Table 1.
Overview of the included articles.
| Study | Journal | Method | Data collection | Country | Participants |
| Wangler and Jansky [47], 2020 | Wiener Medizinische Wochenschrift | Qualitative | Interviews | Germany | 38 GPsa |
| Kim and Kim [42], 2009 | Informatics for Health and Social Care | Quantitative | Web surveys | South Korea | 430 specialists, 32 GPs, and 31 training doctors |
| Masters et al [49], 2020 | Journal of Medical Internet Research | Quantitative | Surveys | Oman and Germany | 108 surgeons |
| Ahmad et al [45], 2006 | Journal of Medical Internet Research | Qualitative | Focus groups | Canada | 48 family physicians |
| van Uden-Kraan et al [38], 2010 | Clinical Rheumatology | Mixed methods | Surveys with open questions | The Netherlands | 134 rheumatologists and 104 oncologists |
| Fujioka and Stewart [44], 2013 | Health Communication | Quantitative | Web surveys | The United States | 104 physicians |
| Murray et al [43], 2003 | Journal of Medical Internet Research | Quantitative | Surveys | The United States | 1050 physicians |
| Giveon et al [48], 2009 | Israel Medical Association Journal | Quantitative | Surveys | Israel | 118 family physicians |
| Caiata-Zufferey and Schulz [51], 2012 | Health Communication | Qualitative | Interviews | Switzerland | 17 physicians |
| Ahluwalia et al [40], 2010 | British Journal of General Practice | Qualitative | Interviews | The United Kingdom | 11 GPs |
| Moick and Terlutter [56], 2012 | Medicine 2.0 | Quantitative | Web surveys | Germany | 287 physicians |
| Potts and Wyatt [54], 2002 | Journal of Medical Internet Research | Quantitative | Web Surveys | The United Kingdom | 748 physicians |
| Ohana and Barnoy [55], 2019 | Nursing Outlook | Quantitative | Surveys | Israel | 184 e-patients, 52 nurses, and 48 physiciansb |
| Győrffy et al [39], 2020 | PLoS ONE | Qualitative | Interviews | Australia, Israel, France, the United States, the Philippines, New Zealand, and Hungary | 11 digitally engaged physicians |
| Shachar [29], 2022 | Social Science & Medicine | Qualitative | Interviews | Israel | 32 physicians |
| da Mota et al [50], 2018 | Revista da Associação Médica Brasileira | Quantitative | Surveys | Brazil | 183 physicians |
| Helft et al [37], 2003 | Journal of Clinical Oncology | Mixed method | Surveys with open questions | The United States | 266 oncologists |
| Sommerhalder et al [46], 2009 | Patient Education and Counseling | Qualitative | Interviews | Switzerland | 32 patients and 20 physiciansb |
| Shen et al [22], 2015 | Psycho-Oncology | Qualitative | 21 audio-recorded clinical consultations | The United States | Oncologists (undefined number of physicians) |
| Fredriksen et al [41], 2018 | Health Care for Women International | Qualitative | Interviews | Norway | 13 Norwegian GPs, midwives, and physiotherapistsb |
| MacDonald et al [52], 2018 | Journal of Medical Internet Research | Qualitative | Interviews | Canada | 12 physicians and nurses (3 GPs, 2 registered nurses, 1 nurse practitioner, 3 rheumatologists, 1 physician clinician-scientist, and 2 rheumatology fellows)b |
| Schick et al [53], 2023 | Journal of Medical Internet Research | Qualitative | Interviews | Germany | 16 patients and 12 dermatologistsb |
aGP: general practitioner.
bOnly study results and quotations from physicians, including GPs and specialists, are considered.