ihslg newsletter issue1

7/28/2019 IHSLG Newsletter Issue1

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As Health Science Librarians,weve noticed a great changein the professional literatureover the last few years, when itcomes to discussing our areaof the profession. In this brief article, Id like to highlight someof the challenges that we facein the future. Although the em-phasis and examples aredrawn from the Health Sciencesector of the profession, it maybe that there are parallels,

which can be reflected in other sectors as well.

The most significant challengeis to realise that the focus is noton the library, or the physicalspace that the library occupies.Rather, it is on the Librarian,and the skills that a Librarianrequires. Indeed, this is to put itmildly. Its not just about whatskills we require. Its about theskills we require if Librarianshipas a profession is to survive,and not be subsumed into aplethora of new information

roles that are beginning toemerge. For example, have alook at some of these:

Information Scientist Information Researcher Knowledge Manager Librarian and Research Officer Medical Knowledge Architect Information Specialist Medical Information Re-searcher Health Informatics Officer Information Officer Informationist.

Believe me, there are no illu-sions here these are job titlesthat have all been advertised or claimed within the last 18

months both here and in theUK. If thats not enough, justhow important is a professionalqualification any more. Only inthe last few days, a despairingmember of staff in a library Iused to work for in London,called me to tell me, that mypost is now held by a solicitor who is interested in informa-tion management. The newpost holder concentrates oninformation management, and

leaves the other two membersof staff to look after the li-brary she no longer has thetime!

So when as Health ScienceLibrarians we hear the tradi-tional doctrine being reaffirmedof:

Providing a service Supporting our users Acting as intermedi-

aries

Its tempting to start throwingbottles and heavy objects out

of windows, but being aware of the health and safety implica-tions, we usually manage torestrain ourselves! Its not thatthere is anything wrong withthese ideals, or that they arenot noble ones. Its simply thatthey are no longer adequate,and by casting ourselves in apurely supporting role, as maybe evident from the above, weare in great danger of doingourselves a grave disservice.

So, how do we change this?

Do not marvel that I said toyou, You must be bornanew. John 3:7

A number of us in the sector have been discussing these

issues over the last fewmonths, and reflecting on our own roles, and as we do so, itsbecoming clearer and clearer,that as Librarians, we need tostart again much of what weare taught in our degrees or post graduate courses is of little or no use to us in the rolesthat we are increasingly beingcalled to in the profession. Theonly constant, as in so manyother professions is change,

and this, plus the acquisition of new skills, is the only way tocontinually validate our profes-sion, and the Health Sciencessector.

So, if we are to be born anew,where do we start, what do weneed, and what should we ex-pect?

First on my list, is the need for us to be taught philosophiclogic, and the art of logicalthinking. I was not taught thisas a Librarian, but as part of

another degree. I would notsay either that I was the bestexponent of it, but it has possi-bly been the most useful thing Ihave ever learnt. As HealthScience Librarians, we ur-gently, if not desperately, needthe ability to be not just able topresent a reasoned argument,but perhaps more importantly,to get behind the logic andreasoning of other peoplesarguments. This is not alwaysas easy as it seems. But in therealm of medical research, theart of critical appraisal, a skill

which we are increasingly be-ing called upon to perform,demands the application of a

(Continued on page 3)

Volume 1, Issue 1

Dangerous Illusions!Needs and Requirements for a Health Science Librarianin 2003 and beyond .

Autumn 2003

Review of past events

2

Websites/Servicesof Interest

2

Feature Article cont. 3

People on the move 3

Current Literature/ Book review

4

News from thegroup

4

Inside

H ealth I nformation N ews and T hinking

HINT is the Quarterly Newsletter of the Irish Health Sciences Libraries Group


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Review of past events

The Library as a Centre of Learningin the 21 st Century

Library Association of Ireland and Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals(Northern Ireland) Annual Joint Conference, Galway Bay Hotel, 29.04.03 02.05.03

HE ALT H I NF ORM AT I ON NE W S AND T HI NKI NGPAGE 2 VOLUME 1 , ISSUE 1

Websites/ services of interest

1. PubCrawler - an Update Alerting Servicefor PubMed and GenBank

http://pubcrawler.gen.tcd.ie/

PubCrawler is a free "alerting" service thatscans daily updates to the NCBI Medline(PubMed) and GenBank databases. PubCrawler can keep scientists informed of the current con-tents of Medline and GenBank, by listing newdatabase entries that match their research inter-ests.

