摘要：Objective: The research sought to determine the effectof a clinical medical librarian (CML) on outcomes ofin-patients on the internal medicine service.Methods: A prospective study was performed withtwo internal medicine in-patient teams. Team 1included a CML who accompanied the team on dailyrounds. The CML answered questions posed at thepoint of care immediately or in emails post-rounds.Patients on Team 2, which did not include a CML, aswell as patients who did not require consultation bythe CML on Team 1, served as the control population.Numerous clinical and library metrics were gatheredon each question.Results: Patients on Team 1 who required an answerto a clinical question were more ill and had a longerlength of stay, higher costs, and higher readmissionrates compared to those in the control group. Using amatched pair analysis, we showed no difference inclinical outcomes between the intervention group andthe control group.Conclusions: This study is the largest attempt toprospectively measure changes in patient outcomeswhen physicians were accompanied by a CML onrounds. This approach may serve as a model forfurther studies to define when and how CMLs aremost effective.
