A user interface, system and method for optimizing a patient problem list in an electronic medical record or electronic health record in which entries in the problem list are removable or otherwise editable if they were entered into the problem list longer ago than a limited duration window to which the entries are categorized. In order to determine that categorization, the problem list entries are mapped to concepts or lexicals of an interface terminology, which in turn is mapped to concepts of another terminology, and those concepts are analyzed with respect to one or more criteria used to establish the limited duration window.