CONSULT / POLICY ASSISTANT: The answer you need might be on page 231 of a PDF.

One question, five searches, 123 documents

In one public health environment, we searched its current, keyword-based document management system for guidance about using an EpiPen to treat anaphylaxis.

We searched the library five ways a staff member might reasonably describe the same situation: EpiPen, Anapen, adrenaline, epinephrine and anaphylaxis. Each term surfaced a different set of approved documents.

Together, the searches returned 123 different documents containing 484,382 words. That is roughly the length of The Lord of the Rings. The words used to ask the question materially changed the guidance a staff member would see. Even then, they would have to read every document in full to understand the context, contraindications and contradictions across them.

Observed in one Australian public health document library, July 2026.

How an answer is grounded

Hot Source searches the approved library by meaning, not keywords. It reads across the relevant passages and brings back one answer with its sources.

• Every answer identifies the source passages behind it, so the person asking can read the original wording.
• Answers draw on the current approved version. Superseded and withdrawn documents leave the answer set.
• Synonyms and related clinical terms are recognised, so the answer does not depend on guessing the word the author used.
• Text inside scans, images and flowcharts is read along with the rest of the document.
• Potential inconsistencies between sources are shown for a responsible person to review.

The right answer depends on what applies

A clause can change with the employer, agreement, facility, role or circumstance. Before staff access begins, implementation defines and tests those boundaries: which sources apply, what context is missing, which material must be excluded and when the approved library cannot determine the answer.

1. Identify what applies.
2. Ask for missing context.
3. Show the answer and exact sources.
4. Escalate when the material cannot determine it.

When the library cannot answer

Hot Source reports when the source material cannot answer a question rather than filling the gap. Those unanswered queries are recorded, which gives policy owners a prioritised list of what the library is missing.

Hot Source expresses what the approved source material says and shows the evidence. It does not replace professional or clinical judgement: people remain responsible for decisions.

Where the same problem appears

Hot Source is useful wherever staff must turn controlled documents into action. The same grounded answer layer that reads clinical policy can help staff navigate enterprise agreements or work out how to use a recently implemented system.

How Consult compares

An answer is only as good as its sources

Check finds contradictions before a policy is approved, and Control decides which version is current. Consult answers from what they leave in place.

Follow one question through all three

Questions