Two in five physicians agreed that using digital health technology to communicate with patients will improve patient outcomes, according to data from Manhattan Research’s Taking the Pulse® U.S. 2014 study. The study found more than a third of physicians said that they had been evaluated or rewarded based on metrics measuring cost of treatment, patient outcomes or referrals over the past year. The Taking the Pulse® U.S. 2014 was fielded online among 3,066 U.S. practicing physicians in Q1 2014. The data can be segmented across a variety of target specialist audiences, including PCPs, pediatricians, cardiologists, oncologists, gastroenterologists and OB/GYNs.
Key findings on physician digital behavior from Taking the Pulse® U.S. 2014 include:
- Physicians are leveraging digital tools with patients: Forty-seven percent of smartphone owners had shown patients images or videos on their devices, and more than a third of physicians had recommended that patients use health apps in the past year.
- Telemedicine and remote care use is small but growing: While video consults are still relatively rare, nearly one quarter of physicians report that they or their teams have communicated with patients through a patient portal over the past year, and more than one in five had done so using secure messaging platforms. More than one in five monitored patients remotely, and those physicians monitored an average 22 patients per month.
“There’s a perception out there that the shift in focus to population health isn’t yet on physicians’ radar. This data shows physicians are thinking about patient outcomes and indicates an opportunity for companies that can provide them digital tools to help them meet their targets,” said Vice President of Research Monique Levy.
For more information, please visitwww.manhattanresearch.com/ttp.
