Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Organizing and Sharing Medical Knowledge Among Anesthesiology and Intensive care Residents: Evaluating Existing Practices and the Feasibility of Implementing a Dedicated Multiplatform Application

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Medical Systems Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Treating patients with up-to-date medical knowledge is an ongoing goal for healthcare workers and implies efficient knowledge management at the point of care. Widely available mobile wireless technologies influence practices but a significant gap remains between technological possibilities and actual usage. The purpose of this study was to analyze residents’ baseline practices in managing medical knowledge and to evaluate the use and impact of an innovative multiplatform application dedicated to anesthesiology and intensive care residents. This study took place in Rennes Teaching Hospital and comprised two distinct surveys. First, in April 2018, all residents received a ten-items online survey focusing on managing medical knowledge. Then, through a second online survey constituted of ten items, we sought to assess the use of a new multiplatform cloud-based application named “DansMaBlouse”, dedicated to sharing and indexing medical knowledge, in anesthesiology and intensive care residents. Among 148 residents that answered the evaluation survey, the most sought out pieces of information in clinical setting were a phone or fax number (74%), drugs’ characteristics (68%) and expert guidelines (57%). The main sources were senior staff (68%), medical databases (60%) and an Internet search engine (59%). Computers and smartphones were more frequently used than bound paper notebooks. After implementation of the multiplatform application DansMaBlouse, fifty-nine (82%) of the 72 residents that answered the evaluation survey reported using the application and 39% used it more than ten times. Among application users, 90% found it easy to use and 92% agreed that it improved point-of-care access to knowledge. Accessing appropriate medical knowledge at the point of care remains an issue for residents and can be improved by a multiplatform application combining personal and shared up-to-date resources.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Data Availability

The datasets from this study are available from the corresponding author on request.

References

  1. Davies K. The information-seeking behaviour of doctors: a review of the evidence. Health Information & Libraries Journal. 2007;24:78–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Del Fiol G, Workman TE, Gorman PN. Clinical Questions Raised by Clinicians at the Point of Care. JAMA Internal Medicine. 2014;174:710–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Green ML, Ciampi MA, Ellis PJ. Residents’ medical information needs in clinic: are they being met? The American journal of medicine. 2000;109:218–23.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Cogdill KW, Friedman CP, Jenkins CG, Mays BE, Sharp MC. Information needs and information seeking in community medical education. Academic medicine: journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges. 2000;75:484–6.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Cook DA, Sorensen KJ, Hersh W, Berger RA, Wilkinson JM. Features of Effective Medical Knowledge Resources to Support Point of Care Learning: A Focus Group Study. PLoS ONE. 2013;8:e80318-7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Smith R. What clinical information do doctors need? BMJ (Clinical research ed). 1996;313:1062–8.

  7. Wallace S, Clark M, White J. ‘It’s on my iPhone’: attitudes to the use of mobile computing devices in medical education, a mixed-methods study. BMJ Open. 2012;2:e001099-7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Mosa ASM, Yoo I, Sheets L. A systematic review of healthcare applications for smartphones. BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making. 2012;12:67.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  9. Gavali MY, Khismatrao DS, Gavali YV, Patil KB. Smartphone, the New Learning Aid amongst Medical Students. J Clin Diagn Res. 2017;11:JC05–8.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  10. Rodríguez-Ríos A, Espinoza-Téllez G, Martínez-Ezquerro JD, Rendón-Macías ME. Information and Communication Technology, Mobile Devices, and Medical Education. J Med Syst. 2020;44:90.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Baumgart DC. Personal digital assistants in health care: experienced clinicians in the palm of your hand? The Lancet. 2005;366:1210–22.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Shenouda JEA, Davies BS, Haq I. The role of the smartphone in the transition from medical student to foundation trainee: a qualitative interview and focus group study. BMC Medical Education. 2018;18:175.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  13. Demiri S. Utilisation des smartphones en anesthésie-réanimation par les internes d’Île-de-France. Sfar - Le Congrès. 2013;32:A301–2.

