Project description:The Medical Library Association recently announced its commitment to diversity and inclusion. While this is a positive start, critical librarianship takes the crucial concepts of diversity and inclusion one step further by advocating for social justice action and the dismantling of oppressive institutional structures, including white supremacy, patriarchy, and capitalism. Critical librarianship takes many forms, but, at its root, is focused on interrogating and disrupting inequitable systems, including changing racist cataloging rules, creating student-driven information literacy instruction, supporting inclusive and ethical publishing models, and rejecting the notion of libraries as neutral spaces. This article presents examples of the application of critical practice in libraries as well as ideas for applying critical librarianship to the health sciences.
Project description:ObjectiveMany health sciences librarians enter the profession without specific health sciences training. Some LIS programs have health sciences courses or tracks, but health sciences training within an LIS program is only one path to entering health sciences librarianship. To develop a map of pathways into health sciences librarianship, an immersion session at the Medical Library Association conference in 2022 asked health sciences librarians to share how they entered the profession.MethodsThe immersion session was structured in three parts: facilitator introductions, small group discussions, and a whole group summary discussion. Guided by questions from the facilitators, small groups discussed what pathways currently exist, how to promote existing pathways, what new pathways should be created, and how to develop and promote pathways that make the profession more equitable, diverse, and inclusive.ResultsThrough in-the-moment thematic analysis of the small group discussions, the following emerged as key pathways: library school education; internships and practica; the Library and Information Science (LIS) pipeline; on-thejob training; mentoring; self-teaching/hands-on learning; and continuing education. Themes of equity, diversity, and inclusion arose throughout the session, especially in the concluding whole group discussion.ConclusionSmall group discussions in a conference immersion session showed the value of community building in a profession that has multiple pathways for entrance, highlighting the importance of unearthing hidden knowledge about avenues for exploring and enhancing career pathways. The article seeks to address barriers to entry into the profession and adds to the literature on strengthening the field of health sciences librarianship.
Project description:ObjectiveThe Medical Library Association (MLA) Board of Directors and president charged an Ethical Awareness Task Force and recommended a survey to determine MLA members' awareness of and opinions about the current Code of Ethics for Health Sciences Librarianship.MethodsTHE TASK FORCE AND MLA STAFF CRAFTED A SURVEY TO DETERMINE: (1) awareness of the MLA code and its provisions, (2) use of the MLA code to resolve professional ethical issues, (3) consultation of other ethical codes or guides, (4) views regarding the relative importance of the eleven MLA code statements, (5) challenges experienced in following any MLA code provisions, and (6) ethical problems not clearly addressed by the code.ResultsOver 500 members responded (similar to previous MLA surveys), and while most were aware of the code, over 30% could not remember when they had last read or thought about it, and nearly half had also referred to other codes or guidelines. The large majority thought that: (1) all code statements were equally important, (2) none were particularly difficult or challenging to follow, and (3) the code covered every ethical challenge encountered in their professional work.ImplicationsComments provided by respondents who disagreed with the majority views suggest that the MLA code could usefully include a supplementary guide with practical advice on how to reason through a number of ethically challenging situations that are typically encountered by health sciences librarians.
Project description:In recent years, librarians in various sectors have been moving forward a conversation on the distinct information needs and information-seeking behavior of our lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer (LGBTQ) patrons and how well the profession recognizes and meets those needs. Health sciences librarianship has been slower than other areas of the profession in creating an evidence base covering the needs of its LGBTQ patrons, with, until recently, only very limited literature on this subject. LGBTQ health sciences librarianship is now starting to attract new interest, with librarians working together to bring this emerging specialization to the attention of the broader professional community. In this paper, the authors report on a dedicated panel discussion that took place at the 2016 joint annual meeting of the Medical Library Association and Canadian Health Libraries Association/Association des bibliothèques de la santé du Canada in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; discuss subsequent reflections; and highlight the emerging role for health sciences librarians in providing culturally competent services to the LGBTQ population. Recommendations are also provided for establishing a tool kit for LGBTQ health sciences librarianship from which librarians can draw. We conclude by highlighting the importance of critically reflective practice in health sciences librarianship in the context of LGBTQ health information.
Project description:This study surveyed the members of a professional library organization for their perceptions of their online librarianship role. In particular, the survey sought to examine any change in online librarianship roles after March 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. Participants were administered a survey comprised of both quantitative and qualitative response options. Findings present a nuanced professional environment post-lockdown in which individual job duties largely remained the same; however participants reported increased demands stemming from workplace issues, including attrition and lack of resources.
