Residents' full-text database usage and satisfaction in an academic medical library setting

A survey was distributed to medical residents to determine factors affecting usage of and satisfaction with a full-text database, MD Consult^TM. Using Fisher's Exact Test, there was no statistical evidence that factors such as personal computer ownership, frequency of computer usage, and frequency of MD Consult^TM had any impact on usage frequency and satisfaction These findings confirm prior studies that also found no association between these factors. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) did illustrate statistically significant findings between database components (ease of navigation, search capability, and program design) and overall satisfaction with MD Consult^TM However, none of the 73 respondents gave a "general opinion of MD Consult^TM" of less than "3" (neutral) Possible reasons for this positive response could include users' opinion that any electronic data retrieval is "good," users' positive attitude toward the library, and the credibility of the sources included in MD Consult^TM.