80 Percent of Doctors Use Smartphone Apps Everyday

According to a recent report from Atlanta, GA.-based physician recruitment firm Jackson & Coker, four out of five practicing physicians use smartphones, computer tablets, various mobile devices and numerous apps in their customary medical practice. The report, titled “Apps, Doctors and Digital Devices,” looked at several recent studies which investigated the use of smartphones, mobile computing devices and a wide variety of software apps by physicians in different specialties. Here is the study’s breakdown of physician specialists’ usage of digital technology in medical practice: Emergency Room physicians—40 percent Cardiologists—33 percent Urologists—31 percent Nephrologists—31 percent Dermatologists—30 percent Gastroenterologists—30 percent Psychiatrists—28 percent Radiologists—24 percent Rheumatologists—22 percent Endocrinologists—21 percent Oncologists—20 percent Clinical Pathologists—16 percent The special report cited recent studies that pointed out the practical value of integrating the latest digital hardware and software into health care delivery. It’s not surprising that so many practitioners are relying on iPhones, iPads and other computer tablets--as well as downloading a myriad of apps--given the growing movement toward digitizing as much of the health care process as possible. As fully “wired” doctors have discovered, there is an “app” (software solution) for practically everything—such as providing fingertip access to a patient’s essential medical information: his or her disease management program, prescription history, radiologic imaging studies, laboratory test results, and the like. In time, doctors may spend as much time handling medical issues electronically as they do treating patients with stethoscope in hand. The report also addressed security and privacy concerns associated with honoring HITECh and HIPAA protocols. As a crucial preventative measure, some hospitals require medical staff to limit software use to read-only access to patient information while prohibiting storing such information. The report can be accessed at http://www.jacksoncoker.com/physician-career-resources/newsletters/monthlymain/des/Apps.aspx.