Nurses’ use of smartphones on the rise

Nurses are using smartphones more often and for more tasks in the clinical setting, notes a new microsurvey by the Boston-based marketing firm InCrowd.

The microsurvey, which observed 241 nurses over a two-hour span, showed that most of the participants (88 percent) used smartphone apps in their daily work. Bedside access to drug interactions and clinical data were among the top uses of smartphones, with 73 percent of participants looking up drug information and 72 percent accessing information on diseases and disorders.

Interestingly, more than half (52 percent) said they use their smartphones to find answers to questions rather than asking another nurse and one-third use their smartphones instead of asking a physician.

The microsurvey also noted that 95 percent of the participants owned a smartphone, and almost 70 percent of respondents said they use their smartphones to stay in touch with colleagues while on duty—adding impetus to the importance of having solid security protocols relating to bring-your-own devices in a clincial setting.

Related article: HIPAA privacy meets BYOD