Creation of an Online Collection of Emergency Medicine Literature

Abstract

Residents and medical students are challenged to incorporate the latest medical literature into their clinical practice. However, retrieving influential articles in a timely manner can be difficult. To address this, the authors created a collection of influential primary research literature relevant to the practice of emergency medicine. The authors surveyed local experts as to the most influential articles in their area of expertise and then linked articles in the literature collection to full-text versions available through the medical school's digital library. A total of 154 articles were included in the literature collection. These were organized into 23 subject headings and 23 subheadings. Fifty-two residents were surveyed one month after the collection became available; 18 residents (35%) had used the literature collection at that time. An online collection has several advantages: it makes the most relevant literature immediately available during clinical care and allows residents to elaborate on their own knowledge when clinical problems arise. It also can be easily updated and password protected. Similar collections may be developed for use in other educational settings.