Uso de teléfonos inteligentes y aplicaciones para la autocapacitación y la telemedicina en médicos peruanos

A multicenter descriptive prospective study was conducted to determine the frequency of the use of smartphones and applications for self-training and telemedicine. Data were collected with a questionnaire about the use of information technology for clinical practice and self-training among Peruvian physicians. Measurements were taken of the use of smartphones,applications and telemedicine. Of the 1 013 physicians who stated they used some sort of smartphone,65% (661) were men and mean age was 35 years (range 22-74 years); 48.5% (460) used the smartphone for self-training; Medscape was the resource most commonly used for this purpose (13%); 98% had applications on their smartphone; 30% of those who taught used applications for their teaching; the applications most commonly used were those providing access to the web and/or self-training searches (31%) and to electronic mail (30%). With respect to the use of telemedicine,73% had sent an image or video of a patient to a colleague; 29% had participated in a videoconference with another physician to discuss a case,and 30% (269) had used their smartphone for communication with a patient (apart from calls). The vast majority of the physicians surveyed owned a smartphone,but not all used telemedicine or applications habitually as part of their clinical practice or for self-training. Wider use of these resources could help improve healthcare in Peru.