Project description:ObjectiveBased on the authors' shared interest in the interprofessional challenges surrounding health information management, this study explores the degree to which librarians, informatics professionals, and core health professionals in medicine, nursing, and public health share common ethical behavior norms grounded in moral principles.MethodsUsing the "Principlism" framework from a widely cited textbook of biomedical ethics, the authors analyze the statements in the ethical codes for associations of librarians (Medical Library Association [MLA], American Library Association, and Special Libraries Association), informatics professionals (American Medical Informatics Association [AMIA] and American Health Information Management Association), and core health professionals (American Medical Association, American Nurses Association, and American Public Health Association). This analysis focuses on whether and how the statements in these eight codes specify core moral norms (Autonomy, Beneficence, Non-Maleficence, and Justice), core behavioral norms (Veracity, Privacy, Confidentiality, and Fidelity), and other norms that are empirically derived from the code statements.ResultsThese eight ethical codes share a large number of common behavioral norms based most frequently on the principle of Beneficence, then on Autonomy and Justice, but rarely on Non-Maleficence. The MLA and AMIA codes share the largest number of common behavioral norms, and these two associations also share many norms with the other six associations.ImplicationsThe shared core of behavioral norms among these professions, all grounded in core moral principles, point to many opportunities for building effective interprofessional communication and collaboration regarding the development, management, and use of health information resources and technologies.
Project description:In recent years, individuals and small organizations have developed new online learning and information resources that are often marketed directly to students. In this study, these nontraditional online resources are defined as apps or other online resources that are not available through large and well-known publishers. The purposes of this study are to determine if academic health sciences libraries are licensing nontraditional online resources and to provide a snapshot of current collections practices in this area. An online survey was designed and distributed to the email lists of the Collection Development Section of the Medical Library Association and Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries directors. Follow-up phone interviews were conducted with survey participants who volunteered to be contacted. Of the 58 survey respondents, 21 (36.2%) reported that their libraries currently licensed at least 1 nontraditional online resource, and 45 (77.6%) reported receiving requests for these types of resources. The resources listed by respondents included 50 unique titles. Of the 37 (63.8%) respondents whose library did not license nontraditional online resources, major barriers that were noted included a lack of Internet protocol (IP) authentication, licenses that charge per user, and affordable institutional pricing. Evaluation criteria for nontraditional online resources should be developed and refined, and these resources should be examined over time to determine their potential and actual use by students. There is a growing demand for many of these resources among students, but the lack of financial and access models that serve libraries' needs is an obstacle to institutional licensing.
Project description:In 2012, an academic health sciences library serving a large research university and medical center introduced synchronous online training for a diverse group of users, including clinicians, researchers, faculty, and distance students. Participants in these "Express Training" classes completed two surveys to assess their experiences. Survey results indicated classes were well received but revealed some areas for improvement. Included are issues that should be considered when implementing online library instruction to meet the diverse needs of academic health sciences library users. Given the popularity of online training among on-campus and distance users, it will be continued and expanded.
Project description:Background and aimScientific collaborations play a vital role in advancing research in various disciplines, including medical informatics, health information management, medical librarianship, and information sciences. This study aims to provide an overview of Iranian researchers' scientific output in three disciplines and their collaboration networks.MethodsThe study utilized data from Scopus database and analyzed 2086 records of Iranian researchers' research outcomes over 10 years. Each article's citations were averaged to determine its impact factor. The study also reviewed the number of articles and citations in the past decade.ResultsThe findings show that scientific output in the disciplines of medical informatics, health information management, medical librarianship, and information sciences has significantly increased among Iranian researchers in the past decade. The analysis of collaboration networks indicates a strong connection between these disciplines, with medical informatics having the highest degree of collaboration.ConclusionThis study provides valuable insights into the scientific collaborations among Iranian researchers in medical informatics, health information management, medical librarianship, and information sciences. The findings can be used to inform future research and collaboration initiatives in these disciplines. The results suggest that Iranian researchers in these disciplines have made significant progress in scientific output and collaboration. However, further efforts are required to improve the quality and impact of their research.
Project description:BACKGROUND:The provision of online educational courses has soared since the creation of the World Wide Web, with most universities offering some degree of distance-based programs. The social constructivist pedagogy is widely accepted as the framework to provide education, but it largely relies on the face-to-face presence of students and faculty to foster a learning environment. The concern with online courses is that this physical interaction is removed, and therefore learning may be diminished. OBJECTIVE:The Community of Inquiry (CoI) is a framework designed to support the educational experience of such courses. This study aims to examine the characteristics of the CoI across the whole of an entirely online master's course. METHODS:This research used a case study method, using a convergent parallel design to study the interactions described by the CoI model in an online master's program. The MSc program studied is a postgraduate medical degree for doctors or allied health professionals. Different data sources were used to corroborate this dataset including content analysis of both asynchronous and synchronous discussion forums. RESULTS:This study found that a CoI can be created within the different learning activities of the course. The discussion forums integral to online courses are a rich source of interaction, with the ability to promote social interaction, teaching presence, and cognitive learning. CONCLUSIONS:The results show that meaningful interaction between faculty and student can be achieved in online courses, which is important to ensure deep learning and reflection.