Doctor of pharmacy students' use of personal digital assistants.

OBJECTIVES To describe the use of personal digital assistants (PDAs) by doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) students; determine the reliability of psychometric constructs that determine technology acceptance; and determine constructs that directly correlate with PDA use. METHODS A survey instrument was developed containing descriptive and psychometric items and administered to PharmD students at 2 universities. RESULTS Over half of new users (58.1%) and experienced users (51.3%) reported using their PDA at least weekly. Eighty-four percent of experienced users used their PDA at least weekly to look up drug information. The most reliable scales were perceived usefulness (alpha = 0.92), perceived ease of use (alpha = 0.89), and attitude towards behavior (alpha = 0.84). Intention to use and self-reported use of PDAs were strongly correlated with perceived usefulness, attitude towards behavior, and compatibility. CONCLUSIONS The majority of pharmacy students used their PDAs at least weekly and find them most useful for looking up drug information.

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