3,700-Physician Study from QuantiaMD Finds Tablet Devices on Track to Command Physician Market

WALTHAM, Mass.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--A study of more than 3,700 physicians sheds light on the new ways doctors are embracing mobile technology. QuantiaMD, the largest mobile and online physician community, conducted the study which found that tablet devices are rapidly proliferating in the physician market. A significant group of “Super Mobile” users – defined as physicians who own both smartphones and tablets – are far more likely than those who only own one of these devices to use mobile technology for professional activities in clinical settings. Please view a report outlining the study at: http://www.quantiamd.com/q-qcp/QuantiaMD_Research_TabletsSetToChangeMedicalPractice.pdf.

“We were not surprised to see that 80% of the respondents – a significantly higher percentage than the national average – owned a mobile device, or that 44% of physicians who do not yet have a mobile device intend to purchase one in 2011”

The QuantiaMD study found that use of tablet devices by physicians now exceeds 30%, compared to just 5% of U.S. consumers, per The Nielsen Company, Q1 2011 Mobile Connected Device Report. Of these physician users, almost 20% report already using their tablets in clinical settings. Another 65% of respondents say they are likely to use a tablet within the next few years to help their practice. One out of four respondents are “Super Mobile” users who are accessing online resources at significantly higher rates than physicians who solely use either a tablet or a smartphone. Respondents indicated that their most common professional online activities include:

Looking up drug & treatment reference material (69%)
Learning about new treatments & clinical research (42%)
Searching for assistance in diagnosing (39%) and choosing treatment paths (40%) for patients
Looking for help in educating patients (27%)

“We were not surprised to see that 80% of the respondents – a significantly higher percentage than the national average – owned a mobile device, or that 44% of physicians who do not yet have a mobile device intend to purchase one in 2011,” said Mary Modahl, Chief Marketing Officer, QuantiaMD. “What did surprise us was the momentum of tablets, which we knew to be strong, turned out to be even faster than we had originally expected. Also of interest was the growing role of institutions in supplying mobile devices and the fact that though a physician’s age is a slight barrier to smartphone adoption, tablet adoption has met with no age-related resistance.”

The vast majority of respondents purchased their mobile device personally or for their private practice. However, about 18% received their devices from the institutions they work for, showing that hospitals and other health care institutions are beginning to provide mobile technologies to their physicians. The study found that institutions that currently supply their physicians with mobile devices tend to provide smartphones and Blackberry® devices, but 16% of respondents with institution-supplied devices were provided with a tablet, indicating strong interest in tablets on the part of hospitals and institutions.

Other key QuantiaMD study findings include:

The high rate of physician mobile adoption transcends practice setting and years of practice
Physicians would most like to use their mobile devices to access EMR data and for e-prescribing
Top barriers to mobile use include patient privacy and liability concerns
Physicians are concerned about reimbursement for patient care and professional consulting activities when using mobile technology

About QuantiaMD

QuantiaMD® is an online physician-to-physician learning collaborative where 1 in 6 U.S. physicians engage, share, and learn from experts and each other, free of charge. Through any computer, smartphone or mobile device, members visit QuantiaMD daily to engage with respected experts who deliver clinically relevant, unbiased content in a concise, interactive format to fit the busy schedules of today’s physicians. QuantiaMD^® is a branded service developed and operated by Quantia Communications, Inc., a privately held corporation headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, USA. For more information, visit http://www.quantiamd.com.

QUANTIAMD is a registered trademark of Quantia Communications, Inc. All other product names and references contained herein remain the service marks, trademarks, or registered trademarks of their respective owners.