Doctor Internet Use Evolves

Doctor Internet Use Evolves (PharmaLive)

According to the article, a study of 1,260 practicing physicians in the United States by Manhattan Research in 2006 found that 97% of physicians have been online for professional purposes in the past 12 months. About 99% have been online for any reason, whether personal or professional.

Perhaps one of the biggest differences brought about by the Internet is that physicians can filter or choose when, where, and how they are exposed to key sources of information. Although many marketers and promotional experts could rely on a short list of preferred channels for physicians as far back as ten years ago, the physicians of 2006 are practicing in a world in which they are increasingly shifting to the online channel for journals, drug information, medical references, pharmaceutical company updates, and news.

Accessing medical news now ranks as one of the key online activities among U.S. physicians. Physicians no longer sit back and rely on their peers, print journals, and annual meetings to learn of the latest advances in medicine. Physicians are actively using news sites and feeds, such as keyword alerts or RSS feeds, to have the information they want delivered to them from sources they trust. In the same way that consumers have migrated to news retrieval online, physicians are following suit for clinical information, research, and news.

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