    Google Scholar 

  14. Ambasta S, Kannaujia AK, Shamshery C, Shrivastava D, Mishra P, Mahapatra S. Smartphone Use among Anesthesiologists during Work Hours: A Survey-Based Study. Anesth Essays Res. 2022;16:22–30.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  15. Hardyman W, Bullock A, Brown A, Carter-Ingram S, Stacey M. Mobile technology supporting trainee doctors’ workplace learning and patient care: an evaluation. BMC Medical Education. 2013;13:6.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  16. Boruff JT, Storie D. Mobile devices in medicine: a survey of how medical students, residents, and faculty use smartphones and other mobile devices to find information. Journal of the Medical Library Association: JMLA. 2014;102:22–30.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  17. Eysenbach G. Improving the Quality of Web Surveys: The Checklist for Reporting Results of Internet E-Surveys (CHERRIES). J Med Internet Res. 2004;6:e34.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  18. Anton B, Woodson SM, Twose C, Roderer NK. The persistence of clinical questions across shifts on an intensive care unit: an observational pilot study. Journal of the Medical Library Association: JMLA. 2014;102:201–5.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  19. Ely JW, Osheroff JA, Chambliss ML, Ebell MH, Rosenbaum ME. Answering Physicians’ Clinical Questions: Obstacles and Potential Solutions. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association. 2005;12:217–24.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  20. Bullock A, Dimond R, Webb K, Lovatt J, Hardyman W, Stacey M. How a mobile app supports the learning and practice of newly qualified doctors in the UK: an intervention study. BMC Medical Education. 2015;15:71.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  21. Fournier K. Mobile app use by medical students and residents in the clinical setting: an exploratory study. J Can Health Libr Assoc. 2022;43:3–11.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  22. Kho BP, Wong SMA, Chiu JWT, Liew E. Preference and usage pattern of mobile medical apps for drug information purposes among hospital pharmacists in Sarawak, Malaysia. BMC Med Inform Decis Mak. 2022;22:199.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  23. Green MS, Mathew JJ, Gundigi Venkatesh A, Green P, Tariq R. Utilization of Smartphone Applications by Anesthesia Providers. Anesthesiology Research and Practice. 2018;2018:1–10.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. John Doyle D, Dahaba AA, LeManach Y. Advances in anesthesia technology are improving patient care, but many challenges remain. BMC anesthesiology. 2018;18:39.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  25. Kawamoto K, Houlihan CA, Balas EA, Lobach DF. Improving clinical practice using clinical decision support systems: a systematic review of trials to identify features critical to success. BMJ (Clinical research ed). 2005;330:765–8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Ministre de la santé publique et de l’assurance maladie. Circulaire DH/EM 1 n° 40 du 9 octobre 1995 relative aux perturbations électromagnétiques engendrées par les téléphones mobiles cellulaires pour certains dispositifs médicaux. 1995;1–2.

  27. Anses. Rapport de l’Anses relatif relatif à la compatibilité électromagnétique des dispositifs médicaux exposés à des sources radiofréquences. 2016 May.

  28. Braddy CM, Blair JE. Colonization of personal digital assistants used in a health care setting. American journal of infection control. 2005;33:230–2.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Egert M, Spath K, Weik K, Kunzelmann H, Horn C, Kohl M, et al. Bacteria on smartphone touchscreens in a German university setting and evaluation of two popular cleaning methods using commercially available cleaning products. Folia microbiologica. 2015;60:159–64.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Di Lodovico S, Del Vecchio A, Cataldi V, Di Campli E, Di Bartolomeo S, Cellini L, et al. Microbial Contamination of Smartphone Touchscreens of Italian University Students. Current microbiology. 2018;75:336–42.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Kuriyama A, Ienaga S, Fujii H. A cross-sectional study on bacterial contamination on the touchscreens and posterior surfaces of smartphones of emergency department staff. J Eval Clin Pract. 2023;

  32. Dimond R, Bullock A, Lovatt J, Stacey M. Mobile learning devices in the workplace: ‘as much a part of the junior doctors’ kit as a stethoscope’? BMC Medical Education. 2016;1–9.

  33. Rasberry L. Wikipedia: what it is and why it matters for healthcare. BMJ (Clinical research ed). 2014;348:g2478–g2478.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

No funding was received for this work.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Service de Réanimation Polyvalente, Centre Hospitalier Bretagne Atlantique, Vannes, F-56000, France

    Guillaume Rieul & Florian Reizine

  2. Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Department, CHU Rennes, Rennes, F-35000, France

    Guillaume Rieul & Hélène Beloeil

  3. Service de Radiologie, Centre Hospitalier Bretagne Atlantique, Vannes, F-56000, France

    Gabrielle Rojat

  4. CIC-1414, COSS-1242, Univ Rennes, CHU Rennes, Inserm, Rennes, F-35000, France

    Hélène Beloeil

Authors
  1. Guillaume Rieul
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Gabrielle Rojat
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Florian Reizine
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Hélène Beloeil
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

G.Ri., G.Ro., and H.B. conceived, designed, coordinated the data collection and supervised the study. G.R. performed the statistical analysis. G.Ri., G.Ro., F.R., and H.B. wrote the first draft of the article. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Florian Reizine.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Ethics Approval and Consent to Participate

Although the survey was not approved by an institutional review board, potential participants in both surveys were informed and invited by email and could opt out of participating in the surveys, as participation in the surveys was voluntary. No personal data was collected and survey responses were anonymized and stored in the professional computer of the investigator. No incentives were offered for taking part in the surveys.

Consent for Publication

Not applicable.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Electronic Supplementary Material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary Material 1

Supplementary Material 2

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Rieul, G., Rojat, G., Reizine, F. et al. Organizing and Sharing Medical Knowledge Among Anesthesiology and Intensive care Residents: Evaluating Existing Practices and the Feasibility of Implementing a Dedicated Multiplatform Application. J Med Syst 47, 101 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10916-023-01996-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10916-023-01996-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation