A UK perspective on smartphone use amongst doctors within the surgical profession

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Abstract

Introduction

Hospitals are increasingly looking for mobile solutions to meet their information technology needs. Medical professionals are using personal mobile devices to support their work, because of limitations in both time and space. Our aims were to assess smartphone use amongst UK surgical doctors, the prevalence of medical app use and online activity.

Methods

A thirteen-item questionnaire was derived to identify the proportion of surgical doctors of all grades using smartphones within the workplace. The following factors were evaluated: use of medical apps; use of online medical resources and if users were willing to use their own smartphone for clinical use.

Results

A total of 341 participants were surveyed with a complete response rate: 93.5% of which owned a smartphone, with 54.2% of those owning medical apps and 86.2% using their device to access online medical resources.

Junior doctors were more likely to use medical apps over their senior colleagues ( p = 0.001) as well as access the Internet on their smartphone for medical information ( p < 0.001).

Overall, 79.3% stated that they would be willing to use their smartphone for clinical use, which was found not to be dependent on seniority ( p = 0.922).

Conclusion

Online resources contribute significantly to clinical activities with the majority of smartphone users willing to use their own device. The information gathered from this study can aid developers to create software dedicated to the smartphone operating systems in greatest use and to potentially increase the use of a bring your own device (BYOD) scheme.

Highlights

•

Doctors use their own mobile devices to support their work due to limitations in time and space.
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Of those surveyed >90% owned a smartphone.
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80% owning smartphones were willing to use their own device within the workplace in a ‘BYOD’ manner.
•

>50% of smartphone users own medical apps and >85% use the Internet to access medical information.
•

It may valuable to further develop software that recognises this potential of mobile access.

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Most cited references 23

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The Smartphone in Medicine: A Review of Current and Potential Use Among Physicians and Students

Errol Ozdalga, Ark Ozdalga, Neera Ahuja (2012)

Background Advancements in technology have always had major impacts in medicine. The smartphone is one of the most ubiquitous and dynamic trends in communication, in which one’s mobile phone can also be used for communicating via email, performing Internet searches, and using specific applications. The smartphone is one of the fastest growing sectors in the technology industry, and its impact in medicine has already been significant. Objective To provide a comprehensive and up-to-date summary of the role of the smartphone in medicine by highlighting the ways in which it can enhance continuing medical education, patient care, and communication. We also examine the evidence base for this technology. Methods We conducted a review of all published uses of the smartphone that could be applicable to the field of medicine and medical education with the exclusion of only surgical-related uses. Results In the 60 studies that were identified, we found many uses for the smartphone in medicine; however, we also found that very few high-quality studies exist to help us understand how best to use this technology. Conclusions While the smartphone’s role in medicine and education appears promising and exciting, more high-quality studies are needed to better understand the role it will have in this field. We recommend popular smartphone applications for physicians that are lacking in evidence and discuss future studies to support their use.

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Smartphone app use among medical providers in ACGME training programs.

Timothy F Tirrell, Orrin I Franko (2012)

The past decade has witnessed the advent of the smartphone, a device armed with computing power, mobility and downloadable "apps," that has become commonplace within the medical field as both a personal and professional tool. The popularity of medically-related apps suggests that physicians use mobile technology to assist with clinical decision making, yet usage patterns have never been quantified. A digital survey examining smartphone and associated app usage was administered via email to all ACGME training programs. Data regarding respondent specialty, level of training, use of smartphones, use of smartphone apps, desired apps, and commonly used apps were collected and analyzed. Greater than 85% of respondents used a smartphone, of which the iPhone was the most popular (56%). Over half of the respondents reported using apps in their clinical practice; the most commonly used app types were drug guides (79%), medical calculators (18%), coding and billing apps (4%) and pregnancy wheels (4%). The most frequently requested app types were textbook/reference materials (average response: 55%), classification/treatment algorithms (46%) and general medical knowledge (43%). The clinical use of smartphones and apps will likely continue to increase, and we have demonstrated an absence of high-quality and popular apps despite a strong desire among physicians and trainees. This information should be used to guide the development of future healthcare delivery systems; expanded app functionality is almost certain but reliability and ease of use will likely remain major factors in determining the successful integration of apps into clinical practice.

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The impact of mobile handheld technology on hospital physicians' work practices and patient care: a systematic review.

Mirela Prgomet, Andrew Georgiou, Johanna Westbrook (2009)

The substantial growth in mobile handheld technologies has heralded the opportunity to provide physicians with access to information, resources, and people at the right time and place. But is this technology delivering the benefits to workflow and patient care promised by increased mobility? The authors conducted a systematic review to examine evidence regarding the impact of mobile handheld technology on hospital physicians' work practices and patient care, focusing on quantification of the espoused virtues of mobile technologies. The authors identified thirteen studies that demonstrated the ability of personal digital assistants (PDAs) to positively impact on areas of rapid response, error prevention, and data management and accessibility. The use of PDAs demonstrates the greatest benefits in contexts where time is a critical factor and a rapid response crucial. However, the extent to which these devices improved outcomes and workflow efficiencies because of their mobility was largely absent from the literature. The paucity of evidence calls for much needed future research that asks explicit questions about the impact the mobility of devices has on work practices and outcomes.

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Author and article information

Contributors

Rikesh K. Patel

Adele E. Sayers

Nina L. Patrick

Kaylie Hughes

Jonathan Armitage

Iain Andrew Hunter

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Ann Med Surg (Lond)

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Ann Med Surg (Lond)

Title: Annals of Medicine and Surgery

Publisher: Elsevier

ISSN (Electronic): 2049-0801

Publication date PMC-release: 02 April 2015

Publication date Collection: June 2015

Publication date (Electronic): 02 April 2015

Volume: 4

Issue: 2

Pages: 107-112

Affiliations

[a ]Academic Surgical Unit, Castle Hill Hospital, Castle Road, Cottingham HU16 5RX, England, UK

[b ]Wrexham Maelor Hospital, Croesnewydd Rd, Wrexham LL13 7TD, Wales, UK

[c ]The Royal Liverpool & Broadgreen University Hospitals, Kent Lodge, Broadgreen Hospital, Thomas Road, Liverpool L14 3LB, England, UK

Author notes

[∗ ]Corresponding author. Academic Surgical Unit, Castle Hill Hospital, Castle Road, Cottingham HU16 5RX, England, UK. Tel.: +44 07427 625234. rikeshpatel@ 123456doctors.net.uk

Article

Publisher ID: S2049-0801(15)00016-3

DOI: 10.1016/j.amsu.2015.03.004

PMC ID: 4404414

PubMed ID: 25905017

SO-VID: 8ac009a3-7a91-4514-a482-01a582b5505f

License:

This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

History

Date received : 28 January 2015

Date revision received : 20 March 2015

Date accepted : 21 March 2015

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A UK perspective on smartphone use amongst doctors within the surgical profession

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Scientific Phone Apps and Mobile Devices

Most cited references 23

The Smartphone in Medicine: A Review of Current and Potential Use Among Physicians and Students

Smartphone app use among medical providers in ACGME training programs.

The impact of mobile handheld technology on hospital physicians' work practices and patient care: a systematic review.

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