JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Healthcare professionals increasingly use smartphones in clinical care. Smartphone use can affect patient quality of care and clinical outcomes.

Objective:

This scoping review aimed to describe how smartphones and mobile apps were used by doctors within clinical settings.

Methods:

We conducted a scoping review using the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology and reported according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses: Extension for Scoping Reviews guidelines. We used the following databases in our literature search: MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and the grey literature source for studies published from 2010. An additional search was also performed by scanning the reference lists of included studies. A narrative synthesis approach was used.

Results:

A total of 10 studies included in this review were published between 2016 and 2021. Eight studies used surveys, and two studies used surveys with focus group study designs to explore the use, adoption, experience, and views on the use of smartphones among doctors. There were studies with only General Practitioners (GPs) (n=3), studies with only specialists (n=3), and studies with both GPs and specialists (n=4). Doctors use smartphones and mobile apps for communication (n=9), clinical decision-making (n=7), drug compendium (n=7), medical education and training (n=7), maintaining health records (n=4), managing time (n=4), and monitoring patients (n=2) in clinical practice. The Medscape medical app was frequently used for information gathering. WhatsApp, a non-medical app, was commonly used for doctor-patient communication. The commonly reported barriers were lack of regulatory oversight, privacy concerns, and limited Wi-Fi or internet access. The commonly reported facilitator was convenience and having access to evidence-based medicine, clinical decision-making support, and a wide array of apps.

Conclusions:

Smartphones and mobile apps were used for communication, medical education and training, clinical decision-making, and drug compendiums in most studies. Although the benefits of smartphones and mobile apps for doctors at work were promising, there were concerns about patient privacy and confidentiality. Legislation is urgently needed to protect the liability of healthcare professionals using smartphones.