1. Candy Day HealthLink, Health Systems Trust, SA The Value of Information: The HealthLink experience

2. Information AND communication Inseparable Need effective channels of communication Comprehensive intervention

3. Dependent on: Technology Training Standards Lowering barriers

4. Ensuring value Find out what people WANT and NEED Stimulating awareness Integrating into interventions Locally relevant Responsive to change

5. Value and Cost Difficult to evaluate High cost need to prove high value Lower cost may reach further, lower risk, scalable Email vs internet/video-conferencing Listservs Access to basic resources

6. Types of information Lab results Peer-to-peer consultation News, publications, research results, events Drug information, bibliographic services Journals Administrative and management functions Distance learning

7. Rural doctors list snake identification after bite

8. Improving value through: Open content Improved information retrieval technology

9. Rural doctors list (mailadoc) “Just a short note to introduce ourselves to list members. We are a group of 10 rural doctors working in a 450 bed hospital in rural zululand. We have been using various electronic medical resources for a while now and are very excited about the possibilities of mailadoc. Our strengths probably lie mostly in medicine / infectious diseases but we would be happy to contribute / receive information in any area, clinical or otherwise. We are currently editing the last edition of our hospital protocols which we have attempted to make as evidence-based yet appropriate as possible to the rural setting. Looking forward to finally connecting with other rural doctors on a regular basis!