How are Physicians Using Smartphones for Professional Purposes?
Over the last decade, digital technology has become a mainstay in our lives. And smartphones aren’t just used in our free time anymore. Mobile devices like the iPhone have lengthened the work-cycle for many industries because employees can be reached after hours with the click of a button. This has been especially prevalent in healthcare.
The Kantar Media Sources & Interactions Study, March 2013 – Medical/Surgical Edition found that almost three-quarters (74%) of the physicians surveyed use a smartphone for professional purposes, a 9% increase year-over-year. Further, more than one-third (38%) use both a smartphone and a tablet for professional purposes.
When looking at all physicians surveyed, about 43% say they use their smartphones to reference drug data – a 13% year-over-year increase– and 39% find/perform clinical calculations, up from 35% in 2012. The study also found that 31% of all doctors make prescribing decisions by smartphone, a 10% increase year-over-year.
Perhaps most interesting is that of all of the tasks that are tracked on smartphone in the study, not one showed a decrease year-over-year, demonstrating how deeply ingrained smartphone usage is becoming in the medical workplace.
Kantar Media’s Sources & Interactions™ Studies offer a detailed examination of healthcare professionals’ online and mobile activities, e-detailing experience, and exposure to (and evaluation of) information sources including traditional and emerging media, pharma reps, CME, conventions and more. The Medical/Surgical edition, conducted every six months, reports on the media preferences and habits of more than 3,000 physicians across 21 specialties; annual studies provide similar perspective on Pharmacy, NP/PA, Eyecare, Dental, Radiology, Managed Care, and Hospital C-Suite audiences. Sources & Interactions was designed to help manufacturers and their agencies cost-effectively allocate resources to their overall promotional mix, and provide publishers with specific insight about where their offerings fit into physicians’ (and other healthcare professionals’) information inventory.
To find out more about the study and specialty-specific data, let us know.
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