Health Sciences Library Research Articles

Analyzing COVID-19 Resources on Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries’ (AAHSL) Research Guides

In this study, the authors analyzed 147 AAHSL member libraries’ COVID-19 research guides to determine the volume and origin of links included. Through stratified sampling based on total enrollment of health sciences academic institutions, 51 eligible AASHL library websites were selected for inclusion in the study. Content from COVID-19 research guides was analyzed, and the origin of each link was categorized. Most AAHSL libraries have at least one COVID-19 research guide, while some have two or more. A total of 8,848 links within examined research guides were visited. Links to academic institutions including universities’ own internal links were most common while news outlets, social media, and international government were linked least. Regarding individual organizations, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH)were most frequently linked. The overwhelming majority of sampled health sciences libraries use research guides to share COVID-19 information with their users. It is necessary to further investigate how libraries can optimize research guides to benefit their users. These results and conclusions reveal information resource patterns in research guides at health sciences academic libraries and are consistent with those reached by researchers investigating academic libraries’ research guides in 2020.

Understanding the Information Creation Practices of LGBTQIA+ Community Health Workers

AbstractThis paper reports on preliminary findings from an action research project partnering health sciences librarians with community health workers (CHWs) who are LGBTQIA+ to create information resources for the CHW’s community. Findings report on twelve virtual semistructured interviews with CHWs from South Carolina and eleven virtual brainstorming meetings between CHWs and health sciences librarians. The authors analyzed verbatim interview and meeting transcripts using a combination of deductive and inductive qualitative coding. Findings demonstrate 1) external barriers constrain and motivate information creation; 2) the presence of preexisting information, knowledge, and resources within the CHWs’ communities; 3) that CHW‐librarian pairs brainstormed how to codify and iterate what already exists; 4) that librarians adopted a reference role when brainstorming and suggested resource ideas within and outside of the CHWs’ communities. Implications include strategies that researchers and practitioners can adopt to leverage existing experiential and embodied knowledge within LGBTQIA+ communities.

EHealth literacy measurement tools: a systematic review protocol

BackgroundImproving eHealth literacy (eHL) is one of the biggest challenges currently facing the global healthcare community. Indeed the use of digital services has the potential to engage patients in care as well as improve the effectiveness of chronic disease self-management, it remains highly dependent on a patient’s specific skills and experiences in the health care systems. Although eHealth literacy has gained momentum in the past decade, it remains an underresearched area, particularly eHealth literacy measurement. The aim of the review is to identify patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) of eHealth literacy for adult populations and to summarize the evidence on their psychometric properties.MethodsWe will conduct a systematic literature review of the tools used to measure eHealth literacy for adult population. The search strategy aims to find published studies. A three-step search strategy will be used in this review. Published studies will be searched in CINAHL, PubMed, PsycINFO, and Web of Science from inception until end. Grey literature will be searched to find theses. Database search strategies will be formulated and tested with the assistance of an expert Health Sciences Librarian. The selection of studies will be done by two independent reviewers. Disagreements will be resolved through consensus, and a third reviewer will solve discrepancies. Furthermore, two reviewers will independently evaluate the methodological rigor of the instruments development and testing and assign a grade using the standardized Consensus-based Standards for the Selection of Health Measurement Instruments (COSMIN) checklist. Disagreements will be discussed with a third reviewer, expert in psychometrics.Extracted data will be aggregated and analyzed to produce a set of synthesized findings that will be used to develop evidence-informed recommendations in regard of eHL instruments. We will present a synthesis of all instruments, their psychometric properties, and make recommendations for eHL instrument selection in practice. Reporting will be informed by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis and a PRISMA flow diagram.DiscussionThis systematic review will summarize the evidence on the psychometric properties of PROMs instruments used to measure eHL and will help clinicians, managers, and policy-makers to select an appropriate instrument.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO CRD42021232765

Developing a Library Association Membership Survey: Challenges and Promising Themes

