Current information is a critical component of good healthcare. In this article
we offer a definition of a new health professional, the
‘informationist’, whose function it is to ensure
evidence-based health practice. We describe the literature and discussions that
led to the proposal of this new role, and offer a description of the steps being
taken to further elaborate this career. In particular, we describe efforts at
Johns Hopkins to train informationists and informaticists and to offer services
that lead to the integration of these and other information professionals into
clinical care, public health and research.
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