[Physicians and the internet--a cross-sectional study against the background of guideline implementation]

The internet is an innovative medium for the implementation of current recommendations for diagnosis and therapy, e.g. by means of guidelines. In this context, evaluation of the internet is very important because traditional ways of implementation have been proved less effective. Therefore, we investigated the frequency of online access and individual utilisation of the internet among 13,547 family practitioners, internists and general practitioners using a questionnaire procedure. Furthermore, we asked for a personal grading of its current relevance in their daily practice. Out of 2,786 responders (20.6% response rate) 79% reported personal online access. 40% had online computer access in their office and 71% at home. 45% of the internists had online access in their office compared to 34% of general practitioners. Almost all physicians under the age of 40 years (94%) had personal online access in comparison to only 49% of those over 60 years. The average daily duration of internet usage was up to ten minutes in 61%, and 1.5% use the internet more than one hour per day. 46% of responders believe that the internet is an appropriate source for professional education, whereas it has little professional relevance for 38%. We conclude that the internet appears to be a useful medium for the implementation of guidelines. However, in subgroups with the most urgent need for current medical information the internet seems to be unsuitable as an implementation tool.