Objective – Many of us involved in the library and information sector are members of associations that represent the interests of our profession. These associations are often key to enabling us to provide evidence based practice by offering opportunities such as professional development. We invest resources in membership so we must be able to inform those in charge about our needs, expectations, and level of satisfaction. Governing bodies and committees, therefore, need a method to capture these views and plan strategy accordingly. The committee of the Health Sciences Libraries Group (HSLG) of the Library Association of Ireland wanted to enable members to give their views on the group, to understand what aspects of a library association are important to librarians in Ireland, and to learn about the reasons for and against membership. Methods – Surveys are a useful way of obtaining evidence to inform policy and practice. Although relatively quick to produce, their design and dissemination can pose challenges. The HSLG committee developed an online survey questionnaire for members and non-members (anyone eligible to join our library association). We primarily used multiple choice, matrix, and contextual/demographic questions, with skip logic enabling choices of relevance to respondents. Our literature review provided guidance in questionnaire design and suggested four themes that we used to develop options and to analyse results. Results – The survey was made available for two weeks and we received 49 eligible responses. Analysis of results and reflection on the process suggested aspects that we would change in terms of the language used in our questionnaire and dissemination methods. There were also aspects that show good potential, including the four themes that were used to understand what matters to members: expertise (professional development), community (connecting and engaging), profession (sustaining and strengthening), and support (financial and organizational supports). Overall, our survey provided rich data that met our objectives. Conclusion – It is essential that those who are governing any group make evidence based decisions, and a well-planned survey can support this. Our article outlines the elements of our questionnaire and process that didn’t work, and those that show promise. We hope that lessons learned will help anyone planning a survey, particularly associations who wish to ascertain the views of their members and others who are eligible to join. With some proposed modifications, our questionnaire could provide a template for future study in this area.

Bridging the gap: A library-based collaboration to enhance data skills for clinical researchers.

Enterprise data warehouses (EDWs) serve as foundational infrastructure in a modern learning health system, housing clinical and other system-wide data and making it available for research, strategic, and quality improvement purposes. Building on a longstanding partnership between Northwestern University's Galter Health Sciences Library and the Northwestern Medicine Enterprise Data Warehouse (NMEDW), an end-to-end clinical research data management (cRDM) program was created to enhance clinical data workforce capacity and further expand related library-based services for the campus. The training program covers topics such as clinical database architecture, clinical coding standards, and translation of research questions into queries for proper data extraction. Here we describe this program, including partners and motivations, technical and social components, integration of FAIR principles into clinical data research workflows, and the long-term implications for this work to serve as a blueprint of best practice workflows for clinical research to support library and EDW partnerships at other institutions. This training program has enhanced the partnership between our institution's health sciences library and clinical data warehouse to provide support services for researchers, resulting in more efficient training workflows. Through instruction on best practices for preserving and sharing outputs, researchers are given the tools to improve the reproducibility and reusability of their work, which has positive effects for the researchers as well as for the university. All training resources have been made publicly available so that those who support this critical need at other institutions can build on our efforts. Library-based partnerships to support training and consultation offer an important vehicle for clinical data science capacity building in learning health systems. The cRDM program launched by Galter Library and the NMEDW is an example of this type of partnership and builds on a strong foundation of past collaboration, expanding the scope of clinical data support services and training on campus.

Library associations: making connections to enable effective change

Decisions by library associations impact on everyone involved in library and information services. The committee of the Library Association of Ireland, Health Sciences Libraries Group conducted an online survey about association and group membership. Our (49) responses and literature review provide a useful guide to what is wanted and needed. We learned about the value of taking a holistic, connected approach to enhancing expertise through continuing professional development, progressing the interests of our profession, and supporting collegiality and knowledge exchange by uniting us as a community. Our findings show the importance of belonging to a professional group that not only provides comprehensive tangible supports but also facilitates a network of stakeholders with whom we can engage, share and collaborate.

Pilot Project Exploring Low-tech Collaborative Board Gaming on Student Attitudes Toward Interprofessional Education

Objectives: The intent of this project was to explore the impact of a small, collaborative gaming experience among undergraduate students on student attitudes and beliefs about Interprofessional Education (IPE). Methods: Health sciences librarians at two state universities used a low-tech, collaborative board game to facilitate small, in-person group gaming. The authors used an adapted version of the Interprofessional Attitudes Scale (IPAS), a validated instrument that measures the four domains of the 2011 IPEC Core Competencies for Interprofessional Collaborative Practice, as a pre/post assessment of the impact of the gaming experience. Results: While anecdotal evidence indicated that playing a collaborative board game had an impact on the participating students, there was no statistically based evidence that collaborative board games increases positive or negative attitudes about IPE and interprofessional collaborative practice. Conclusions: More student participation is required for statistical significance, recruiting students and ensuring that students have enough time to complete the game play is key to future possible success.

CHLA/ABSC 2022 Conference Abstracts

This workshop will provide health science librarians and information professionals at any level/context with an overview of the best practices in finding and identifying the best scientific evidence during novel public health emergencies. Attendees will be presented with an overview of a best practices statement developed by the Librarian Reserve Corps. Attendees will then apply the recommendations from the best practices statement in designing a plan to respond to real-life case study/information request during a public health emergency. A discussion period will follow on how to apply the best practices in other contexts, environments, and cultures. Attendees will also be invited to share their own experiences and best practices during the discussion session. Through hands-on learning and discussion, librarians and information professionals at any level/context will develop strategies to find and critically appraise the best evidence in any novel public health emergency situation.

