In conducting a search on the web for a clinical issue be prepared for a horrendous amount of useless information. Most of the information was not applicable for clinical use. The data that was retrieved for the web search was more for informational use for the layman. There were several pharmaceutical sites with small bits of information related to my topic. The pharmaceutical sites resembled web based infomercials trying to entice me to buy their product. There was really no way to narrow the search to only needed information, it was an all or nothing search.
Searching by using a guideline index was very difficult to retrieve information on my subject. If you were looking for general information this would be a fairly convenient way to find information. Clicking a category within a box and getting a response is immediately is rather gratifying. However, the information retrieved was very informative but not exactly what I needed. I did love clicking the box and awaiting a return, it was like Christmas. I found myself mesmerized awaiting the return. In fact I just started clicking different things just to see the results. However, I did not find anything relevant to my topic.
Using PubMed was the most effective of the three. I found it more effective or mentally effective to be able to search the key words that seemed relevant to my topic. Having the ability to narrow the search to only full-text articles, and adding limits made using PubMed more applicable. The information retrieved was based toward a clinical mind. If not able to narrow your search the data retrieval could become overwhelming. This is where having the ability to sort and add a limit is key. Knowing how to navigate effectively will add to the success of your search.

I chose to use EndNote. EndNote has the capability of retrieving data back to a library. In the library window it displays headings for groups, trash, and online search. Under the Group heading create custom subsections to store references in. However, EndNote has a limit of 500 specific groups per library. Also a reference can only be added to a library once, to eliminate duplication of references in a library. Although, a particular reference can be added to as many libraries as you wish. If you accidently delete a reference it is not completely deleted from EndNote, it can be retrieved from the trash if necessary. EndNote also will manage your resources in several different formats such as MLA, APA ect. This allows for ease in using for works cited. Once you have stored a reference into EndNote it is stored and available for use when needed.

I chose to search Pub Med for my clinical question. My clinical problem is how much exercise do children with ADHD receive in a day. It was very confusing at the beginning of my search. As I typed in keywords I would end up with thousands of articles about ADHD. Then I started to limit the parameters of the search. I looked for ADHD and exercise. I still received over a thousand articles. I then set limits to children aged 12 to 18. That took a few hundred off of the thousands. When I got very specific on what exactly I wanted I could not find a single article. My search was very time consuming, I spent a total of 5 hrs looking for information and trying to import it to EndNote. I never did figure out how to import. Having to broad and to narrow of searches will bring you nothing but wasted time. Having a specific item you want to search for does not always work out; there may not have been studies. For example I just wanted to know; if studies have been conducted about using exercise as an alternative to medication for children diagnosed with ADHD. At first I had over 40 thousand articles. Then I narrowed my search using keywords. The problem is I narrowed my search too much and only came up with six hits.
A couple of the barriers would be time and ease of use. Using a Pub Med search in daily practice would be applicable only if you knew how to use it effectively. There is a very time consuming factor in narrowing down a search to a reasonable amount of information. If this resource was used frequently the application would not seem so tricky. Time would be a huge factor in implementing a search for information. There would be no way to spend 5 hours a day doing research. When a search is done it needs to be quick and to the point. Setting limits helps but does not solve the problem of retrieving information that you don’t really need.

Hi,
I am Dawn; my graduate area is Ped-NP.
In the world of Pediatrics there is constantly new information on just about anything. It is relativity important to be able to know where to go find the latest information. Computer charting is popping up everywhere. If you are not comfortable using a one it is way past time you learn. Paper charting will soon be a thing of the past. We as graduate nurses will be expected to know how to use the latest in technology. There are lots of practical uses for information management. The ability to track trends and fluctuation of data to follow the progress of our patients is just wonderful. I personally hated to write on the growth charts for children. Now it is all clean and well preserved at your finger tips, no more need to leave eraser marks or trying to fit small changes on the graph, it’s all done on the computer.
Where I work I have been pushing for a jump in IT. The clinical program we are using now has the ability to use cell phones to chart in real time. This means that what I am doing at a patients home can now be viewed by office staff as I am doing it. No more calling for a list of patients that need to be seen. I will have access to it via the phone in a data text. No more 30 min conversations for a 5 min question. Working in real time is a huge jump in technology. This program even has the capabilities of flagging parameters outside of the normal limits. You could also get a text notifying you that a change has been made with your schedule. Track and trend data all with a couple touches of the screen. It will reduce duplication of duties by about 20%.