CD-ROM MEDLINE use and users: information transfer in the clinical setting.
Effective delivery of biomedical information to health professionals depends on the availability of systems that are compatible with the information-seeking patterns of health professionals. MEDLINE is a major source of biomedical information, but has been available primarily through libraries via telecommunications networks. The recent availability of MEDLINE on CD-ROM has made it possible to provide MEDLINE directly to clinicians without the associated problems of telecommunications and online use charges. The MEDLINE on CD-ROM Evaluation Forum sponsored by the National Library of Medicine reported on clinicians' use of CD-ROM MEDLINE at seven different clinical settings. This article summarizes the findings from these sites and places them in the context of current understanding of information-seeking behaviors of health professionals. Key issues in the design and development of information technologies in the clinical setting are also articulated.
Graduate School of Library and Information Science, University of Illinois, Urbana 61801.
P W
PW
Dalrymple
D000555:Ambulatory Care Information Systems; D006751:Hospital Information Systems; D008523:MEDLARS / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014481:United States; D014584:User-Computer Interface; D014741:Video Recording; D014742:Videodisc Recording