This summary of a Cochrane review presents what we know from research about the effect of health professionals’ access to health information on patient care.
What is electronic access to health information and who are health professionals?
Healthcare professionals need access to the latest research to help them take care of their patients. Health information means research evidence from a reliable source. Electronic access to the latest health information means being able to find and read articles and other material using a computer and an Internet connection. Health professionals might read this information on the computer screen or in paper form. They may have training on how to find health information or they may not.
Health professionals are doctors, nurses, pharmacists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, dietitians, nutritionists or anyone else who takes care of patients.
The review shows that;
▪ There was no difference in the practice of health professionals in hospitals that provided training to health professionals in finding information from the Cochrane Reproductive Health Library (a reliable source of information) and those that did not provide training.
▪ Knowledge of the Cochrane Reproductive Health Library was better among health care professionals that had training.
▪ We do not know the effects of electronic access to information on patient care, nor how much it cost to provide and implement the access because this information was not reported in the studies included in this review.
▪ More research is needed to determine the best methods for providing electronic access and training to health professionals in order to improve patient care.