Enhancing Patient Care II: The Clinical Impact of Medical Information Services.

The opinions of HCPs who are using Medical Information Services are overall positive. All the quality indicators were rated as a 4 or 5 by the majority of HCPs, with the lowest in completeness (173/222, 78%) and the highest in timeliness (195/225, 87%). Medical Information Services were utilized to advance knowledge/education of the HCP, followed closely by the care of a current or future patient. However, when queried on the relevant use of the information in their practice, the most common answers were for their own education or to share with peers. The impact on patient care was focused on enabling the HCP to educate patients more effectively. The value of medical information is difficult to quantify. Understanding the quality assessment, utilization, and the impact on patient care by HCPs can provide a broad descriptor of value. This study supports the value of the medical information responses provided by pharmaceutical companies to HCPs in their practice(s).