Ten Things Every Anesthesiologist Should Know About the Internet:
Core Internet Competencies for Anesthesia Residents

This web page suggests some of the tasks that an anesthesiologist should be able to accomplish on the Internet, after suitable training and demonstration. While to some extent, the process of attempting to find some of the sites and information listed here is in itself valuable, they should be encouraged to recognize the current limitations of the Internet and not waste too much time looking for information which may not be available.

1) CHOOSE ONE ANESTHESIA TOPIC (e.g. A REGIONAL TECHNIQUE) AND ONE DRUG. WHAT INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE ABOUT EACH OF THEM ON THE INTERNET?

Learn to use at least two of the search engines, such as Altavista and Hotbot. Read some of their guidelines on how to search. Recognise the limitations of online resources, and that some subjects are not yet covered adequately online.

2) FIND AND EXPLORE AT LEAST THREE OF THE MAJOR ANESTHESIA META-SITES (SITES WHICH CONTAIN LINKS TO INFORMATION, RATHER THAN PROVIDING CONTENT DIRECTLY)

This category includes sites such as Anesthesia and Critical Care Resources on the Internet (ACCRI), The Virtual Library at GASNet, Anesthesiology at The Mining Company, and the Virtual Anesthesia Textbook.

3) FIND AND USE WEB SITES FOR THREE MAJOR ANESTHESIA SOCIETIES

Be familiar with the sites for the American Society of Anesthesiology, another national society, and one or two other societies, preferably including one subspecialty group. Develop a general awareness of how to use the site to find practice guidelines, upcoming meeting information, and to contact the societies' administration and executive.

4) FIND AND USE THE WEB SITES FOR THREE MAJOR PRINTED ANESTHESIA JOURNALS. COMPARE THESE SITES WITH AT LEAST ONE ONLINE ANESTHESIA JOURNAL, AND THE BRITISH MEDICAL JOURNAL

How much information do these journals publish online? What are the advantages and disadvantages of using the online version compared to the printed version? How do they compare with the eBMJ, one of the pioneer conventional journals on the Internet.
How are the new online-only journals faring? Are they equivalent in quality to the traditional printed journals?

5) SEND AND RECEIVE E-MAIL

Including how to find an e-mail address for an anesthesiologist, basic etiquette, use of an appropriate subject heading, saving a suitable ".sig" file to be added to each outgoing message. How to send and receive an attachment.

6) FIND, JOIN and USE AN ANESTHESIOLOGY DISCUSSION GROUP/MAILING LIST

Including how to subscribe and unsubscribe, use of "Digest" mode, difference between sending a message to the whole list and to the list server. Lurking, sending a new message, responding appropriately to a thread, avoiding "flame wars", use of internationally-accepted language.

7) FIND TWO OF THE FREE MEDLINE SITES AND USE THEM

Learn how to search for a particular topic, or a particular author or type of publication. Compare the two sites with each other and with other ways of doing a literature search. Is the full text of any of the references available?

8) FIND SOME PRACTICAL WEB SITES

Find a site that lists upcoming anesthesia meetings and one which lists employment opportunities. Select a city with an interesting conference or job, then find the local weather and a suitable hotel.

9) BASIC INTERNET SECURITY

What is a virus? How can the risk of viruses be reduced? How to detect a hoax virus warning.
Is it safe to send credit card information to a Web site? When is it safe to send confidential patient information via e-mail?

10) MAKE A CONTRIBUTION: CREATE A WEB PAGE

Choose a topic, perhaps one recently presented at rounds. With assistance, convert information into a suitable format for the Internet, perhaps using a pre-existing template or a simple "What-you-see-is-what-you-get" type of web page program. Discuss the format of the site, including use of graphics and multimedia, color schemes, and links. How well does the finished site function?

All the above could be done in a workshop/demonstration format for a group of anesthesiologists or residents in a single afternoon, or they could be done with individuals over a longer period, allowing more time for independent exploration and less for didactic teaching. E-mail me at if you are interested in having me lead an Internet workshop.

After completing these tasks an anesthesiologist should be reasonably familiar with those resources which are most likely to be useful in the next few years. They should have a reasonable overview of what the Internet can and cannot do, the role it can play in there professional life now, and glimpse the opportunities which it should make available in the future.