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Dragonfly Fall 2003 -- Volume 34, Number 4

For National Medical Librarians Month: 10 Reasons Why Medical Information is Critical

Here's an interesting string of facts that you might find useful in publicity for National Medical Librarians Month (October) or any other time of the year:

10 Reasons Why Medical Information is Critical and Medical Librarians are Life Savers!*

*Compiled by research staff at Ovid Technologies, Inc. and used with permission.

1) Serious or potentially serious medication errors occur in 6.5% of hospitalized patients; medical errors occur in 2.9-3.7%
Brennan et al. "Incidence of adverse events and negligence in hospitalized patients: Results of the Harvard Medical Practice Study I." N Engl J Med. 324:370-376, 1991.

2) Between 6.6% and 13.6% of medical errors lead to death, which equates to between 44,000 and 98,000 patient deaths every year.
American Hospital Association. Hospital Statistics. Chicago Il. 1999.

3) Medical errors are the 5th to 8th most common cause of death in the US.
American Hospital Association. Hospital Statistics. Chicago Il. 1999.

4) A 700-bed hospital spends more the $2.8 million each year fixing preventable ADE.
Bates, David W et al. "The cost of adverse drug events in hospitalized patients." JAMA 277:307-311, 1997.

5) Frequency of questions occurring in clinical practice (0.7-1.5 per patient).
Smith, R. "What clinical information do doctors need?" BMJ 1996;313:1062-1068.

6) Questions about therapy predominate (50%+), while diagnostic issues account for less than 30% of questions.
Ebell M. "Information at the point of care: Answering clinical questions." J Am Board Fam Pract 1999; 12(3): 225-235.

7) Over 70% of questions remain unanswered due to lack of time, forgetting the question and a perception that an answer would/could not be found.
Green ML, Ciampi MA, Ellis PJ. "Residents' medical information needs in clinic: Are they being met?" Am J Med 2000; 109(3); 218-223.

8) Green et al. demonstrated that a group of residents believed that:
• 70% of evidence-based answers to their questions would have changed the management of patients.
• 34% of questions might involve harm for the patient if not answered.
• ?24% of questions were urgent.
Green ML, Ciampi MA, Ellis PJ. "Residents' medical information needs in clinic: Are they being met?" Am J Med 2000; 109(3); 218-223.

9) Marshall reported that 80% of participating physicians changed their care as a result of evidence.
Marshall JG. "The impact of the hospital library on clinical decision making: The Rochester Study." Bull Med Lib Assoc, 1992; 80(2): 169-178.

10) These changes reduced mortality risk in 19% of patients, avoided hospitalization in 12% of cases, changed diagnostic tests in 51% and drug choice in 45%. Overall length of stay in hospital was reduced in 19% of patients.
Marshall JG. "The impact of the hospital library on clinical decision making: The Rochester Study." Bull Med Lib Assoc, 1992; 80(2): 169-178.

Dragonfly, Fall 2003 -- Volume 34 Issue 4

This publication is funded in whole with Federal funds from the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, under Contract No. N01-LM-1-3516.

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