Survey of psychiatrist use of digital technology in clinical practice

Bauer, Rita; Glenn, Tasha; Monteith, Scott; Whybrow, Peter C.; Bauer, Michael

doi:10.1186/s40345-020-00194-1

International Journal of Bipolar Disorders

Table 2 Psychiatrist responses to selected questions (N = 209)

From: Survey of psychiatrist use of digital technology in clinical practice

Question	N	%	Option
Q11	Do you routinely communicate with patients using any of these technologies? (Check all that apply)
	29	14	Secure email (encrypted)
	102	49	Standard email
	74	35	Text message
	17	8	Social media
	15	7	Patient portal on an EMR/EHR
	74	35	None of the above
Q12	What do you think are appropriate uses of email or online communication with patients? (Check all that apply)
	131	63	Notify if symptoms worse
	105	50	Notify if new symptoms
	73	35	Medication refills
	55	26	Routine clinical follow-ups
	63	30	New clinical questions
	138	66	Lab test results
	145	69	Administrative (appointments or billing)
	12	6	None of the above
	9	4	Other
Q21	How would you describe the information that patients find online about bipolar disorder? (Check all that apply)
	71	34	Increased requests for a diagnosis of bipolar disorder
	90	43	Increased requests for specific medications
	96	46	Increased requests for unnecessary medications or tests
	22	11	Leads to delays in patients seeking help
	26	12	None of the above
	27	13	Don’t know
Q22	Do you think that patient online information seeking is leading to any of these consequences? (Check all that apply)
	106	51	Improved discussions
	56	27	Improved coping with the illness
	31	15	Increased medication adherence
	45	22	Increased patient confidence
	103	49	Patients better able to express concerns
	47	22	Few patients talk about information found online
	14	7	None of the above
	14	7	Don’t know
Q26	Do you routinely recommend any of these types of websites to patients with bipolar disorder? (Check all that apply)
	85	41	Sites about mental health or bipolar disorder
	18	9	Sites about general medical information
	14	7	Sites about prescription drug information
	45	22	Government mental heath sites
	12	6	Government prescription drug sites
	10	5	Wikipedia
	86	41	Do not recommend websites
	12	6	Other
Q27	What type of technology-based treatments (online, smartphone apps, or stand alone technologies) do you routinely recommend to patients with bipolar disorder? (Check all that apply)
	8	4	Online psychotherapy
	12	6	Online patient support groups
	23	11	Active patient monitoring
	13	6	Passive patient monitoring
	34	16	Sleep monitoring
	35	17	Medication adherence support
	48	23	Relaxation techniques
	123	59	Do not routinely recommend technology-based treatments
	5	2	Other
Q29	Do you hesitate in recommending technology-based treatments because of any of these reasons? (Check all that apply)
	28	13	Privacy considerations
	114	55	Quality of information
	18	9	Patient financial problems
	39	19	Impact on patient behavior
	48	23	Concern about online fraud
	17	8	None of the above
	84	40	Do not routinely recommend technology-based treatment
	7	3	Other

Back to article page