Effectiveness of bibliographic searches performed by paediatric residents and interns assisted by librarians. A randomised controlled trial

  1. Paolo Gardois1,
  2. Roberto Calabrese2,
  3. Nicoletta Colombi3,
  4. Annamaria Deplano4,
  5. Carla Lingua2,
  6. Filomena Longo3,
  7. Maria C. Villanacci2,
  8. Roberto Miniero5,
  9. Antonio Piga3

Article first published online: 16 AUG 2011

DOI: 10.1111/j.1471-1842.2011.00957.x

Issue

Health Information & Libraries Journal

Health Information & Libraries Journal

Volume 28, Issue 4, pages 273–284, December 2011

Additional Information

How to Cite

Gardois, P., Calabrese, R., Colombi, N., Deplano, A., Lingua, C., Longo, F., Villanacci, M. C., Miniero, R. and Piga, A. (2011), Effectiveness of bibliographic searches performed by paediatric residents and interns assisted by librarians. A randomised controlled trial. Health Information & Libraries Journal, 28: 273–284. doi: 10.1111/j.1471-1842.2011.00957.x

Author Information

  1. 1

    School of Health and Related Research, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK

  2. 2

    Department of Paediatrics, University of Turin, Turin, Italy

  3. 3

    Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy

  4. 4

    Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy

  5. 5

    Department of Internal Medicine and Surgery, Magna Graecia University, Catanzaro, Italy

*Paolo Gardois, School of Health and Related Research, Regent Court, 30 Regent Street, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 4DA, UK, E-mail: pgardois@gmail.com

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 3 NOV 2011
  2. Article first published online: 16 AUG 2011
  3. Received 19 January 2011; Accepted 15 July 2011

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Keywords:

  • decision support;
  • evidence based library and information practice;
  • evidence based practice;
  • evidence-based medicine;
  • health science;
  • health services research;
  • information seeking behaviour;
  • librarians;
  • library and information science;
  • reflective practice

Abstract

Background:  Considerable barriers still prevent paediatricians from successfully using information retrieval technology.

Objectives:  To verify whether the assistance of biomedical librarians significantly improves the outcomes of searches performed by paediatricians in biomedical databases using real-life clinical scenarios.

Methods:  In a controlled trial at a paediatric teaching hospital, nine residents and interns were randomly allocated to an assisted search group and nine to a non-assisted (control) group. Each participant searched PubMed and other online sources, performing pre-determined tasks including the formulation of a clinical question, retrieval and selection of bibliographic records. In the assisted group, participants were supported by a librarian with ≥5 years of experience. The primary outcome was the success of search sessions, scored against a specific assessment tool.

Results:  The median score of the assisted group was 73.6 points interquartile range (IQR = 13.4) vs. 50.4 (IQR = 17.1) of the control group. The difference between median values in the results was 23.2 points (95% CI 4.8–33.2), in favour of the assisted group (P-value, Mann–Whitney U test: 0.013).

Conclusions:  The study has found quantitative evidence of a significant difference in search performance between paediatric residents or interns assisted by a librarian and those searching the literature alone.

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