The medical information needs of internists and pediatricians at an academic medical center

Medical information needs were examined in a survey of sixty-seven physicians selected from the faculty and housestaff at Johns Hopkins Hospital. A standardized questionnaire was administered personally by a medical informatics physician to collect data on information needs, attitudes, and previous experience with computers. The types of information most frequently required by both faculty and housestaff were treatment recommendations and differential diagnosis. The sources of reference information most commonly used were textbooks and colleagues. The information needs of housestaff differed significantly in several categories from those of faculty physicians. Housestaff more frequently needed information for patient care (P less than 0.05), and preferred the use of textbooks (P less than 0.01) and handbooks (P less than 0.001) as information sources. Faculty more frequently needed information for activities unrelated to patient care (P less than 0.01) and placed greater importance on basic science information (P less than 0.01). When asked to suggest references for online access, the respondents named 143 journals and textbooks, with journals overwhelmingly preferred over textbooks. Only one reference, the New England Journal of Medicine, was requested by a majority of the respondents. The importance of a broad understanding of physician information needs through improved data-collection techniques is discussed as a means of increasing the use of medical information systems.     

Use of laptop computers in an academic medical library

Who borrows laptop computers in an academic health sciences library? Why do they choose to check out laptops? In a survey, laptop computer users responded that the laptops were used most frequently to do class-related work. Laptops were most often checked out because they could be taken to a quiet area of the library or to where the user had more room to work. The majority of such borrowers were satisfied or very satisfied with the laptops and the service from the library. The majority of those completing the survey were medical school students and graduate students. The circulation of laptop computers at this academic health sciences library is a very successful and popular program.     

Prototyping an institutional IAIMS/UMLS information environment for an academic medical center.

The paper describes a prototype information environment designed to link network-based information resources in an integrated fashion and thus enhance the information capabilities of an academic medical center. The prototype was implemented on a single Macintosh computer to permit exploration of the overall "information architecture" and to demonstrate the various desired capabilities prior to full-scale network-based implementation. At the heart of the prototype are two components: a diverse set of information resources available over an institutional computer network and an information sources map designed to assist users in finding and accessing information resources relevant to their needs. The paper describes these and other components of the prototype and presents a scenario illustrating its use. The prototype illustrates the link between the goals of two National Library of Medicine initiatives, the Integrated Academic Information Management System (IAIMS) and the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS).     

Determining COVID-19's impact on an academic medical library's literature search service

Objective:At many institutions, literature search services are an important aspect of health science librarianship. This exploratory study analyzes how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the use of an academic hospital medical library''s literature search service.Methods:To evaluate the pandemic''s impact on literature searching at The University of Tennessee Medical Center''s Preston Medical Library, data were analyzed for changes from the year before the pandemic (March 1, 2019 to February 29, 2020) to the first year during the pandemic (March 1st, 2020 to February 28, 2021). This was accomplished using LibWizard, a library feedback and assessment application, to review literature search data during the two periods. Variables of interest included total searches, purpose of searches, affiliation of the searcher, and searches with a pandemic-related research question.Results:A 36.6% drop in literature search service usage was reported from the pre-pandemic year to the during-pandemic year. There was a 55.3% decrease in searches intended for research, as well as significant decreases in the number of searches requested by all patron affiliations. After March 2020, 10% of all searches concerned a COVID-related topic.Conclusion:The overall decrease in literature search requests, decrease in research searches, decrease in searches among all patron affiliations, and increase in searches on a COVID-related topic suggest that healthcare worker and institutional priorities changed during the pandemic. The results revealed research interests during the first year of the pandemic, as well as an overall change in library service functionality.     

An intrapreneurial approach to integrating information production services into an academic medical center library

The many challenges faced by health sciences libraries of all types and sizes often require innovative solutions. When an innovative solution involves calculated risk taking, the approach is called intrapreneurial. At the University of Miami School of Medicine, an intrapreneurial approach solved the fiscal problems of the biomedical communications unit. The Louis Calder Memorial Library inherited these problems when the Department of the Library and Biomedical Communications was created in the early 1980s. In this paper, two intrapreneurial programs are described, and the benefit and suitability of this management style to information services are demonstrated.     

Implementing PDA technology in a medical library: experiences in a hospital library and an academic medical center library

Personal digital assistants (PDAs) have grown from being a novelty in the late 1990s to an essential tool for healthcare professionals in the 2000s. This paper describes the experiences of a librarian who implemented PDA technology first in a hospital library, and then at an academic medical center library. It focuses on the role of the library in supporting PDA technology and resources. Included are programmatic issues such as training for library staff and clinicians, and technical issues such as Palm and Windows operating systems. This model could be used in either a hospital or academic health sciences library.     

