75 Epic EMR Keyboard Shortcuts

Epic is a popular EHR known for its comprehensive and customizable capabilities. Its extensive suite helps streamline patient care management, from clinical documentation and order entry to scheduling and billing. 

While many professionals are familiar with Epic’s key features, there are many lesser-known functions that can make workflows more efficient. One example is Epic’s built-in keyboard shortcuts. These shortcuts allow for faster navigation, reduce repetitive data entry, and help ease administrative burdens.

Below are 75 of the most common keyboard shortcuts and hotkeys available in Epic.

Most Common Epic Shortcuts

1. Send an open window to the back – Alt+Esc
2. Cut – Ctrl+X
3. Copy – Ctrl+C
4. Paste – Ctrl+V
5. Find – Ctrl+F
6. Replace – Ctrl+H
7. Select All – Ctrl+A
8. Print – Ctrl+P
9. Undo – Ctrl+Z
10. Select Text – Shift+Arrow key
11. Move Across Text – Ctrl+Arrow key
12. Delete Previous Word – Ctrl+Backspace
13. Delete Next Word – Ctrl+Delete
14. Open Windows Task Manager – Ctrl+Shift+Esc
15. Lock windows if you are logged in to a shared workstation – Win+L
16. Minimize All Windows – Win+M
17. Undo Minimize All Windows – Win+Shift+M
18. Bold Text – Ctrl+B
19. Italic Text – Ctrl+I
20. Underline Text – Ctrl+U
21. New List Item – Insert
22. Spell Check – F7

Main Workspace Shortcuts

23. Open the Epic Button Menu – Alt
24. Jump to Epic Search Function – Ctrl+Spacebar
25. Open Paging System – Ctrl+1
26. Patient Lists Workspace – Ctrl+2
27. Open Patient Station – Ctrl+3
28. Secure Workstation – Ctrl+Alt+S
29. Log out – Ctrl+Alt+L

Epic EMR Shortcuts

30. Opens the Charge Entry dialog – F2
31. Opens the Patient Lookup dialog – F3
32. Opens the Correspondence window – F6
33. Opens the Find Patient dialog – F8
34. Opens the In-Basket – F9
35. Opens the Inpatient List – Ctrl+Alt+I
36. Opens the Patient Priority List – Ctrl+Alt+P
37. Opens the Orders Activity – Ctrl+Alt+O

Patients Chart Shortcuts

38. Close Workspace (chart) – Ctrl+W
39. Open Menu for More Actions – Ctrl+D
40. Move to the Next Row – Tab
41. Move to the Previous Row – Shift+Tab
42. Quickly select choices in the drop-down menu (type the first letter of choice) – A-Z
43. Remain in the row but choose more than one item – ;
44. Add comments to a row – F6
45. Go to the previous section – F7
46. Go to the next section – F8
47. Close Patient Section or Note – F9
48. Open Manage Orders Activity – Ctrl+O
49. Open the sidebar of Manage Orders Activity – Alt+M
50. Open Order Sets – Alt+D
51. Place the cursor in the New Order field in the Sidebar – Alt+W
52. Open the window to Sign orders – Alt+S
53. Open the comment box in the Order Composer window – F6
54. Today (current date or relative date) – T
55. Week (relative date) – W
56. Month (relative date) – M
57. Year (relative date) – Y
58. Now – N
59. Hour – H

Note Taking Shortcuts

60. Move the cursor to the next line of text – Down Arrow key
61. Move the cursor to the previous line of text – Up Arrow key
62. Move the cursor to the end of the current line of text – End
63. Move the cursor to the beginning of the current line of text – Home
64. Move the cursor to the end of the text – Ctrl+End
65. Moves cursor to the beginning of the text – Ctrl+Home
66. Moves cursor to next word – Ctrl+Right Arrow key
67. Moves cursor to the previous word – Ctrl+Left Arrow key
68. Highlight from the cursor position to the end of the line of text – Shift+End
69. Highlight from the cursor position to the beginning of the line of text – Shift+Home
70. Highlight the line below the current one – Shift+Down Arrow key
71. Highlight the line above the current one – Shift+Up Arrow key
72. Highlight one character to the right of the cursor – Shift+Right Arrow key
73. Highlight one character to the left of the cursor – Shift+Left Arrow key
74. Highlight from the cursor position to the end of the word – Ctrl+Shift+Right Arrow key
75. Highlight from the cursor position to the beginning of the word – Ctrl+Shift+Left Arrow key

Use TextExpander with Epic to Eliminate Repetitive Typing

Epic users can further accelerate their workflows with TextExpander. It allows users to create personalized shortcuts for frequently used phrases, medical terminology, and patient instructions. When used with Epic, these shortcuts streamline the documentation process, enabling quick and accurate data entry. Instead of typing out lengthy and repetitive text, providers can type a short abbreviation, and TextExpander will automatically expand it to the full text.

By using TextExpander along with Epic, healthcare providers can significantly enhance their productivity, minimize errors, and make the most of their EHR’s powerful capabilities, ultimately leading to improved patient care.

Learn more about how TextExpander healthcare customers saved an average of 79 hours in the past year with TextExpander.