More than half of MDs under age 35 now using PDAs

Results from the CMA's 2003 Physician Resource Questionnaire (PRQ) indicate that a third of Canadian physicians are now using a personal digital assistant (PDA) or wireless device such as a Palm Pilot in clinical practice, a 73% increase from the level of 19% recorded in 2001. In the 2002 PRQ, 28% of doctors reported using the devices. Use is highest among younger doctors, with more than half of those under age 35 (53%) now using a wireless device in clinical practice, compared with 15% of physicians aged 65 and older.

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Elsewhere on the electronic front, 17% of Canadian medical practices now have a Web site, the same proportion as in 2002. They are most popular among medical specialists, 25% of whom have launched sites.

After increasing from 41% in 1997 to 89% in 2002, the proportion of physicians who personally use the Internet now appears to have levelled off at 88%. Physicians under age 35 are most likely to make personal use of the medium (96%), while those aged 55–64 and 65+ are least likely (83% and 71%).

A large majority of physicians (90%) have had patients present medical information obtained on the Internet. At least occasionally, two-thirds of them (64%) refer patients to Web sites containing medical information. Those aged 65+ (47%) are least likely to do this. Even physicians who don't use the Internet refer patients to Web sites at least occasionally (33%), while 68% of MDs who use the Internet make these referrals. — Shelley Martin, Senior Analyst, CMA Research, Policy and Planning