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The Curation of Health Information Audit




(Gateway Psychiatric, 2018)

INTRODUCTION

As an individual in health care and as an intrinsically motivated person, I find myself seeking increased knowledge which is one of the main reasons I chose to do my master’s in the first place.

When I require information about a particular subject, my first stop is Google.

Google is a “one-stop shop” for a variety of information. If I need a recipe, I can google it. If I need directions, Google Maps will take me there and If I need access to an article for professional purposes, Google Scholar may help me find it. If I want to look up a particular symptom I have been experiencing, I can...but hypochondriacs be warned.

AS IT RELATES TO EVERYDAY LIFE

However, with Google being a hub of information posted by organizations and individuals, some o f the information may be questionable. I always ensure that I cross-reference information with multiple, credible sources. I pay attention to the website I get it from, the dates of articles, any references made to other sources of data and information or the legitimacy of the author(s). 

For example, a post made in an open forum for recipients of a specific treatment versus an article posted by the Canadian Institute of Health Information (CIHI) about that treatment. Both could be useful information, but one source may be better suited for your argument than the other (e.g. patient experience vs. results of a clinical trial). Columbia College makes an important note that “the sources you reference need to be credible and authoritative” ("Evaluating the Credibility of Your Sources", 2018).


AS IT RELATES TO MY ROLE AS A HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONAL

In terms of my clinical career, I learnt very early as a student that google could not, or at least did not offer me the information I sought as a nuclear medicine technologist. There is a wide array of information as it pertains to nursing, medicine, even radiological technology (x-ray) but not so much with nuclear medicine.

Therefore, in my work day, I may seek information from the textbooks that I used while as a student. I normally keep at least two textbooks at work with me in a scanning room. If I need a refresher on a certain protocol (not listed in the departmental procedures) or how to make a particular radiopharmaceutical, or if I come across a patient case that has me questioning a pathology, I search in my textbook.

The textbooks I use provide me with useful information that is accurate for the most part, and any difference would be due to departmental protocols which in that case does not make the textbook inaccurate but inapplicable. Normally, I would verify this with other protocols set in place or with another technologist or my supervisor.
Information that I deem to be useful, I normally put into whatever document I am writing at that time or save it in a separate Microsoft document. If it is information that I want to find later, I may just bookmark it.

CONCLUSION

Overall, the tools I use for health information mainly involve internet searches and textbooks which so far, have proven to be very useful in personal and professional research as well as daily clinical activities.

Reference:

(2018). [Image]. Retrieved from https://www.gatewaypsychiatric.com/health-information/

Evaluating the Credibility of Your Sources. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.college.columbia.edu/academics/integrity-sourcecredibility


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