Source: Lancet  |  Posted 10 years ago

The confidence levels of rural doctors who may be uncomfortable dealing with some aspects of hepatitis C management can be significantly enhanced via CD-ROM-based medical informatics.

About 50 percent of rural doctors would be interested in using this learning technique, and those who have tried it are highly satisfied.

Objective of this study was to investigate whether CD-based medical informatics might enhance rural doctors' confidence around dealing with patients with chronic hepatitis C viral (HCV) infections.

Study participants were 385 rural doctors in Canada, all of whom were mailed a CD-based medical software program outlining aspects of HCV care, including diagnosis, counselling, treatment and follow-up.

Sent along with the CD was a brief questionnaire addressing participants' confidence in a range of areas related to management of these patients.

Covered in the questionnaire were questions related to identifying HCV patients; laboratory use and interpretation; patient counselling, selection of candidates for treatment, sharing treatment delivery and providing follow-up.

Three months after they had received the original package, the doctors were re-sent the questionnaire.

Of the 385 mailings, 59 (15 percent) doctors returned the initial questionnaire and 57 (15 percent) the follow-up questionnaire. Twenty-five respondents (44 percent) indicated they had used the CD.

Baseline confidence was low in three of the six areas addressed. At follow-up, in addition to their now being confident in all areas, CD users were significantly more confident than those who had not used the CD.

Increases in confidence for CD users ranged from approximately 150 percent to 300 percent in the six areas addressed. The value assigned the CD program was 8/10.

These are findings are from a study by S Zdanuk and colleagues from the Liver Diseases Unit, Department of Medicine, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.