Essential Clinical Resources – Tools for Accurate Diagnosis, Assessment, and Treatment Planning

Essential Clinical Resources – Tools for Accurate Diagnosis, Assessment, and Treatment Planning

Clinical resources are critical in daily practice, as they provide critical support in decision-making. In a time when the integration of evidence-based practice (EBP) into daily practice in care settings is viewed to have the potential to enhance patient care outcomes and the overall healthcare environment (Abu-Baker et al., 2021), nurses and other healthcare professionals have reported that they lack enough support and updated evidence to support EBP and use of evidence in decision-making (Dagne & Beshah, 2021). There are currently various subscription-based and open-access resources that have the potential to support and improve diagnosis, assessment, and development of treatment plans.  Two resources that I have seen being used in the clinic are Epocrates and UpToDate.

Epocrates is a major resource that is utilized within professional healthcare settings mostly due to its information support features. Epocrates can be used both via its website and as a medical app. It is majorly preferred by healthcare professionals as it is an open-access clinical database and allows unlimited access to clinical information as needed. It provides clinical information such as information on medications, dosages, possible side effects, and possible adverse effects. It also provides up-to-date health market information, including what is trending in the healthcare industry. Additionally, Epocrates provides accessible, continuous medical education to health professionals in various fields, including diagnosis, medical decisions, and other aspects of patient care, which improves the efficiency of healthcare professionals.

On the other hand, UpToDate is a subscription-based and evidence-based point-of-care resource and clinical decision support resource that combines the latest medical findings, the best available evidence, and practical recommendations to help healthcare professionals make the best decisions and provide the best care to their patients. It is continuously updated by multiple professionals, editors, and peer-reviewers in over 12,300 clinical topics in 25 specialities. This has made it a preferred clinical resource among healthcare professionals globally as the best resource for evidence to support diagnosis, patient assessments, and treatment planning.

As the source of information is essential in guiding EBP and clinical practice (Fossum et al., 2022), both Epocrates and UpToDate are critical and trusted sources of clinical information that can help in the implementation of EBP in daily practice with better patient outcomes.

References

Abu-Baker, N. N., AbuAlrub, S., Obeidat, R. F., & Assmairan, K. (2021). Evidence-based practice beliefs and implementations: a cross-sectional study among undergraduate nursing students. BMC Nursing, 20(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1186/S12912-020-00522-X/TABLES/4

Dagne, A. H., & Beshah, M. H. (2021). Implementation of evidence-based practice: The experience of nurses and midwives. PLoS ONE, 16(8). https://doi.org/10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0256600

Fossum, M., Opsal, A., & Ehrenberg, A. (2022). Nurses’ sources of information to inform clinical practice: An integrative review to guide evidence-based practice. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 19(5), 372–379. https://doi.org/10.1111/

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Discussion Prompt
Resources are an important part of daily practice.

Essential Clinical Resources – Tools for Accurate Diagnosis, Assessment, and Treatment Planning

Identify and describe two resources you have seen being used in the clinic that are helpful in determining diagnosis, assessment or treatment plans. Citation and reference required.