Web-Based Tools

Constant Change

The landscape of specific web tools available is constantly changing

Learning to identify and evaluate tools to meet needs in your professional lives is the important skill

Learning about and using the available tools now can help you find and use tools more efficiently in the future

Patient Privacy

As a physician, it’s important to keep patient privacy and HIPAA compliance in mind when using web tools

Web tools are never meant to hold identifiable information about patients

Personal health information should always be encrypted and stored in a manner compliant with HIPAA regulations

•Advanced Google•Google Scholar•Google Books•Google Calendar•Google Docs

The Tools

•Evernote•Dropbox•RSS

Everything Google The Rest

Turn your question into a statement Lincoln was

assassinated by grass is green because

+salsa +chips -dance Salsa and chips not

salsa dance ~women ~combat

Searches for women, females girls and combat, war, battle

“quotes for phrases”

Google 101

Examples from Brett Spencer, University of Alabama

Advanced Search

In case you forget how, the advanced search page gives you most of these choices and more

Search within a site or domain Search for a page within nih.gov Search only within .edu and .gov sites

Search within a certain time frame Search for PDFs, Powerpoints, and

others

Google Tricks

Colon searches define:culture, weather:Boston, time:London

Calculations (160/17)*25

Conversions 2 tablespoons in ounces

World Facts Population of Russia

Flights Delta 655

Examples from Brett Spencer, University of Alabama

Google ScholarA search engine designed to only search for scholarly materials on the web.•Connect through the Biomedical Library website to get full-text links

Google BooksBook search engine•Allows for reading of some books completely online or through download, usually old, public domain books•Allows previewing of others•Searches full-text of books•Helps find the book you need in a library

Google Blog SearchHelps you discover what people are saying online by searching blogs•Search for what doctors are saying about things like EHRs•Search with the ~physician term to find out specifically about tools in your context

Google Specialty Searches

Suite of online word processing, presentation, and spreadsheet applications designed for easy sharing and collaboration among groups

Google Docs

Documents

Interface much like Microsoft Word

Allows sharing, multiple people can be allowed to edit or view a document in real time

You can roll back to previous versions if you don’t like edits

Grab a link to publish freely on the web

Not as many formatting choices as Word

Other Available Doc TypesPresentations Spreadsheets

+ Forms•Create a form and send it in email or post a link, the results will be filled into a spreadsheet for you, and reports are available

Keep up with your schedule on the go, sync with your mobile device, share calendars with friends or colleagues

Google Calendar

Note-taking application•Available on PCs, Macs, and most mobile devices, but also through a web interface•Syncs between all devices and the web•Takes text notes, picture notes, voice notes, and accepts pdfs•Searches full-text of images and pdfs

Evernote

File syncing application•After installing Dropbox, drop any file into a Dropbox folder on your computer, or upload a file on the website, and it will be available on any other computer/device on which you install Dropbox, also on the web•Shared folders allow groups to share files and documents by simply dropping a file into a folder

Dropbox

Really Simple Syndication

RSS

RSS UsesSubscribe to•Blogs/websites•Journals•Newspapers/Magazines•Podcasts•Searches

Finding Web Tools Talk to people doing the same kind of

activities about what they use In addition to talking to colleagues personally,

you can throw out questions on social networking sites if you’ve built up a network of professional contacts who share your interest

Use your new found Google skills Search to see if other physicians are facing the

same problem or have the same need If you have heard of one tool that does not quite

meet your need Google “The Tool vs” (For example, Dropbox vs) to see what other people are comparing it to online

Keep up Find magazines, blogs, or people to follow who

talk about these kinds of things and follow along

Assessing Web Tools

Does it meet my needs? Will it fit easily into what I do? Does it threaten privacy? Is it easy to use?

Adopt a web-based tool that you did not previously use, and use it in an educational or professional context for one week. The tool can be one described here, or you can identify a tool to suit your needs. Describe why you chose the tool and how you used it. How did it meet or fail to meet your expectation? Will you continue to use the tool?

Discussion 1

Describe a problem or need that you might face in your career that might be solved with technology. Propose a solution using any existing technology or tool. Explain how you found your solution and your reasons for choosing it.Example: You are a member of a group who share a medical specialty and you want to have a journal club to discuss advancements in your field, but you are not geographically near. Would you propose using a blog with summaries and comments? A wiki? Online forums? Chat rooms? Video conferencing? Google Docs? Mailed correspondence? Mail is slow, but video conferencing and chat require that everyone be able to attend at the same time across many time zones. How did you find your answer, and why did you choose it?

Discussion 2

Andrea Wright, Technology Librarianawright@bbl.usouthal.edu 251-461-1424Biomedical Library Room 213