Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) was one of 16 health systems to earn the 2026 KLAS Arch Collaborative EHR Experience Pinnacle Award for Physicians. Physicians and advanced practice providers at NGHS scored in the 98th percentile for overall electronic health record satisfaction, ranking in the 100th percentile among hospitals of similar size.
Physicians, advanced practice providers (APPs) and nurses at Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) rank among the most satisfied clinicians in the nation when it comes to using Epic, the electronic health record (EHR) they rely on every day to care for patients. Those results have earned NGHS the 2026 KLAS Arch Collaborative EHR Experience Pinnacle Award for Physicians, recognizing the health system’s efforts to create a better EHR experience for physicians. Only 16 health systems from across the country received this award.
Results from a recent KLAS Research survey showed physicians and APPs at NGHS scored their satisfaction with Epic in the 98th percentile overall, the 97th percentile compared with other Epic organizations and the 100th percentile among hospitals of similar size. Nurses participating in the survey also rated Epic highly, scoring in the 90th percentile overall, the 86th percentile compared with other Epic organizations and the 100th percentile among similarly sized hospitals.
“Seeing scores like these, along with receiving national recognition from KLAS, validates our approach to making meaningful improvements in Epic and intentionally communicating those updates to our caregivers,” said Matthew Zimmie, MD, vice president and chief health informatics officer at NGHS. “Our goal is to continually reduce unnecessary friction in the EHR so clinicians can focus more of their attention on caring for patients.”
NGHS is a member of the KLAS Arch Collaborative, a group of healthcare organizations, vendors and firms committed to improving the EHR experience for clinicians. The anonymous survey helped create a standardized score, called the Net EHR Experience Score, which helps organizations compare their EHR performance against hundreds of other health systems. That, in turn, helps identify ways to improve usability and reduce burnout. The Pinnacle Award is KLAS’ highest recognition for EHR experience, recognizing organizations that achieve some of the highest physician satisfaction scores in the country.
“We continue to partner with Epic to add value and convenience through the EHR, both for providers and patients,” said Chris Paravate, chief information officer for NGHS. “We’re using ambient listening through Microsoft DAX Copilot to improve documentation efficiency and reduce pajama time for clinicians; we’re piloting similar technology for our nurses; we’ve rolled out online appointment scheduling, and live wait times for emergency departments and urgent cares; and we’ve centralized care coordination through our Care Traffic Control center, all to improve people’s lives.”
To learn more about NGHS and see some of these tools in action, visit nghs.com.