Military medical informatics: accessing information in the deployed environment.
Physicians use multiple sources of information to search for answers to clinical questions. These sources include textbooks, journals, colleagues, and electronic resources, including the Internet.


METHODS
To explore what sources are most commonly used by staff military physicians, we distributed a survey asking them to describe sources of medical information they used most frequently while in garrison and while on deployment.


RESULTS
Most military physicians use the Internet to access medical information every day while in garrison. The frequency and pattern of use of medical resources differs while on deployment. The most common sources of electronic medical information are general Internet search engines (Google). Open-domain sites (PubMed and MEDLINE) are more commonly used by military surgeons, while filtered secondary information sources (UptoDate, MD Consult) appear to be more commonly used by military primary care physicians. Younger physicians use electronic resources more commonly than do older physicians.


CONCLUSIONS
Knowing what sources of medical information military physicians use to search for answers to their clinical questions can help guide allocation of medical informatics resources, particularly to deployed military physicians providing in-theater care.
Stephens
Mark B
MB
Department of Family Medicine, Uniformed Services University, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA.
Von Thun
Annette M
AM
D022126:Access to Information; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D008490:Medical Informatics; D008875:Middle Aged; D008887:Military Medicine; D008889:Military Personnel; D011446:Prospective Studies; D014481:United States; D014857:Warfare