Background
The internet is an important tool for communication, knowledge update, and information transfer for physicians in all subspecialties. E-mails facilitate communications between physicians and improve physician–patient relationship. Smart phones are considered an easy tool to use the internet anywhere and anytime.
Patients and methods
A five-page questionnaire was designed and distributed among 291 attendants of one of the national orthopedic conferences in January 2011. The questionnaire was planned to evaluate the extent of the use of internet by orthopedic surgeons in Saudi Arabia and the effect of internet on their practice and career.
Results
A total of 244 questionnaires were completed. There were 236 male participants (96.5%) and eight female participants (3.5%). The mean age was 34.8 ± 8.93 years. All participants had internet access at home. A total of 208 participants (85%) had internet access at work and 163 (67%) had smart phones. In all, 205 participants (84%) found internet to be a useful tool to obtain information on career opportunities. A total of 219 (90%) participants found it useful in achieving diagnosis and in searching for treatment guidelines. All female orthopedic surgeons received a formal training on how to use PubMed for orthopedic search, whereas only few male surgeons received training ( < 0.001).
Conclusion
Most of the orthopedic surgeons in Saudi Arabia use the internet for medical purposes. They need a planned training on electronic search. Availability of internet access and wireless internet is important for improving physician performance and patient care.