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Introduction: In March 2020, the Ontario-based Centre for Effective Practice (CEP) launched an online portal that would become the CEP COVID-19 Resource Centre (CRC), one of Ontario’s most well-known and best-used sources for primary care clinical and practice guidance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Description: Authors will describe how key principles of librarianship drove the development and evolution of the CRC, discuss their approach to literature searching and appraisal in a time of great uncertainty and scant evidence, and outline successes and challenges. Outcomes: With over 170,500 visitors since 2020, the CRC became an invaluable tool for primary care providers in Ontario, across Canada and internationally. 89% of site visitors reported that the CRC enhanced their knowledge of COVID-19 evidence, recommendations and policies. 87% of visitors reported that the Vaccine resource directly informed their practice. Discussion: Authors discuss challenges of the rapid-response format and skills formed by the demands of the pandemic.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ontario-based Centre for Effective Practice (CEP) established the COVID-19 Resource Centre (CRC) in March 2020. This platform rapidly became a critical source of clinical and practice guidance for primary care providers, highlighting the importance of effective information synthesis during public health emergencies. The article discusses the development of the CRC, emphasizing the application of librarianship principles in navigating the challenges posed by the pandemic's information overload and the scarcity of evidence. It outlines the strategies for literature searching, appraisal, and evidence synthesis that were employed to ensure the content's accuracy and utility. The CRC's evolution is presented within the context of its goal to efficiently bridge the gap between evidence and clinical practice, underscoring the collaborative efforts and innovative methodologies that contributed to its success. The CRC has served as an invaluable resource, attracting close to 185,000 visitors from Ontario, across Canada, and internationally. According to survey feedback, 89% of users reported enhanced knowledge of COVID-19 evidence and policies, and 87% stated that the vaccine information directly informed their practice. These statistics underscore the CRC's role in supporting informed decision-making among healthcare providers. The CRC marked the CEP's first foray into real-time evidence-based tool development. Facing challenges of expanding information volumes, an unpredictable information landscape, and the need for swift adaptation to new developments, the CRC emerged as a critical resource, enhancing credibility for the CEP, and fostering new partnerships. This journey underscores the importance of librarianship skills-critical appraisal, evidence synthesis, and knowledge translation-in enhancing service delivery.

Paul Hébert and the CMAJ Editorial-Writing Team appear to be unaware of the current state of Canadian continuing health education.1 Although there is always a need for improvement, the College of Family Physicians of Canada rejects the notion that continuing health education in Canada is \"a truly broken system.\"1 The editorialists not only selected dated studies and American statistics to support their positions but also ignored the significant changes to Canadian accreditation criteria; by using these revised criteria, existing professional organizations now fulfill many of the roles the editorialists propose for an Institute of Continuing Health Education. Perhaps most disturbingly, by suggesting that most physicians are irresponsible and greedy in their pursuit of opportunities for continuing medical education, the editorialists insulted the majority of Canadian physicians, who conscientiously and ethically pay for a substantive portion of their continuing education. For those of us involved in the accreditation of continuing professional development programs, the funding provided by pharmaceutical companies for such events is an ongoing and important concern.1 The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada has been actively working in collaboration with the national specialty societies and the university offices of continuing medical education to establish standards for commercial support of continuing medical education. For example, the Committee on Accreditation of Continuing Medical Education, the National Committee on Continuing Medical Education of the College of Family Physicians of Canada and the Royal College's Continuing Professional Development Accreditation Committee have promoted increasingly rigorous standards that all accredited providers and programs must fulfill. The editorial's call for the creation of an arm's-length institute to provide oversight1 would appear to be premature in light of work already under way. The editorial incorrectly implies that the majority of accredited group events for continuing professional development are funded by pharmaceutical companies. In fact, we have seen a tremendous shift in the approach to continuing medical education, informed by growing research evidence on the effectiveness of continuing professional development. The old model of continuing medical education where experts lectured to passive participants on the latest innovations in medicine at the local Holiday Inn has been largely been replaced by education that promotes interactive learning and reflection on multiple practice dimensions (clinical, administrative, research and education) and competencies. Unfortunately, the editorial makes only a passing reference to the myriad of strategies embedded within the College of Family Physicians' Mainpro and the Royal College's maintenance of competence programs. The Royal College will continue to develop and implement standards for effective continuing professional education, promote lifelong learning, explore ways to integrate education into clinical practice and explore interprofessional education in collaboration with multiple partners.