2. Evaluating Medical Information on theInternet: How Good Are Your Sources?

http://www.aarp.org/health/Articles/a2003-03-17-wwwhealth.html

This AARP site offers general rules to follow for

evaluating the quality of medical information onthe Internet. The site provides a checklist of thethings you should know about judging the infor-mation on the Internet as well as providing a se-ries of links to other online informational re-sources.

3.The Merck Manual of Medical Information -Home Edition

http://www.merckhomeedition.com/home.html

The Merck Manual of Medical Information--HomeEdition has been published to meet a growingdemand by the general public for highly detailed,sophisticated medical information. This book isbased almost entirely on the text of The MerckManual of Diagnosis and Therapy, commonlyreferred to as The Merck Manual. First publishedin 1899, The Merck Manual is the oldest continu-ously published general medical textbook in theEnglish language and the most widely usedmedical textbook in the world. It covers almostevery disease that affects humans in specialtiessuch as pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology,psychiatry, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, der-matology, and dentistry, and special situationssuch as burns, heat disorders, radiation reac-tions and injuries and sports injuries. No other medical textbook covers as wide a range of dis-orders.

4. Journal of the Medical Library Association(JMLA)

http://www.mlanet.org/publications/jmla/index.html

The Journal of the Medical Library Association(JMLA), formerly known as the Bulletin of theMedical Library Association (BMLA) is an inter-national, peer-reviewed journal published quar-terly that aims to advance the practice and re-search knowledgebase of health sciences librari-anship.

Full-text for issues January 2000presentDigital archives of the BMLA, vols. 88 and 89,and the JMLA on PubMed Central.http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/tocrender.fcgi?journal=93

I wish to thank the Irish Health SciencesLibraries Section of the Library Associationof Ireland for giving me the opportunity toattend this conference recently. It was in-teresting and thought- provoking and pro-vided a good insight into the topics that arebeing discussed in the worlds of public,academic and special librarianship in2003.

The presentation that stands out most in mymind was Creating Library Spaces: Libraries2040 by Rob Bruijnzeels, Head of the PolicyUnit, Netherlands Public Library Association, theHague. It was an imaginative presentation which

provided 7 possible scenarios of the new futurelibraries that will have replaced the traditionallibrary by 2040 in the opinion of the author.Mr Bruijnzeels put forward the theory that al-though books will still be around in 2040, thetraditional library will not. One of the scenarioswhich caught my imagination was the design of the endless interior of the Brabant Library inEindhoven which would consist of a 230m talltower enclosing 17 kilometres of alphabeticallysequenced bookcases. The rationale behind theBrabant Library is that the current public librarysystem in the Netherlands (and probably else-where also) is no longer able to cope with theenormous production of books and also the factthat increasing urbanisation and population den-sity have brought about different types of de-mands for information. The Brabant Librarywould be a metalibrary in which there would beroom for about 5 million books, thousands of magazines, terminals, reading/study rooms,Internet cafes and numerous other amenities.

Along with traditional lifts and staircases therewould be about 800 glass study booths with theability to move vertically as well as horizontallyon the outside of the spiral structure as well ason the inside. This would make it possible tonavigate the whole collection from ones ownprivate booth. Some of the booths would serveas meeting kiosks or mini-lounges and a naviga-tion system for the booths would prevent colli-sions.

The Brabant Library would be the central locationfor all library functions of the province with collec-tions which would be directly accessible 24/7 and365 days a year. The library would service all

kinds of decentralised branches and the idea isthat by 2040 local libraries in this part of theNetherlands will exist as small exclusive collec-tions in modern meeting places such as localcafes, dentists waiting rooms, railway and petrolstations, schools, hotels and city halls.

Even though the Brabant Library is still but anarchitectural drawing by Winy Maas, it certainlyprovides food for thought on the shape of librar-ies to come!

Other presentations during the conference whichwere of interest included the address by KayRaseroka, President-Elect of IFLA and UniversityLibrarian at the University of Botswana. Thetheme of this presentation was that of life-longliteracy where the library is a unique spacenurturing freedom of thought and expression, aTrojan horse through which the collective wis-dom of society is provided and librarians areknowledgeable facilitators of access to informa-tion for users. Our task should be according to

Ms. Raseroka to empower information users andourselves in a changing world and to live up tothe core values we all subscribe to includingfreedom, equity of access to ideas and works of the imagination and freedom of expression. Thechallenge for librarians she feels is to hold on tothis vision and to work hard at the processes werequire to help us become people who facilitateinformation literacy.

