General Practitioners use of the Cochrane Library in London

To investigate the use of the Cochrane Library by general practitioners (GPs) in London.

We conducted a postal questionnaire survey of general practices in South London. Two hundred and eighty-seven questionnaires were posted in December 2001 to all general practices in the South London region. All addresses beginning with either a SE or SW postcode were sent a two-page questionnaire with a covering letter.

The response rate was 30%, with 33% of GPs having ever used the Cochrane Library and 67% that had not previously used the library. General practitioners that reported to have used the Cochrane Library used it only occasionally and found the library to be user friendly as well as being a useful source of information However, 52% of GPs had never heard or used the Cochrane Library, and most reported poor publicity, awareness and time constrains as the major reasons for their lack of use.

The Cochrane Library of systematic reviews is a considered a user-friendly and useful source of evidence-base information. However, the utilisation and uptake of the Cochrane Library by GPs in South London is poor. Further resources are required to improve utilisation and increase awareness of this important source of evidence in primary care.