It won’t come as a surprise to many physicians – or even their patients – but a recent study has found that “there is no digital divide among doctors.”
According to a MedPage Today study, no matter their age, physicians love their digital tools. Eighty percent believe advances in technology have improved their communication with patients, the study reported, and more than two-thirds spend three or more hours on a computer each day – one in four spending over three hours on a mobile device.
The biggest reason they use the Internet and mobile devices? Medical research.
The survey disclosed that physicians are “increasingly worried about their futures amid a rapidly evolving landscape for medical care in the U.S.” A shocking one in 10 doctors anticipates closing their practice in five years.
No reasons were given for this statistic, but if my husband and other healthcare providers I talk to are any example, it’s the continuing mound of regulations and lower reimbursements afflicting those in this important field.
Or it could be what most saw as a 43-percent increase in the number of weekly patients. Physicians reported they have less time to spend with each patient, as well as less time for their own continuing education to attend conferences, read journals and meet with pharmaceutical reps.
"Today's physicians are heavy users of technology in both their professional and personal lives. There is, however, a gap between how they would like to use technology at work and what they can do with it today," said Dr. Kevin Pho, MD, founder of KevinMD.com and a leading physician voice within the social media space. "The interest is there. Now we need solutions that can help the patient and physician in a simple and seamless way."
Another recent study found that the iPhone is the most popular device among medical professionals, followed by the iPad and then Android smartphones. The study examined the relationship between electronic health records (EHR) systems, mobile technology, and how doctors, nurses and other healthcare providers use both mobile devices and EHR systems.
Edited by
Braden Becker
