New digital technologies impact our personal and professional lives daily. Medical professionals and patients alike have experienced the significant increase in the capabilities and volume of digital technologies that have become available to them over the last decade.

As is often the case when adapting to new technologies into the workplace, certain new tools and devices are adopted by doctors quicker than others. We wanted to know how GPs in France and the UK were adapting to the new digital technologies that have been introduced into their practices.

In 2018, we recruited 150 GPs in the UK and 194 GPs in France to partake in a study relating to the adoption of digital technology.

Positive Impacts of Technology in GP Practices

Overall, most GPs believe that technological developments have had a positive impact on their practice. Around two-thirds of GPs in France and the UK believed that the use of online technology had a positive impact overall on their practice.

Roughly three quarters of GPs in the UK and just over half of GPs in France stated “patients becoming more informed” as one of the most positive impacts of recent developments in technology. In the UK, half of GPs questioned cited “patients becoming more technology savvy” as a positive impact.