An evidence‐based medicine fellowship in a children’s teaching hospital

Abstract

This paper reports the introduction of an evidence-based medicine fellowship in a children's teaching hospital. The results are presented of a self-reported 'evidence-based medicine' questionnaire, the clinical questions requested through the information retrieval service are outlined and the results of an information retrieval service user questionnaire are reported. It was confirmed that clinicians have frequent clinical questions that mostly remain unanswered. The responses to four questions with 'good quality' evidence-based answers were reviewed and suggest that at least one-quarter of doctors were not aware of the current best available evidence. There was a high level of satisfaction with the information retrieval service; 19% of users indicated that the information changed their clinical practice and 73% indicated that the information confirmed their clinical practice. The introduction of an evidence-based medicine fellowship is one method of disseminating the practice of evidence-based medicine in a tertiary children's hospital.

What is evidence‐based medicine? A personal viewpoint

“…In other words, it is relevant and immediate and likely to be associated with a change in the behaviour of the practitioner. 9 On average, clinicians ask two or three questions per patient 1,10 and the ability to ask questions depends on the attitude of clinicians rather than their knowledge and experience. Indeed, clinicians ask several different types of questions.…”