Recommendations for Authors Based on Interviews with 48 Physicians
| Content | n (%)* |
| 1.Comprehensive information | |
| a.Topic coverage: Cover topics comprehensively by anticipating and answering clinical questions that are likely to occur | 36 (75) |
| b.Direct answers: Answer clinical questions directly | 14 (29) |
| c.Treatment: Include and emphasize detailed treatment recommendations; provide full prescribing information† | 20 (42) |
| d.Summary: Provide a summary with bottom-line recommendations | 15 (31) |
| e.Specific information: Provide enough detail so that a physician unfamiliar with the topic could apply the information directly to patient care | 13 (27) |
| f.Vagueness: Avoid vague statements | 6 (13) |
| g.Action: Tell the physician what to do; physicians must decide what to do (and when to do nothing), even when the evidence is insufficient | 20 (42) |
| 2.Trust | |
| a.Evidence: Provide a rationale for recommendations by citing evidence; separate descriptions of original research from clinical recommendations | 25 (52) |
| b.Practicality: Temper original research with practical considerations (e.g., recommended management in rural hospitals and clinics) | 19 (40) |
| c.Experience: Temper original research with clinical experience; address important questions regardless of the evidence available | 14 (29) |
| d.Updates: Update the information frequently | 16 (33) |
| e.Authority: Present information in a recognized, respected, authoritative resource | 8 (17) |
| Access | |
| 1.Index and search function | |
| a.Index cross referencing: Include alternate terms, clinically oriented terms, and common abbreviations with page numbers at each term | 17 (35) |
| b.Computer search function: Provide a user-friendly, intuitive interface and search function | 20 (42) |
| c.Search speed: Provide a search function or index that is quick to use | 14 (29) |
| d.Interactive computer interface: Allow entry of patient-specific data, such as age and gender, to help narrow the search | 6 (13) |
| 2.Clinical organization | |
| a.Conciseness: Be concise, succinct, and to the point | 26 (54) |
| b.Clinical findings: Organize from the clinician's perspective, starting with undiagnosed clinical findings (e.g., “The Approach to Dyspnea”) as well as with diseases (e.g., “The Approach to Pneumonia”) | 13 (27) |
| c.Algorithms: Present recommendations using a stepwise approach or an algorithm in which all important outcomes are addressed | 14 (29) |
| d.Rapid information access: Help physicians locate information quickly and easily by using lists, tables, bullets, and bolded subheadings; avoid lengthy uninterrupted prose | 37 (77) |
| e.Links: Provide links to related topics with full text of cited articles | 12 (25) |
| 3.Physical and temporal accessibility: Ensure physical and temporal accessibility by presenting information in commonly available books, journals, and Web sites that are available 24 hours a day | 17 (35) |
-
↵* n denotes number of physicians making the recommendation. Percentages are number of physicians making recommendation divided by total number of physicians (n = 48).
-
↵† Trade names, generic names, starting dose, usual dose, maximum dose, pediatric dose, geriatric dose, dosage in renal failure, dosage forms, tablet description, indications, contraindications, drug interactions, safety in pregnancy, safety in breast-feeding, safety in children, adverse effects with information about which adverse effects are most important clinically, specific clinical and laboratory monitoring recommendations (avoid vague statements such as “monitor liver function periodically”), serum drug level monitoring, treatment of overdose, clinically important kinetics, criteria for stopping drug. Include prescribing details for drugs that are commonly used in children, regardless of their approval status.
