Evaluation of an online discussion forum for emergency practitioners

Knowledge is a critical element in the delivery of quality healthcare. In a busy emergency department (ED) clinicians attempting clinically relevant discussion with their peers face multiple interruptions and a lack of sustained meaningful interactions. Information and communication technologies such as online discussion forums enable practitioners to share practice knowledge at times that fit into their daily workflow. We conducted an experiment in which we provided emergency clinicians with access to an asynchronous discussion forum as a medium to support development of an online social network for information exchange. The outcomes were evaluated using a social network perspective to better understand the knowledge seeking and sharing behaviors among rural and urban emergency practitioners participating in the online discussion forum. The online discussion forum created an opportunity for emergency practitioners from multiple ED sites to engage in dialogue around topics that were relevant to their practice learning needs.