Development of a training manual on information literacy for health science students in Africa

Abstract

The past three decades have witnessed an explosion in the volume of published medical and health information [1]. Advances in telecommunication technology in the last two decades have led to the development of computer networks that allow access to vast amount of information and services [2]). The amount of electronic health information available to users now is greater than ever and keeps growing on a daily basis. The Internet, a global system of connection between millions of computers that allows almost instant access to and dissemination of information has greatly and dramatically changed the means by which information is generated, processed and retrieved. With the advent of the Internet, bibliographies, databases, reference and consumer health information resources, Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM) resources and journals with full text articles have become more accessible, allowing the academic scientific community, medical professionals, students and consumers to be up to date in a previously unthinkable manner regarding the speed and efficiency of accessing and obtaining information [3]. The Internet has now become a key source of health information to students, teachers, other professionals and the general public. The availability of this new and potentially vast source of information also improves strategies for medical decision-making [4] as well as teaching and learning.