The parallel sessions which included a presenta-tion by Bernard Barrett, Information Scientist,Mid-Western Health Board and Maureen Dwyer,Librarian, Royal College of Nursing, NorthernIreland, were directly relevant to library and infor-mation professionals working in the healthcarearena.

Bernards presentation Dangerous Illusions!Needs and Requirements for a Health ScienceLibrarian in 2003 and beyond suggested further areas that Library and Information Studiescourses should cover in order to assist us to dealeffectively with the challenges we face in our own particular sector. These include logic, sub-

ject specialisation, educational and human psy-chology, adult learning theory and teaching tech-niques, relevant IT and web authoring skills,advanced communication and presentation skills,management theory , research skills and knowl-edge of how to undertake statistical analysis,systematic reviews and health technology as-sessments.

Maureens presentation entitled Rethinking the

way we do business provided us with a casestudy of knowledge management within theRoyal College of Nursing (RCN). She describedthe development of an Information Strategy for the organisation with 340,000 members betweenthe UK and Northern Ireland. The process in-volved cross-departmental working and a proc-ess of change management to achieve theshared vision of the RCN Information Strategyand the resulting development of a LearningZone and access to relevant online resources for staff and students from the organisations website. This presentation was of particular interestin terms of providing ideas for collaborative e-library projects which is topical in Irish Health-care Libraries at the present time.

In conclusion, this years conference had a littlefor everybody with the main emphasis on thebroader philosophical questions around whylibraries exist and what our core values andfocus should be. It was a great opportunity tomeet current and former colleagues and to gainnew insights into some of the bigger questionswhile also providing some practical sessions of direct relevance to our own area of specialisa-tion.

Catherine Kennedy Information Scientist

National Institute of Health SciencesSt. Camillus Hospital

Shelbourne Road Limerick


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well trained mind, able to use deductivelogic, and critically assess information froma variety of different angles.

Second is the need, to accept that we willhave to cultivate a degree of subject spe-cialisation. To some extent, within aca-demic library circles, this has already hap-pened, in the form of subject librarians.However, in medical libraries, it simply isnot possible to be all things to all people,which is the situation that faces many of us.We need to have an in-depth knowledge of the areas in which we work, and I mean in-depth. Its not enough to know that ECT isshort for Electro Convulsive Therapy and tohave some idea of where information isavailable. We need to be steeped in theliterature, and to be able to understand,talk, and perhaps even study with health

care professionals on a basis of equality.We need to be considered critical membersof the health care team

This means, of course, that a three-year mixed degree, or a one-year postgraduatecram course is nowhere near enough.Many health care professionals can studyfor up to nine years, interspersed with prac-tice, and the absolute requirement to en-gage in continuing professional develop-ment. If we aspire to collaboration withhealth care professionals, then this is whatwe have to consider, and the sooner thecolleges and universities that offer libraryand information courses realise this, the

healthier our sector in the profession willbe.

Third, and before you accuse me of halluci-nating and needing medical treatment my-self, what then will all Health Science Li-brarians need to study if they are to meetthe challenge in the next three years?

We need to train in adult learningtheory and teaching techniques(some posts now actually ask for ateaching qualification, and training/teaching users is now a central com-ponent of our job)

We will be skilled in IT and databasemanagement (which means havingthe relevant certification)

We will be expert in web design andcontent editing

We will be skilled communicatorsand presenters (if we are to teach,and persuade others of the necessity

of what we do) how else perhapsthis means having knowledge of management theory, together withpsychology and organisational dy-namics.

We need to be skilled researchers,possessing an awareness of differentresearch methodologies

We need to know how to undertakestatistical analysis.

We need to be confident and capa-ble of producing systematic reviews,and health technology assessments.

And once we start thinking and reflecting onthis, I think youll see that this is just the begin-ning.

But this is where Health Science Librarianshipis going.

Here in Ireland, as in the UK, its no illusion.Where I work for the Mid Western HealthBoard, my post has involved research into theproduction of clinical guidelines, which willhave a direct impact on the services the HealthBoard provides. This has meant possessing avery clear understanding of what is happeningin other countries, and of concepts such asClinical Governance. The post has also in-volved training and having to relate to healthcare professionals in a number of different con-texts and scenarios. Im not saying that this is

what everyone should be doing. However,these are skills which we are not taught, yetare increasingly being expected to possess.

For Health Science Librarians, these are there-fore critical times. We can pretend its all anillusion, and attempt to continue in the mould inwhich we have been trained. If we do so, weare likely to be marginalized and become in-creasingly irrelevant within the organisations inwhich we work. If we rise to the challenge, itwont be easy either, and its going to meanquite a lot of hard work and learning but with-out it we will live in a world of dangerous illu-sions!

