We were given a list of titles from a prior project on information technology in health care. That project conducted a search of PubMed in November 2003. They searched for systematic reviews published in English from 1995 to 2003. PubMed, which is maintained by the U.S. National Library of Medicine, is widely recognized as the premier source for bibliographic coverage of biomedical literature. It encompasses information from Index Medicus, the Index to Dental Literature, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (allied health includes occupational therapy, speech therapy, and rehabilitation), as well as other sources of coverage in the areas of health care organization, biological and physical sciences, humanities, and information science as they relate to medicine and health care.

Our own search for studies of health information technology began with an electronic search of PubMed on January 6, 2004 for additional articles published since 1995. We ordered all articles on HIT topics, regardless of study design or language. We also searched the Cochrane Controlled Clinical Trials Register Database and the Cochrane Database of Reviews of Effectiveness (DARE). The Cochrane Collaboration is an international organization that helps people make well-informed decisions about health care by preparing, maintaining, and promoting the accessibility of systematic reviews on the effects of heath care interventions. In December, 2004 we also conducted a specific search of the journal Health Affairs , developing a list of all articles with "information technology" or "information systems" as keywords. Health Affairs has been a leader in publishing articles on this topic in recent years.

Advanced Technologies to Lower Health Care Costs and Improve Quality — This report was published in the fall of 2003 by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative in partnership with the New England Healthcare Institute. Research was conducted by the First Consulting Group and was sponsored by several Massachusetts companies involved in healthcare and health insurance. The report focuses on seven advanced technologies (computerized physician order entry, electronic prescribing, etc) that have demonstrated both financial benefits and improved quality of care. The report also discusses barriers to implementation.

The Value of Computerized Provider Order Entry (CPOE) in Ambulatory Settings — The Center for Information Technology, also located in the Boston area, published this report in 2003. They searched internationally for both academic and commercial sources of literature. They also contacted 35 vendors regarding their currently available health information technology packages. They found that CPOE can significantly improve quality while lowering costs.

Published Meta-analysis on Computer-based Clinical Reminder Systems — In 1996, Shea, DuMouchel, and Bahamonde published a meta-analysis of 16 trials in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association (JAMIA). They found that computer reminders improved utilization of vaccinations, breast cancer screenings, and colorectal cancer screenings, but not pap smears or other preventive care.