PDA Use Among Health Care Providers
Author Information
Author(s): Garritty Chantelle, El Emam Khaled, Lapinsky Stephen
Primary Institution: Chalmers Research Group, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute
Hypothesis
What are the current and future rates of PDA use among health care providers?
Conclusion
Younger physicians and those in larger practices are more likely to use PDAs, which are increasingly adopted for administrative tasks in health care.
Supporting Evidence
- PDA use among physicians has increased from 15% in 1999 to between 45% and 85% in recent years.
- Younger physicians are more likely to adopt PDA technology compared to older physicians.
- Most PDA use in health care settings is for administrative tasks rather than direct patient care.
Takeaway
Doctors are using small computers called PDAs to help them with their work, especially for organizing tasks. Younger doctors like using them more than older doctors.
Methodology
This study was a systematic review of PDA usage surveys from various databases.
Potential Biases
Surveys may reflect the opinions of those more inclined to use PDAs, potentially skewing results.
Limitations
Response bias and variability in survey methodologies limit the comparability of results.
Participant Demographics
Surveys included a mix of physicians, specialists, medical residents, and nurse practitioners, primarily from the US and Canada.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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