Ogunyade Taiwo O, Oyibo Wellington A
Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria.
J Med Internet Res. 2003 Jan-Mar;5(1):e7. doi: 10.2196/jmir.5.1.e7.
Use of information technology in information acquisition, especially MEDLINE on CD-ROM and online, has been evaluated in several localities and regions, especially in the advanced countries. Use of MEDLINE on CD-ROM is still very poor among the medical students of the University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria, due to lack of awareness, insufficient personal computers, nonperiodic training, and the high cost of using the facility. Due to financial constraints, MEDLINE online and sufficiently-networked computer systems are not available.
To report on the situation in Nigeria, a developing country, so as to compare the current awareness of searching MEDLINE on CD-ROM among the medical students at the University of Lagos with the awareness of their overseas' counterparts. This is the first step toward setting up an online PubMed search as well as expanding the computer systems and network.
Essentially based on cross-sectional proportional sampling using structured questionnaires, in-depth interviews, and focus-group discussions among the medical students and library staff. The study involved the medical students in their second year to sixth (final) year of study.
Of the 250 students interviewed, 130 (52%) were aware of MEDLINE on CD-ROM searches as a means of information retrieval. Only 60 (24%) had used MEDLINE on CD-ROM-2% had used MEDLINE on CD-ROM more than 9 times; 4%, 7 to 9 times; 8%, 4 to 6 times; and 10%, 1 to 3 times. Of the students who used MEDLINE on CD-ROM search, 22% used it in preparing for examinations, 24% in research, 6% in patient care, and 26% in preparation of assignments and clinical cases. Lack of awareness (52%) and cost of undertaking MEDLINE on CD-ROM search (46%) were identified as important factors that discouraged the use of MEDLINE on CD-ROM.
Though the above factors were recognized as important, it was concluded that the reasons for the poor use of MEDLINE on CD-ROM are multifactorial. Poor use of MEDLINE on CD-ROM could be attributed to these critical underlying factors: nonavailability of networked personal computers, which should be connected to a central server; lack of mandatory assignments to the medical students that would specifically require use of MEDLINE on CD-ROM; financial constraints on the university management; and infrequent periodic orientation on use of MEDLINE on CD-ROM. It was therefore suggested that the number of personal computers should be increased and that the library staff should periodically train the preclinical and clinical medical students in searching MEDLINE on CD-ROM. These steps would enable the medical students to benefit from online PubMed searching when it becomes fully operational in the future.
信息技术在信息获取中的应用，尤其是光盘版和在线版的医学期刊数据库（MEDLINE），已在多个地区和国家进行了评估，特别是在发达国家。由于缺乏认知、个人电脑不足、非定期培训以及使用该设施的高昂成本，尼日利亚拉各斯大学的医学生对光盘版MEDLINE的使用仍然非常少。由于资金限制，无法提供在线MEDLINE和联网充分的计算机系统。
报告发展中国家尼日利亚的情况，以便比较拉各斯大学医学生目前对光盘版MEDLINE检索的认知与海外同行的认知。这是建立在线PubMed检索以及扩展计算机系统和网络的第一步。
主要基于使用结构化问卷的横断面比例抽样、深入访谈以及医学生和图书馆工作人员的焦点小组讨论。该研究涉及二至六年级（最后一年）的医学生。
在接受访谈的250名学生中，130名（52%）知道光盘版MEDLINE检索是一种信息检索方式。只有60名（24%）使用过光盘版MEDLINE——2%使用光盘版MEDLINE超过9次；4%，使用7至9次；8%，使用4至6次；10%，使用1至3次。在使用光盘版MEDLINE检索的学生中，22%用于备考，24%用于研究，6%用于患者护理，26%用于准备作业和临床病例。缺乏认知（52%）和进行光盘版MEDLINE检索的成本（46%）被认为是阻碍使用光盘版MEDLINE的重要因素。
尽管上述因素被认为很重要，但得出的结论是，光盘版MEDLINE使用不佳的原因是多方面的。光盘版MEDLINE使用不佳可归因于这些关键的潜在因素：无法获得应连接到中央服务器的联网个人电脑；没有给医学生布置专门要求使用光盘版MEDLINE的强制性作业；大学管理层的资金限制；以及对光盘版MEDLINE使用的不定期培训。因此建议增加个人电脑数量，图书馆工作人员应定期对临床前和临床医学生进行光盘版MEDLINE检索培训。这些步骤将使医学生在未来在线PubMed检索全面投入使用时能够受益。
