The School of Optometry and Vision Science now has access the evidence-based point-of-care (POC) tool UpToDate, to support clinical decision making. Covering more than 10,000 clinical topics, UpToDate is a popular resource used by medical doctors, and the only POC tool available through Library Services at the University of Waterloo.
UpToDate content includes broad coverage of areas such as immunology, cardiovascular medicine, critical care, infectious diseases, neurology, obstetrics, gynecology, pediatrics, primary care, psychiatry, and most importantly for us, Vision Science. Drug names in UpToDate entries link directly to Lexicomp drug monographs, providing smooth access to this important source of drug information. As the University of Waterloo Library already subscribes to Lexicomp, this integration of resources provides an enhanced experience when searching for clinical and drug information.
An example UpToDate topic is, “Optic Neuritis: Pathophysiology, clinical features, and diagnosis”, which includes synthesized clinical information and evidence pertaining to epidemiology, pathogenesis, differential diagnosis, management, and more. In addition to synthesized clinical information, this tool provides various medical calculators, plain-language information summaries for patients, images, and additional references for further research.
Be sure to check it out, and let us know if you have questions about this new resource! A link to this resource can be found on our Evidence-based Practice (EBP) webpage.
