Internet access, usage and trust among medical professionals in China: A web-based survey

摘要

ObjectivesSocial media has changed methods of communication in the medical profession. As part of a “doctor as communicator” strategy, Chinese medical professionals are actively embracing social media, which may have an impact on tense physician-patient relationships in China. This paper aims to examine a pattern of Internet access, Internet usage, and trust among Chinese medical professionals and further explores the reasons for these relationships on an individual level.DesignsA web-based questionnaire was designed, based on a media literacy model, and was divided into 3 dimensions: public information, general medical information, and specialty information. After a two-round pilot study, 1001 physicians were included. Additionally, 4 interviewees were chosen to participate in in-depth interviews and content analysis was performed. Data were analyzed using SPSS 25.0.ResultsFindings showed that new media has become a major approach for medical professionals in China to retrieve and get access to various information. However, they still trust traditional media (n?=?1001,P?