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Information needs of the rural physician: a descriptive study
Bulletin of the Medical Library Association
|July 1, 1993
Summary
Rural physicians require quick, accurate answers for patient care, often lacking time for in-depth information retrieval. A focused database or expert system could meet these critical information needs.
Area of Science:
- Medical Informatics
- Information Science
- Rural Health
Background:
- Rural physicians face unique challenges in accessing timely medical information.
- Understanding their specific information needs is crucial for improving patient care.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the information needs of rural physicians.
- To analyze their information-seeking behaviors and identify barriers.
Main Methods:
- Face-to-face interviews and observations with twelve rural physicians in Central Florida.
- Review of 144 patient charts to identify clinical questions.
Main Results:
- Seventy-five percent of identified patient care questions concerned treatment.
- Physicians primarily relied on colleagues, medical meetings, journals, and textbooks.
- Lack of time due to heavy workloads was a significant barrier to information retrieval.
Conclusions:
- Rural physicians need immediate, concise, and up-to-date answers at the point of care.
- A curated database with keyword access or a specialized computerized expert system could address these needs.