rates, reduction in custom builds, and patient-portal engagement, organizations feed this data back into their broader EHR optimization strategies, ensuring that continuous improvement becomes part of their institutional culture.

Building The Right Team To Drive Epic Optimization

In summary, without the right talent and partner ecosystem, the most advanced workflows and analytics modules risk under-utilization. By combining purposeful optimization tactics around people, process and technology, your organization moves from having Epic “alive” to having Epic leveraged, which aligns directly with your strategic goals. If you commit to this three-fold approach: strategy, tactics, talent, you’re not simply running Epic: you’re optimizing it for sustained clinical, operational and financial success.

Ready to elevate your Epic environment? Contact HERS Advisors today to schedule a readiness assessment, secure certified Epic talent, and launch your next phase of Epic optimization. Let’s turn your investment into measurable impact.

About HERS Advisors

HERS Advisors

(Honest. Ethical. Responsible. Solutions.)

is a women-owned, mission driven recruitment and consulting firm specializing in the proactive sourcing and full-cycle placement of skilled professionals in the Legal, Compliance, Healthcare IT (HIT), and Information Technology (IT/IS) sectors.