SAN FRANCISCO — Finding key clinical information at the point of care has never been easier, thanks to e-mail alerts and online search tools, Scott M. Strayer, M.D., said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Family Physicians.
A robust industry has developed to make clinical decision support available by computer or PDA, said Dr. Strayer, of the department of family medicine at the University of Virginia Health System, Charlottesville.
The new tools come in two categories: “foraging” tools allow physicians to keep up to date on the latest research and clinical guidelines, and “hunting” tools allow them to search for specific clinical information. Taken together, the tools not only provide information during a clinical encounter, but, if used widely, the tools are likely to move evidence into practice faster as well, Dr. Strayer said.
“Without both, you really don't know that new information is available, and you can't find it when you do,” he said.
Some examples of foraging tools are:
▸ InfoPoems (www.infopoems.com
▸ Journal Alerts (www.globalfamily?doctor.com/journalalerts/journalalerts.asp
Hunting tools include:
▸ InfoPoems (www.infopoems.com
▸ Up to Date (www.uptodateonline.com
▸ DynaMed (www.dynamicmedical.com
In the evaluation of clinical decision support tools, it's important to see how the information is filtered. Is the information patient oriented or disease oriented? Is it specialty specific? Is it comprehensive? Which journals does it scan? Will the information change your practice or is it simply news?
Physicians also need to consider whether the information provided is valid, Dr. Strayer said. He recommended looking for labels with the level of evidence used.
And doctors should beware of “Trojan horse” sites that look independent but are sponsored by drug companies, for example. Before committing to a product, determine how well the information is summarized, he said. The summary should be accurate, provide context, and be more comprehensive than just an abstract.
Dr. Strayer did not disclose any financial relationships with the products that he discussed.