Mhealth tools employed regularly by 51 percent of doctors

mobile health app news

Research is showing that more than half of all physicians are using tablets for mobile health.

According to a survey that has been conducted by Kantar Media, tablets are becoming the tablet of choice for doctors as more than half of them are reporting that they use mhealth tools on a regular basis.

These hand held and convenient computers are being used for a number of different mobile health purposes.

Doctors that participated in the survey reported that they were using mhealth over tablets for reasons such as reading the latest articles published in medical journals, researching patient care topics, and exchanging emails with their colleagues. Among the participants, 51 percent said that they use their tablets as a regular part of their daily work. Nearly that same percentage also said that they use those mobile devices for completing personal tasks, as well. Though smartphones remain more commonly owned and used by physicians, this study also showed that doctors still prefer the larger screen for research and reading.

The mhealth survey included the participation of more than 3000 physicians.

mhealth newsIt determined that among them, almost one in three were using tablets for reading up on the latest medical publications. Another 16 percent listened to podcasts or watched webcasts on professional topics. The most commonly used devices were iPads, Kindles, and Surface. These devices have been becoming increasingly popular in hospitals and offices and their popularity has been seeing a steady rise.

Among the largest drivers of the use of tablets by medical professionals is considered to be patient-oriented telehealth pilots, as well as monitoring programs. The goals of these efforts are to help to encourage engagement among patients and to enhance provider information in the treatment of chronic diseases.

These results are similar to those of other recent studies that have indicated providers have been increasing their interest in using tablets. Last summer, Epocrates held a study regarding “digital omnivores” in terms of nurses and physicians. The report on that study predicted that mhealth devices will be driven by those professionals who have integrated mobile devices into their daily work routines.

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