title: Resident utilization of information technology.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine if a simple educational intervention can increase resident physician literature search activity.
  
  
  METHODS
  Randomized controlled trial.
  
  
  METHODS
  University hospital-based internal medicine training program.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-eight medical residents rotating on the general internal medicine service.
  
  
  METHODS
  One-hour didactic session, the use of well-built clinical question cards, and practical sessions in clinical question building.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Objective data from the library information system that included the number of log-ons to medline, searching volume, abstracts viewed, full-text articles viewed, and time spent searching. Median search activity as measured per person per week (control vs intervention): number of log-ons to medline (2.1 vs 4.4, P <.001); total number of search sets (24.0 vs 74.2, P <.001); abstracts viewed (5.8 vs 17.7, P=.001); articles viewed (1.0 vs 2.6, P=.005); and hours spent searching (0.8 vs 2.4, P <.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A simple educational intervention can markedly increase resident searching activity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27710, USA. chris.cabell@duke.edu
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Cabell
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schardt
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sanders
authors.forename: G R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Corey
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Keitz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015510:Clinical Medicine / Q000193:education*; D003200:Computer User Training; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine / Q000193:education*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007256:Information Systems; D007396:Internship and Residency; D016239:MEDLINE; D008297:Male