scholarly journals Diagnoses, Drugs, and Treatment Are the Main Information Needs of Primary Care Physicians and Nurses, and the Internet Is the Information Source Most Commonly Used to Meet These Needs

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 107 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol Perryman

A Review of: Clarke, M. A., Belden, J. L., Koopman, R. J., Steege, L. M., Moore, J. L., Canfield, S. M., & Kim, M. S. (2013). Information needs and information-seeking behaviour analysis of primary care physicians and nurses: A literature review. Health Information & Libraries Journal, 30(3), 178-190. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/hir.12036 Abstract Objective – To improve information support services to health practitioners making clinical decisions by reviewing the literature on the information needs and information seeking behaviours of primary care physicians and nurses. Within this larger objective, specific questions were 1) information sources used; 2) differences between the two groups; and 3) barriers to searching for both groups. Design – Literature review. Setting – SCOPUS, CINAHL, OVID Medline, and PubMed databases. Subjects – Results from structured searches in four bibliographic databases on the information needs of primary care physicians and nurses. Methods – Medical Subject Heading (MeSH) and keyword search strategies tailored to each of four databases were employed to retrieve items pertinent to research objectives. Concepts represented in either controlled or natural language vocabularies included “information seeking behaviour, primary health care, primary care physicians and nurses” (p. 180). An initial yield of 1169 items was filtered by language (English only), pertinence to study objectives, publication dates (2000-2012), and study participant age (>18). After filtering, 47 articles were examined and summarized, and recommendations for further research were made. Main Results – Few topical differences in information needed were identified between primary care physicians and nurses. Across studies retrieved, members of both groups sought information on drugs, diagnoses, and therapy. The Internet (including bibliographic databases and web-based searching) was the source of information most frequently mentioned, followed by textbooks, journals, colleagues, drug compendiums, professional websites, and medical libraries. There is insufficient evidence to support conclusions about the differences between groups. In most research, information needs and behaviours for both groups have been discussed simultaneously, with no real distinction made, suggesting that there may not be significant differences even though a few studies have found that nurses’ emphasis is on policy and procedures. Barriers to access include time, searching skills, and geographic location; for the last, improvements have been made but rural practitioners continue to be adversely affected by limited access to people and resources. Conclusion – Both primary care physicians and nurses seek information on diagnosis and treatment. The Internet is of increasing utility for both groups, but all resources have advantages and disadvantages in identifying evidence based information for use in practice. Further research is required to support access and use of evidence based resources, and to explore how focused, evidence based information can be integrated into electronic health record systems.

2013 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 178-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martina A. Clarke ◽  
Jeffery L. Belden ◽  
Richelle J. Koopman ◽  
Linsey M. Steege ◽  
Joi L. Moore ◽  
...  

2008 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 78
Author(s):  
Martha Ingrid Preddie

A review of: McKibbon, K. Ann, and Douglas B. Fridsma. “Effectiveness of Clinician-selected Electronic Information Resources for Answering Primary Care Physicians’ Information Needs.” Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association 13.6 (2006): 653-9. Objective – To determine if electronic information resources selected by primary care physicians improve their ability to answer simulated clinical questions. Design – An observational study utilizing hour-long interviews and think-aloud protocols. Setting – The offices and clinics of primary care physicians in Canada and the United States. Subjects – 25 primary care physicians of whom 4 were women, 17 were from Canada, 22 were family physicians, and 24 were board certified. Methods – Participants provided responses to 23 multiple-choice questions. Each physician then chose two questions and looked for the answers utilizing information resources of their own choice. The search processes, chosen resources and search times were noted. These were analyzed along with data on the accuracy of the answers and certainties related to the answer to each clinical question prior to the search. Main results – Twenty-three physicians sought answers to 46 simulated clinical questions. Utilizing only electronic information resources, physicians spent a mean of 13.0 (SD 5.5) minutes searching for answers to the questions, an average of 7.3 (SD 4.0) minutes for the first question and 5.8 (SD 2.2) minutes to answer the second question. On average, 1.8 resources were utilized per question. Resources that summarized information, such as the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, UpToDate and Clinical Evidence, were favored 39.2% of the time, MEDLINE (Ovid and PubMed) 35.7%, and Internet resources including Google 22.6%. Almost 50% of the search and retrieval strategies were keyword-based, while MeSH, subheadings and limiting were used less frequently. On average, before searching physicians answered 10 of 23 (43.5%) questions accurately. For questions that were searched using clinician-selected electronic resources, 18 (39.1%) of the 46 answers were accurate before searching, while 19 (42.1%) were accurate after searching. The difference of one correct answer was due to the answers from 5 (10.9%) questions changing from correct to incorrect, while the answers to 6 questions (13.0%) changed from incorrect to correct. The ability to provide correct answers differed among the various resources. Google and Cochrane provided the correct answers about 50% of the time while PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, UpToDate, Ovid Evidence Based Medicine Reviews and InfoPOEMs were more likely to be associated with incorrect answers. Physicians also seemed unable to determine when they needed to search for information in order to make an accurate decision. Conclusion – Clinician-selected electronic information resources did not guarantee accuracy in the answers provided to simulated clinical questions. At times the use of these resources caused physicians to change self-determined correct answers to incorrect ones. The authors state that this was possibly due to factors such as poor choice of resources, ineffective search strategies, time constraints and automation bias. Library and information practitioners have an important role to play in identifying and advocating for appropriate information resources to be integrated into the electronic medical record systems provided by health care institutions to ensure evidence based health care delivery.