Research data management at an African medical university: Implications for academic librarianship

The study investigates and provides results on the current status of research data management at a medical school in a developing African country. The study focusses on four aspects of research data management: generation; preservation and backup; competencies; and challenges. Quantitative data collected using a questionnaire from 84 health researchers and 16 librarians was complemented by qualitative data gathered through conducting structured interviews with the Director of Research of the university. The study results provide the research community with a better understanding of research data management perspectives amongst health researchers in a developing country. This could help research data management stakeholders to adopt better strategies for championing research data management activities in this particular country and in other developing countries. The study notes that the current research data management status creates an opportunity for an academic library to consolidate and fortify its widely viewed natural role in research data management. In view of the findings, the study proposes that the adoption of research data management policies is essential in inspiring the conceptualisation, popularisation, adoption, and operationalisation of various research data management activities within the African university environment.     

Developing an interdisciplinary collaboration center in an academic Health Sciences Library

This article describes the evolution of the Health Sciences Library's plans for an interdisciplinary, technology-enhanced collaboration center, from a technology-driven space to one with a vision of support for peer-to-peer learning and research. The center offers an exciting opportunity to be an essential partner in collaborative and interdisciplinary programs such as the new Carolina Center for Exploratory Genetic Analysis. The Library is a centrally located and neutral place, which helps minimize geographical and territorial obstacles to effective collaboration. The collaboration center raises the Library's visibility and allows staff to demonstrate the value of knowledge resources, services, technology expertise, infrastructure, and facilities for group study and collaboration.     

User satisfaction survey and usage of an electronic desktop document delivery service at an academic medical library

In June 2000, the Biomedical Library at the University of South Alabama introduced Prospero, an electronic desktop document delivery service. From June 2000 to November 2002, Prospero delivered 28% of interlibrary loan requests and 72% of document delivery requests. In November 2002, the library conducted a user satisfaction survey of the Prospero service. Forty-two surveys were used. Fifteen responses were received from affiliated faculty, staff, and students, who generally expressed satisfaction with the service. Twenty-seven responses were received from unaffiliated users, comprised of medical libraries, individual users, and businesses. Based on the survey results, the library deemed the Prospero service a success. To better support users, the library's Web page was updated to include hardware and software requirements for successful use of the Prospero service, as well as screen shots of the Prospero process.     

Implementing Project READY at an academic library: Survey analysis of a DEI training experience

At a public university library in the southeastern United States, a DEI committee was formed to promote meaningful conversation around such topics as race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, mental/physical ability, age, socio-economic status, etc. Following the review of several widely available training opportunities that included synchronous and asynchronous engagement, this DEI committee chose to adopt the Project READY (https://ready.web.unc.edu) curriculum for use in meeting the objectives of the committee to provide a professional development opportunity surrounding topics related to DEI. This article foregrounds a discussion and critique, substantiated by an in-depth analysis of survey results, of Project READY as it was implemented to serve as an engagement and training activity for the span of one year.     

Information needs of academic medical scientists at Chulalongkorn University

The information needs of scientists in English-speaking countries have been studied and reported in the library literature. However, few studies exist on the information-seeking patterns of scientists in developing countries, and no study has examined the information needs of medical scientists in developing Asian countries. This study investigated the information needs of academic medical scientists at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand. The results indicate that medical scientists have three types of information needs: identifying up-to-date information, obtaining relevant studies and data, and developing research topics. Thai scientists' information-seeking behavior was different from that of scientists in developed countries. The study shows a high use of libraries as information providers; Thai medical scientists rely heavily on information from abroad.     

Examination of the impact of information-skills training on the academic work of health-studies students: a single case study

AIM: To examine the impact of information-skills training on the academic studies of student midwives. Objectives include ascertaining whether student confidence increases, learning experiences are enhanced and academic standards are improved. METHODS: A student midwives' discussion group at a higher education institution, plus an in-depth interview with the students' course leader. RESULTS: Students reported increased confidence in using library and information resources. Appropriate and timely information-skills training embedded into health-studies curricula can lead to students becoming independent and lifelong learners, as well as improving the standard of their academic work. CONCLUSION: Information skills for health-studies curricula in higher education can be developed and delivered collaboratively by both library and academic staff. This can have very positive effects on both student perceptions and experiences and standards of teaching and learning.     

Circulation of core collection monographs in an academic medical library

Academic medical librarians responsible for monograph acquisition face a challenging task. From the plethora of medical monographs published each year, academic medical librarians must select those most useful to their patrons. Unfortunately, none of the selection tools available to medical librarians are specifically intended to assist academic librarians with medical monograph selection. The few short core collection lists that are available are intended for use in the small hospital or internal medicine department library. As these are the only selection tools available, however, many academic medical librarians spend considerable time reviewing these collection lists and place heavy emphasis on the acquisition of listed books. The study reported here was initiated to determine whether the circulation of listed books in an academic library justified the emphasis placed on the acquisition of these books. Circulation statistics for "listed" and "nonlisted" books in the hematology (WH) section of Indiana University School of Medicine's Ruth Lilly Medical Library were studied. The average circulation figures for listed books were nearly two times as high as the corresponding figures for the WH books in general. These data support the policies of those academic medical libraries that place a high priority on collection of listed books.     

科技学术期刊学术质量影响因素分析

为进一步提高科技学术期刊的学术质量,在阐明学术质量内涵的基础上,指出影响学术质量的主要因素是稿源质量和审稿质量,并对此进行具体的分析.