A Jay Holmgren, PhD, MHI, Named Director of CLIIR to Lead Expansion and Research Efforts

Meet the nationally renowned expert on EHR audit log data who will lead CLIIR’s expansion in research and applications of innovative data to assess digital health tools.

The UCSF Center for Clinical Informatics and Improvement Research (CLIIR) is thrilled to announce the appointment of A Jay Holmgren, PhD, MHI, as its new director. Dr. Holmgren, concurrently serving as an assistant professor and associate chief for research in the UCSF Division of Clinical Informatics and Digital Transformation (DoC-IT), will spearhead CLIIR’s expansion efforts and drive novel research focused on evaluating digital tools in clinical environments with a focus on insights from electronic health record (EHR) audit log data.

CLIIR is nationally recognized as a leader in using EHR audit log data to measure the real-world use and impact of digital tools. These data capture the detailed interactions of users with the EHR and can be used to assess varied concepts. This can include efforts to reduce physician EHR burden, streamline interoperable data sharing, and, increasingly, how AI tools are being used to automate tasks, educate patients, and guide clinical decision-making.

With his extensive expertise in the use of EHR audit log data, Dr. Holmgren is set to advance CLIIR’s mission to share knowledge and guidance on using EHR audit log data with researchers and collaborators within DoC-IT, the UCSF community, and the informatics research community nationally. He has used audit log data to study topics like clinician documentation burden, how the COVID-19 pandemic changed the way patients and physicians use the EHR, and the impact of charging patients for messages with their care teams. Dr. Holmgren’s work has been widely published in peer-reviewed journals including JAMA, Health Affairs, The American Journal of Public Health, Health Services Research, and JAMIA – totaling more than 60 publications so far. He also has been featured in popular press outlets, including The New York Times, The Atlantic, Politico, and NPR.

As the leading center on using EHR audit log data, CLIIR provides knowledge and guidance for UCSF scholars interested in varied applications of these data while also offering access to data sets. One of the center’s key priorities includes supporting, growing, and strengthening the EHR audit log research-focused community both within UCSF and nationally. In his new role, Dr. Holmgren will lead initiatives supporting audit log research, including regular drop-in “audit log office hours” to share expertise with the UCSF community, hosting the EHR Audit Log National Research Network, and bringing speakers from around the country to UCSF to share their cutting-edge audit log research.

“In my three years as a faculty member at CLIIR, I have seen the center grow to become an international leader in using EHR audit log data to power innovative research,” said Dr. Holmgren. “With the launch of the new Division of Clinical Informatics and Digital Transformation (DoC-IT), CLIIR’s mission will expand to serve the broader UCSF informatics community by providing expertise and resources for researchers studying how digital tools affect patients and clinicians using EHR audit log data.”

“A Jay is the ideal leader to take CLIIR into its second era within our new Division of Clinical Informatics and Digital Transformation,” said Julia Adler-Milstein, PhD, professor of medicine and chief of DoC-IT. “He deeply understands how EHR audit log data can be applied to answer fundamental questions about the use and impact of the ever-expanding set of digital health tools. Even more importantly, he is highly collaborative and has a long track record of interdisciplinary partnerships that have generated novel and actionable findings.”

To learn more about CLIIR and how to get involved, visit our website. To learn more about Dr. Holmgren, visit his website.