@Article{info:doi/10.2196/55087,
author="Miyagami, Taiju
and Nishizaki, Yuji
and Shimizu, Taro
and Yamamoto, Yu
and Shikino, Kiyoshi
and Kataoka, Koshi
and Nojima, Masanori
and Deshpande, Gautam A
and Naito, Toshio
and Tokuda, Yasuharu",
title="Evaluating the Use of a Note-Taking App by Japanese Resident Physicians: Nationwide Cross-Sectional Study",
journal="JMIR Form Res",
year="2025",
month="May",
day="9",
volume="9",
pages="e55087",
keywords="note-taking; applications; digital notes; resident physicians; medical education",
abstract="Background: Note-taking is a method that has long been used to optimize studying. Recent innovations have seen the introduction of digital note-taking using software apps. Although the current state of digital note-taking has been verified mainly among students, the use and efficacy of digital note-taking by physicians in actual clinical practice remain unknown. Therefore, we sought to understand the characteristics of note-taking residents using a note-taking app and determine whether there is a difference in basic medical knowledge compared to that of nondigital note-taking residents. Objective: This study investigated the use of a digital note-taking app by Japanese resident physicians. Methods: This analytical cross-sectional study was conducted in resident physicians during the General Medicine In-Training Examination (GM-ITE), a clinical competency examination for resident physicians. The GM-ITE is a multiple-choice test with a maximum score of 80 points. Using a structured questionnaire, we collected data on the sociodemographic characteristics (sex, age, postgraduate year [PGY], or others), clinical training, GM-ITE scores, and the use of an app for note-taking to record case experience. The GM-ITE evaluated the scores by dividing them into 4 groups (groups 1‐4), in order from the lowest to the highest. We conducted a multivariate analysis of sociodemographic, clinical training, and GM-ITE score variables to determine the independent predictors of the use of a digital note-taking app. Results: This study included 3833 participants; 1242 (32.4{\%}) were female, 1988 (51.8{\%}) were PGY 1 residents, 2628 (68.6{\%}) were training in a rural area, 3236 (84.4{\%}) were in community-based hospitals, and 1750 (45.3{\%}) were app users. The app users were more likely to be in their PGY 2, to work in a community-based hospital, to have general internal medicine rotation experience, to use online medical resources more frequently, and to have more time for self-study. The results showed that the app users group had a higher GM-ITE score than the nonapp users group (adjusted odds ratio 0.74, 95{\%} CI 0.25 to 1.22; P=.003). Conclusions: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate note-taking by physicians in Japan using apps. The app users group had a higher GM-ITE score than the nonapp users, suggesting that they may have higher clinical skills. In the future, we would like to conduct more in-depth research on the facts of note-taking using apps, based on our results. ",
issn="2561-326X",
doi="10.2196/55087",
url="https://formative.jmir.org/2025/1/e55087",
url="https://doi.org/10.2196/55087"
}