Evaluation of three point-of-care healthcare databases: BMJ Point-of-Care, Clin-eguide and Nursing Reference Centre

BACKGROUND: Point of care resources make it easier for clinicians to find answers to questions that arise during a clinical encounter. In order to make informed purchase decisions in times of tight budgets, librarians need to have a better understanding of which resources will meet their patrons' clinical information needs. OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to assess the content, interface and usability of three point-of-care tools: BMJ Point-of-Care, Clin-eguide and Nursing Reference Centre. METHODS: A questionnaire designed to gather quantitative and qualitative data was created using Survey Monkey. The survey was distributed to healthcare practitioners in Alberta's two largest health regions, and the data were analysed for emergent themes. RESULTS: The themes that arose--ease of use, validated content, relevancy to practice--generally echoed those stated in the literature. No one database fared significantly better, due to differing features, content and client preference. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the limitations of the survey, the themes that emerged provide a springboard for future research on the efficacy of information resources used at the point of care, and the need for deeper analysis of these recent additions to the medical information market.