Clinical practice guidelines and the computer on your desk

The majority of Australia's general practitioners are now believed to be using a computer to support clinical practice. This technology has the potential to deliver evidence­ based clinical practice guidelines to the GP during consultations. If clinical practice guidelines are to be incorporated into electronic medical record systems, to assist clinical decision making at the point of care, guideline development will need to be significantly revised. Computerised clinical decision support at the time of consultation may become a major method for continuing medical education for Australian GPs.