MedSkills: a learning environment for evidence-based medical skills.
OBJECTIVE
EBP (evidence-based practice) is becoming the standard paradigm in modern healthcare. Therefore different healthcare providers have the need for easily accessible evidence-based information. The Internet creates new opportunities to fill the gaps in education that are experienced by healthcare workers. Contributing to solutions and filling in the needs in the above-mentioned scope, the University of Brussels initiated a European project called MedSkills in 2004.


METHODS
MedSkills' main goal was to create a copyright-free reference work containing valuable evidence-based information on medical skills for all levels of healthcare professionals (paramedics, nurses and physicians, teachers of medical skills and students).


RESULTS
We succeeded in designing and creating a framework to suit the requirements of different users, in 'cellular', 'organ', 'body' and 'best treatment' content maps. A wiki tool was installed to allow the project to be built and in order to maintain itself.


CONCLUSIONS
This multi-professional and international initiative, unique in its kind aims at contributing to a gold standard for European healthcare, via the creation of a freely available, consistent and updatable evidence-based teaching environment.
Buyl
R
R
Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Department of Statistics and Medical Informatics, Laarbeeklaan 103, 1090 Jette, Belgium. Ronald.Buyl@vub.ac.be
Nyssen
M
M
D022126:Access to Information; D002983:Clinical Competence; D004502:Education, Medical, Continuing / Q000379:methods*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D007858:Learning; D008490:Medical Informatics / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized / Q000295:instrumentation*; D016730:Program Development; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D012931:Social Environment; D014584:User-Computer Interface