April Savoy, PhD

Contact :

asavoy@iupui.edu

The most useful and usable health information technology is patient-centered, evidence-based, and systematically engineered.

Initiatives

Care Delivery

Research Scientist, William M. Tierney Center for Health Services Research, Regenstrief Institute
Core Investigator, VA HSR&D Center for Health Information and Communication
Director, VA HSR&D Human-Computer Interaction and Simulation Laboratory
Assistant Professor of Computer and Information Technology, Purdue School of Engineering and Technology, IUPUI

Dr. April Savoy’s research interests include the application of human factors engineering to develop, evaluate, and implement socio-technical interventions that will increase efficiency of clinical workflows, enhance care coordination, and improve the quality of healthcare delivery. She has more than 13 years of experience in human factors engineering from industry and academia. Her work has focused on designing information technologies that enhance situational awareness and decision-making across domains including ecommerce, gaming, and military. Since 2014, she has applied her human factors engineering expertise and multi-domain experience to healthcare. Dr. Savoy has developed and evaluated socio-technical interventions that better support and inform healthcare decision-making by healthcare professionals across care settings.

Her recent work assessed the use of health information technologies in clinical workflows, including consultation referrals, medication reconciliation, and hospitalist rounding. Dr. Savoy’s research provides foundational evidence for implementing the user-centered design process for future health information technologies that support healthcare professionals.

Dr. Savoy obtained degrees in computer science from Xavier University of Louisiana (B.S.) and Purdue University (M.S.). Her degree in industrial engineering is from Purdue University (PhD).

Featured Projects

A Human Factors Investigation of Health Information Exchange: Tools to Support Providers’ Coordination of Medications

(IIR – VA HSR&D, PI: Weiner) (2018-2022)

To identify providers’ underlying cognitive needs in order to develop technology design guidelines for presenting VA and HIE medication data.

Role: Co-Investigator

Improving Patient Care and Physician Resilience through Effective Veteran-Centered Communication and Documentation Practices

(IIR – VA HSR&D, PI: Frankel) (2018-2023)

The objective is to optimize clinician use of computer-based technology in managing the administrative burdens of preparing for, enacting and documenting ambulatory visits.

Role: Co-Investigator

Coordination Hub to Promote Research Optimizing Veteran-centric EHR

(SDR – VA HSR&D) (2020-2022)

This nationwide VA hub will support, promote, and enhance health services research and development related to modernization of the electronic health record; deliver timely and actionable research findings to VA decision-makers to improve implementation of the electronic health record.

Role: Co-Investigator

Strengthening Cerner Implementation for Health Professions Trainees to Optimize Learning and Reinforce Veteran Care

(SCHOLAR) (PEC – VA HSR&D) (2021-2023)

The primary goal of this project is to optimize VA’s electronic health record (EHR) transition to support health professions trainees.

Role: Co-Investigator

Highlighted Publications

2022 Jan 4

Clinician Perspectives on Unmet Needs for Mobile Technology Among Hospitalists: Workflow Analysis Based on Semistructured Interviews.

Publication: JMIR Human Factors

doi: 10.2196/28783.

Authors: Savoy A, Saleem JJ, Barker BC, Patel H, Kara A.

2021 Oct

Dashboards for visual display of patient safety data: a systematic review.

Publication: BMJ Health Care Informatics

doi: 10.1136/bmjhci-2021-100437

Authors: Murphy DR, Savoy A, Satterly T, Sittig DF, Singh H

2021 May

Electronic Health Records' Support for Primary Care Physicians' Situation Awareness: A Metanarrative Review

Publication: Human Factors

doi: 10.1177/00187208211014300

Authors: Savoy A, Patel H, Murphy DR, Meyer AND, Herout J, Singh H.

2021 Mar

Clinical Thinking via Electronic Note Templates: Who Benefits?

Publication: General Internal Medicine

doi: 10.1007/s11606-020-06376-y

Authors: Savoy A, Frankel R, Weiner M

2020 Nov

Gains, losses, and uncertainties from computerizing referrals and consultations

Publication: Applied Ergonomics

doi: 10.1016/j.apergo.2020.103227

Authors: Weiner M, Savoy A, Barker BC

2020 Jun

Closing the cross-institutional referral loop: Applying human factors to improve consultations

Publication: Clinical and Translational Science

doi: 10.1017/cts.2020.171

Authors: Savoy A, Weiner M, Damush

2019 Sep

Cognitive requirements for primary care providers during the referral process: Information needed from and interactions with an electronic health record system

Publication: Int'l. Journal of Medical Informatics

doi: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2019.05.027

Authors: Savoy A, Militello L, Diiulio J, Midboe AM, Weiner M, Abbaszadegan H, Herout J

2018 Sep

A cognitive systems engineering design approach to improve the usability of electronic order forms for medical consultation

Publication: Journal of Biomedical Informatics

doi: 10.1016/j.jbi.2018.07.021

Authors: Savoy A, Militello LG, Patel H, Flanagan ME, Russ AL, Daggy JK, Weiner M, Saleem JJ

2018 May 10

Hidden complexities in information flow between primary and specialty care clinics

Publication: Cognition, Technology & Work

doi: 10.1007/s10111-018-0486-y

Authors: Militello LG, Savoy A, Porter B, Flanagan M, Wu J, Adams J, Rehman S, Abbaszadegan H, Weiner M

2018 Nov

Comparative usability evaluation of consultation order templates in a simulated primary care environment

Publication: Applied Ergonomics

doi: 10.1016/j.apergo.2018.05.013

Authors: Savoy A, Patel H, Flanagan ME, Daggy JK, Russ AL, Weiner M

2017 Nov 23

Investigating the need for clinicians to use tablet computers with a newly envisioned electronic health record

Publication: Int'l. Journal of Medical Informatics

doi: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2017.11.013

Authors: Saleem JJ, Savoy A, Etherton G, Herout J

2017 Aug

Systematic Heuristic Evaluation of Computerized Consultation Order Templates: Clinicians' and Human Factors Engineers' Perspectives

Publication: Journal of Medical Systems

doi: 10.1007/s10916-017-0775-7

Authors: Savoy A, Patel H, Flanagan ME, Weiner M, Russ AL

In The News

Influence

Featured Fellowship

People

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April Savoy, PhD

Contact :

Initiatives

Featured Projects

A Human Factors Investigation of Health Information Exchange: Tools to Support Providers’ Coordination of Medications

Improving Patient Care and Physician Resilience through Effective Veteran-Centered Communication and Documentation Practices

Coordination Hub to Promote Research Optimizing Veteran-centric EHR

Strengthening Cerner Implementation for Health Professions Trainees to Optimize Learning and Reinforce Veteran Care

Highlighted Publications