Bernard Barrett , Chairman of the IHSLGCommittee. From a presentation made at theLAI/CILIP Conference, Galway, 1st May 2003.

[email protected]

Dangerous Illusions (continued from page 1 )

Do not marvel that I said to you, You must be bornanew.

John 3:7

PAGE 3HE ALT H I NF ORM AT I ON NE W S AND T HI NKI NGVOLUME 1 , ISSUE 1

P e o p l e o n t h e m o v e

Aoife OConnor took up the position of Assistant Librarian at theRotunda Hospital Library in August 2003 replacing Jean Ryan whoworked at the Rotunda for 4 years. Jean has moved to the position of Clinical Librarian at Conwy & Denbighshire NHS Trust. Welcome to

Aoife and the best of luck and thanks to Jean from Helen Delaney,Librarian, Rotunda Hospital Library, Dublin 1.

Kathryn Smith will be replacing Niamh O'Sullivan as Research Officer/ Librarian with the Irish Blood Transfusion Service for a six month

period beginning mid Oct 2003.


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LITERATURE SEARCHING: A USER GUIDE (December 2002)

A new publication on literature searching has just been pro-duced by the Library & Information Services at the CharteredSociety of Physiotherapy (CSP).

Contents include:What a literature search is, why search the literature, sourcesof information including libraries, electronic databases, jour-nals, books, grey literature, the web, how to conduct a litera-ture search including search techniques, searching for evi-dence, managing information and referencing.

It is available in full text for free on the CSP websitehttp://www.csp.org.uk/libraryandinformation/publications/view.cfm?id=258

Print copies are also available at 10 each. Available fromTerry Grant, Clerical Assistant, Research & Clinical Effective-ness Unit, Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, 14 BedfordRow, London, WC1R 4ED. Cheques should be made payableto the 'Chartered Society of Physiotherapy'.

SUCCESS AT THE ENQUIRY DESK: SUCCESSFULENQUIRY ANSWERING - EVERY TIME

By Tim Buckley Owen(March 2003; Paperback: 1-85604-477-7; 14.95 )

The fourth edition of Success at the Enquiry Desk is designedto help the information professional become self-sufficientin answering enquiries. Step by step, it guides the reader

through all the stages of research, from finding out what theenquirer really wants, to providing a value-added answer.

Contents pages at http://www.facetpublishing.co.uk/110contents.pdf

Sample chapter at http://www.facetpublishing.co.uk/110.pdf

The book is equally effective in large or small libraries andinformation units as the emphasis is on how to make the bestuse of limited resources. It includes the author's list of 25multi-purpose reference sources and the Success at the En-quiry Desk enquiry form, which matches the book's step-by-step approach to enquiry answering.

This fully revised and expanded fourth edition offers further advice on when to use and when not to use the internet, howto deal with information overload, and how to add value to an-swers by presenting them effectively. It also has a brand newchapter: 'Sign-off: what can we learn from this enquiry?' whichlooks at how new sources can be exploited to develop the in-formation service still further.

Further information may be obtained from:

Mark O'LoughlinMarketing ExecutiveFacet Publishing, 7 Ridgmount Street, London, WC1E 7AEDirect Tel: +(0)20 7255 0597E-mail: mark.o'[email protected]

Current Literature/ Book

Review

HINT is the Quarterly Newsletter of the Irish Health Sciences Libraries Group of the Library Association of Ireland. It is compiled & producedby members of The Irish Health Sciences Libraries Group of the LAI.

This first issue was edited by Niamh OSullivan, Research Officer/ Librarian, Iri sh Blood Transfusion Service and designed by Emma Quinn,Librarian, Waterford Regional Hospital.

Any submissions for future articles should be sent/faxed/emailed to: Emma Quinn, Librarian, Waterford Regional Hospital, Dunmore Road, Waterford. Tel. +353(0)51 842434. Fax: +353 (0)51 848561. Email: [email protected]

PAGE 4 VOLUME 1 , ISSUE 1HE ALT H I NF ORM AT I ON NE W S AND T HI NKI NG

News from the groupCongratulations to Dympna Lynch, Librarian, Cavan General Hospitaland her husband Chris on the birth of their first child, Daith.Best wishes from Jean, Linda and all the Library staff in the North East-ern Health Board.

Congratulations to Nicola Fay, Regional Librarian, Midland Health

Board and her husband Conor, on the birth of their new daughter EvaKay in the early morning of the 22nd September 2003. Very bestwishes to all .


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