Metadata Development

Dahlgren Memorial Library (DML) is the graduate health and life sciences library for Georgetown University Medical Center and serves a wide population. The library is 99% electronic and boasts a robust collection of electronic resources, such as ebooks and Springshare LibGuides. DML began subscribing to LibGuides in 2009 and since had accumulated 8,000 assets. Over 4,000 of the assets were links from an A–Z eBooks Guide created for all of the ebooks in DML’s collection. After some analysis, the assets showed low statistics, duplication, and old metadata. With the introduction of an eBooks Highlight Collection in 2021, there came organization, new methodology, and ultimately a reduction of assets in the library.

Landscape of health sciences librarian-mediated search services.

Health librarians have traditionally provided mediated searches to support patient care, education and research. This study aims to discover the types of search result formats used by health science libraries, determine current practice among health science libraries (types of requesters served, fees, deduplication, turnaround time and citation manager use) and uncover innovative methods for providing search results. An online survey was distributed to the MEDLIB-L, ExpertSearching, MidContinental Chapter of the Medical Library Association and ICON listservs and through direct email to selected Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries reference and education librarians. Librarians affiliated with 127 institutions from 11 countries (including the USS) and 36 USS states and territories responded. One hundred and forty-two of the total 150 analysed responses provided information on full-text access, and 81 of those 142 responses (57%) indicated that the institutions' link-resolver links were included in search results provided to the requester. The survey responses provide information on literature search services regarding turnaround time, use of a citation managers, fees and deduplication. With the developing landscape of citation managers and the tools offered, these data can be used as a benchmark for librarians who are considering evaluating or modifying their search service delivery.

A Self-Paced Online Library Orientation: Development, Implementation, and Assessment

Health sciences librarians may find it difficult to meet demands for in-person or online synchronous library orientations for various reasons, including short-staffing of librarians, expansion of online programs, and temporary campus closures caused by emergencies, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors discuss the development, implementation, and assessment of an asynchronous online orientation tutorial created for use across various health sciences degree, certificate, and training programs. The tutorial can either replace or supplement synchronous orientations, and the original tutorial can be copied and customized for specific programs.

MOST COMMON MENTAL DISORDERS AFFECTED IN ADOLESCENTS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Introduction: Since the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic, many consequences have been constantly faced by the population. The threat related to the numbers of contamination, accentuated by catastrophic reports of serious illness or death, added to the scenes shown in the media of hastily built cemeteries and crowded hospitals can have a direct effect on the mental health of the population, generating fear and insecurity. Adolescents, when infected with the coronavirus, have the same clinical symptoms as adults. In this context, when it comes to worsening health, mental health problems and domestic violence were the main predisposing factors that caused damage to well-being, societal characteristics that should influence the individual and collective health of adolescents. Therefore, knowing the relevance of this theme, this study aimed to identify in the literature the characteristics of mental disorders that affect adolescents during the pandemic. Methodology: This is a descriptive, exploratory, integrative literature review, carried out from a bibliographic survey in the following databases: Latin American and Caribbean Literature on Health Sciences (LILACS) and Scientific Electronic Online Library (SCIELO). Results and Discussions: Clinically, adolescents are proposed to develop the same symptoms of mental disorders as adults during the period of isolation. The context of the economic crisis, social isolation and the weakening of health services are related as the main factors that contributed to the development of mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety, self-mutilation and panic syndromes. Final considerations: Therefore, it became evident that the main disorders that affect young people and adolescents during the period of isolation, resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, are ansiety and depression. In addition, the main causes that trigger such problems are isolation measures and family problems.

Exploring the Expectations and Preferences of Health Sciences Library Subject Guides Users

Using survey methodology, this study aimed to explore and describe health sciences library users’ subject guide expectations and preferences. Respondents showed an overwhelming lack of familiarity with the guides and expressed a preference for quick and easy access links as the most important feature. Most respondents also appeared to want some guidance about which resources to use within the guides, but less extensive learning or instructional content. The results of this study will inform both future guide development and research on best practices.

The Technology, Budget, and Other Challenges of Growing Health Systems on Academic Health Sciences Libraries: A Deeper Dive

The aim of this project is to survey academic health sciences librarians to learn about the challenges they face when they are part of a growing health system. Thirty-seven librarians completed a survey about the challenges they face in the current academic health sciences environment, highlighting specific concerns related to affiliated health system growth. This paper describes the results of the survey to enhance understanding among academic health sciences librarians regarding how library collections, budgets, and technology can be impacted by growth in affiliated health systems.

COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy among Library Professionals: A Case Study of Indian Health Science Librarians

ABSTRACT This article aims to identify the factors prevalent among health science librarians toward vaccine hesitancy. With the development of COVID-19 vaccines in 2021, numerous efforts are being taken to vaccinate people to control the spread of coronavirus. Recent research has shown a high level of vaccine hesitancy among various groups in various fields but no study has been conducted to explore the factors responsible for vaccine hesitancy among library professionals. A cross-sectional online survey of Indian health science librarians was conducted. Data was collected through an online questionnaire designed on Google Forms and analyzed using MS-Excel. Descriptive statistics were used in the study. The majority of respondents (77%) showed a high level of vaccine hesitancy due to issues of safety, negative information, and confusion over vaccines. Measures to increase vaccination uptake and authentic sources with respect to COVID-19 vaccines have been discussed.

Customizing Summon for a Specific User Population: A Health Sciences Library’s Experience

The Harrell Health Sciences Library: Research and Learning Commons (HHSL) tailored their discovery solution, Ex Libris Summon, to better meet the needs of its health sciences users. The customizations encourage more sophisticated searching behaviors and improves usability of the library website for browsing and finding known items. HHSL worked with Penn State University Libraries and their Ex Libris Customer Success Manager to create customized search panels as well as turn on features available in Summon. While these customizations are specific to a health sciences library, any library can use these practices to customize their instance of Summon for their user group(s).

Use of electronic resources in research and learning in a health sciences library in Ghana: An analysis of awareness and perception of users

University libraries play a critical role by facilitating the use of their electronic resources and facilities available for students’ learning and research activities. Health and medical students and professionals are expected to use the electronic resources provided for their academic and research work. This study, therefore, seeks to investigate the acceptance and utilization of electronic resources in research and learning among users of the College of Health Sciences Library of the University of Ghana. The study employed a survey research design along with a quantitative approach to collect data from 128 respondents. A questionnaire was used for data collection, and it was analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 22 (SPSS) software. The study found that a majority of the respondents were aware of the electronic resources provided by the library, and they used various types of e-resources such as Google, Wikipedia, ScienceDirect and PubMed electronic sources. Moreover, the study found that the computer literacy skills of users have a positive relationship with the awareness of e-resources. Furthermore, there is no significant relationship between gender and the perceived usefulness of the use of e-resources. Last but not the least, the high cost of personal internet data and low internet bandwidth were challenges encountered by most of the respondents when accessing e-resources. The study made the following recommendations, among others, regular training on the use of e-resources, and libraries must collaborate effectively with lecturers to create awareness in the lecture hall and also some of the e-resources should be part of teaching instruction.

Health sciences librarian research and instruction services in pandemic information environments

This study examined research and instruction services provided by academic health sciences librarians in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 205 respondents (N = 205) completed an anonymous online survey about academic health sciences librarian involvement in providing research and instruction services during the global pandemic. In-depth literature searching services (86%, n = 176), curated COVID-19 research through guides (66%, n = 135), and systematic review consultations (53%, n = 109) were reported as the top three research services in demand. Librarians supported online teaching and learning at their institutions by providing online instruction for a course (92%, n = 189), facilitating access to licensed resources (73%, n = 150), and identifying open access and open educational resources (62%, n = 127). Overall, this study contributes to understanding pandemic-responsive academic library services to meet the unique needs of health sciences education and research in evolving COVID-19 pandemic information environments.

Are we making a difference? Outreach evaluation in practice.

Donald A.B. Lindberg, M.D., brought with him when he joined NLM an inquisitive mind, tech savvy, and new ideas. He was an early advocate of both outreach and evaluation innovation at NLM. Dr. Lindberg initiated and supported multiple pilot test and implementation projects to strengthen NLM’s health information outreach to healthcare providers, research scientists, health science and hospital librarians, and the general public, including minority and underserved populations. He helped steer NLM’s transition to the Internet, and NLM’s development of a robust framework for evaluating Internet and Web-based health information dissemination and outreach to its many audiences. Dr. Lindberg’s leadership led to numerous landmark accomplishments, including the capacity-building “Measuring the Difference” outreach evaluation Guide, and a multi-dimensional approach to Internet and website evaluation that placed NLM at the forefront of federal agencies using these new and emerging technologies to support their missions.

Health Information on Wikipedia: Can You Trust It?

Wikipedia, a crowd-sourced online encyclopedia begun in 2001, is potentially the most used source for medical information in the world with billions of visits each year. Its goal is to ensure that every person has access to all medical knowledge in their own language. The upside of this free open encyclopedia is everyone can enter an article. The downside of this free encyclopedia is that everyone can change words in an article. Vast amounts of health information has been added to Wikipedia, by medical professionals and some has even been edited by health science librarians and various health science student groups; but is it trustworthy? In this day and age of informed health consumers, is this an information tool on which to rely? This column traces the history of Wikipedia, comments on its health information contents and some editing efforts. This column ends with guiding questions whether or not it should be trusted.