2007 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 345-352 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. I. Gonzalez-Gonzalez ◽  
M. Dawes ◽  
J. Sanchez-Mateos ◽  
R. Riesgo-Fuertes ◽  
E. Escortell-Mayor ◽  
...  

2013 ◽  
Vol 137 (1) ◽  
pp. 120-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maxwell L. Smith ◽  
Stephen S. Raab ◽  
Douglas H. Fernald ◽  
Katherine A. James ◽  
Jacob A. Lebin ◽  
...  

Context.—Growing evidence has demonstrated a high frequency of quality gaps in laboratory medicine, with recent studies estimating that 15% to 54% of primary care medical errors reported by primary care physicians and staff are related to the testing process. However, there is lack of evidence-based performance metrics in the preanalytic and postanalytic phases of the testing pathway for primary care practices. Objective.—To use results of the literature review to assist in the development of quality indicators that could improve preanalytic and postanalytic processes in primary care–based laboratory medicine. Data Sources.—Literature in Ovid/MEDLINE from 2001 through 2011 was searched as a primary source of information. Ninety-five peer-reviewed and non–peer-reviewed publications were retrieved following title and abstract review and 10 articles were reviewed in their entirety by the authors. A systematic review of the literature was conducted regarding the connections between clinical laboratories and primary care offices and the resulting errors. Root causes of errors were categorized into 7 major themes: process failures, delays, communication gaps, errors in judgment and cognition, influence of minorities/language, practice culture, and lack of patient centeredness. Selected articles were evaluated for evidence quality using the Systematic Evidence Review and Evaluation Methods for Quality Improvement grading scale developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Conclusions.—The focused literature review documented 7 key error themes in the laboratory medicine/primary care testing process. Performance metrics related to these themes are proposed that deserve future study for evidence-based improvement.


2009 ◽  
Vol 28 (90) ◽  
pp. 31-39
Author(s):  
Shenton Andrew ◽  
Pat Dixon

This article uses the results of a recent research project to explore young people's information-seeking behaviour and how it develops during childhood. Young first schoolers learn much through practical experience and conversation with adults but, in the later stages of this school phase, books, CD-ROM and the Internet assume increasing importance. In the middle school, the Internet is used more frequently and CD-ROM exploitation gradually diminishes. Books from departmental libraries and textbooks provided by teachers play key roles in satisfying the academic information needs of high schoolers. It is in this phase that use of the Internet is greatest, although many teenagers are highly critical of it. Whilst the information-seeking behaviour of high schoolers is markedly more sophisticated than that of young children, some essential similarities remain. The article closes by discussing how the overall findings of the research have implications for practice, especially within schools and public libraries.


BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. e044372
Author(s):  
Mat Nawi Zanaridah ◽  
Mohd Noor Norhayati ◽  
Zakaria Rosnani

ObjectivesTo determine the level of knowledge and practice of evidence-based medicine (EBM) and the attitudes towards it and to identify the factors associated with its practice among primary care practitioners in Selangor, Malaysia.SettingThis cross-sectional study was conducted in randomly selected health clinics in Selangor. Data were collected from primary care physicians using self-administered questionnaires on knowledge, practice and attitudes regarding EBM.ParticipantsThe study included 225 respondents working in either government or private clinics. It excluded house officers and those working in public and private universities or who were retired from practice.ResultsA total of 32.9% had a high level of EBM knowledge, 12% had a positive attitude towards EBM and 0.4% had a good level of its practice. The factors significantly associated with EBM practice were ethnicity, attitude, length of work experience as a primary care practitioner and quick access to online reference applications on mobile phones.ConclusionsAlthough many physicians have suboptimal knowledge of EBM and low levels of practising it, majority of them have a neutral attitude towards EBM practice. Extensive experience as a primary care practitioner, quick access to online references on a mobile phone and good attitude towards EBM were associated with its practice.


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