To help practitioners appraise medical literature, Bernhard Wiedermann, M.D., MA, suggests determining where it fits on this pyramid.

Practitioners often read journal articles to help inform them about best clinical practices and policies, but some may not feel comfortable changing their clinical practice in the absence of published practice guidelines.

During this year’s American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and Exhibition, Bernhard Wiedermann, M.D., MA, an infectious disease specialist at Children’s National Hospital, spoke to a room full of pediatric providers about how to stay current with medical literature, quickly analyze the material and decide whether to apply it to their practice. “This interactive session served to help primary care pediatric providers understand how to critically appraise what they are reading in medical literature,” says Dr. Wiedermann. “Practitioners need to be able to critically read journal articles to better decide when to apply new studies or recommendations to their clinical practice.”

Dr. Wiedermann’s presentation, entitled “Should that new article change your practice? The five easy pieces of literature appraisal for busy front-line providers,” covered:

• Techniques that providers should use when searching and browsing for literature
• How to review abstracts for relevant content
• How to determine the type of study (Where does it fit on the pyramid?)
• Whether or not your patient fits the study population
• How to explain findings to parents and patients

At the session, attendees gained the ability to develop a streamlined plan to keep current with the medical literature, apply simple strategies to select and appraise potentially worthwhile articles and discuss new management options with patients and families.