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Dental students need to be equipped as clinicians to treat diverse communities and to recognize oral health disparities that are rooted in the social determinants of health. Library instruction is frequently focused on information literacy topics. Within the health sciences this might include critical appraisal or evidence synthesis, and instruction centered on locating and using library resources. This paper details the unique experiences of two liaison librarians to the School of Dental Medicine who taught the topics of cultural competence and cultural humility to first-year dental medicine students. While the authors do not discuss typical information literacy instruction in this paper, they share strategies used to design the instruction sessions, reflections on teaching these themes, lessons learned, and suggestions for other liaison librarians who might have an interest in teaching about cultural competence or cultural humility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study measures how online library instructional tutorials implemented into an evidence-based practice course have impacted the information literacy skills of occupational and physical therapy graduate students. Through a rubric assessment of final course papers, this study compares differences in students' search strategies and cited sources pre- and postimplementation of the tutorials. The population includes 180 randomly selected graduate students from before and after the library tutorials were introduced into the course curriculum. Results indicate a statistically significant increase in components of students' searching skills and ability to find higher levels of evidence after completing the library tutorials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Rutgers University (RU) Open and Affordable Textbooks (OAT) Program provides $1,000 incentive awards to faculty who commit to redesigning or developing a course to use open or affordable course materials. This can include replacing a traditional textbook with open educational resources (OER), library-licensed materials, course reserves, self-developed materials, or a combination of these. It is a university-wide initiative, but this paper will focus on the impact on students in the health science programs. In many cases Health Sciences faculty went beyond using open educational resources by developing their own and making them freely available to their students and others. As of 2020 it is estimated students in the health sciences have saved $285,218 through the use of open materials and sustainable course design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research article examines data from an in-person 2017 survey on LibGuides usage, perceptions, and awareness of health professions students seeking bachelor and graduate-level degrees. Almost 45% (n = 20, N = 45) of participants who visited the library's website at least once per week indicated awareness of library-created LibGuides. Nearly 90% (n = 8, N = 9) of health professions students who had not visited the library's website were unaware of the guides. The statistical analysis shows significant associations between various variables (academic level, library workshop attendance, research guide type usage, research guide page usage) and library guide awareness. The data did not reveal any significant relationships between other variables (undergraduate class level, field of study, and library website visit frequency) and guide awareness. The authors discuss implications for health sciences libraries and suggestions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Springshare's LibGuide platform has become synonymous with online library pathfinders or research guides and instruction support. However, without oversight of the collection of guides and standards for their creation, unwieldy numbers and lack of uniformity prevail. The McGoogan Library of Medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical Center created a review process that not only governed the creation and approval of guides, but analyzed the usage and scope of guides that had already been created. This paper will outline the creation of standards and application of a review process to increase the value and relevance of guides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's fast-paced environment, traditional medical reference services alone are not adequate to meet users' information needs. Efforts to find new ways to provide comprehensive service to users, where and when needed, have often included the use of new and developing technologies. This paper describes the experience of an academic health science library in developing and providing an online, real-time reference service. Issues discussed include selecting software, training librarians, staffing the service, and considering the future of the service. Use statistics, question type analysis, and feedback from users of the service and librarians who staff the service, are also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In May 2002, the Denison Memorial Library at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and the J. Otto Lottes Health Sciences Library at the University of Missouri-Columbia, with funding from the National Network of Libraries of Medicine-Midcontinental Region, embarked on a collaborative, real-time reference project using the 24/7 Reference, Inc., software package. This paper describes how the project was conceived, and includes details on the service hours, staffing, training, marketing, lessons learned, and future plans for the service. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article presents abstracts on topics related to librarianship including the articles "Preparing to Accept Research Data: Creating Guidelines for Librarians" by Laura B. Palumbo et al. in the "Journal of eScience Librarianship," "Tools of Academic Library Assessment: The User Survey" by Anne Liebst and David Feinmark in the "Journal of Library Administration" and "Patron Perception and Utilization of an Embedded Librarian Program" by Lindsay Blake et al. in the "Journal of Medical Library Association."

While LibGuides are widely used in libraries to curate resources for users, there are a number of common problems, including maintenance, design and layout, and curating relevant and concise content. One health sciences library sought to improve our LibGuides, consulting usage statistics, user feedback, and recommendations from the literature to inform decision making. Our team recommended a number of changes to make LibGuides more usable, including creating robust maintenance and content guidelines, scheduling regular updates, and various changes to the format of the guides themselves to make them more user-friendly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents several research papers and articles related to electronic libraries. One of the research papers reports that reference librarians have converted a significant portion of library resources to electronic format and are now beginning to move the reference interview itself to the electronic environment. This study consisted of a survey carried out at two four-year public universities in the South Atlantic region. Another paper presents an annotated bibliography of books, journal articles, and electronic resources relating to the usability assessment or testing of academic library Web sites. A third paper provides an overview of the research into current medical vocabularies and their impact on searching the Web for health information. Many studies have examined aspects of controlled medical vocabularies and corollary aspects of medical Web searching vocabularies by the lay public. The authors question whether the average consumer of Web health services is able to use correct medical terminology or choose analogous or synonymous terms from a search result list. The results of an electronic reference satisfaction survey conducted by an academic university library are presented in another article.

As academic libraries shift services to meet the changing needs of patrons after the COVID-19 pandemic, educational technologies and services to support them require updating. Patrons using technology that was once associated with hands-on learning and in-person interactions are preferring flexible and hybrid iterations. In this case study, the authors describe and analyze the pivot of three technology services at the Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library in the post-COVID-19 environment. Technologies discussed include a multimedia studio, virtual reality (VR), and a three-dimensional (3D) printing service. This case study utilizes available usage stats and survey data to demonstrate and provide rationale for the changing strategy in services for each technology "hub." The multimedia studio has been dismantled in favor of the equipment being available for checkout, VR is now available in a staff-supported classroom, and a 3D printing service has been fully automated through an online submission platform. These examples, and the rationale behind changing them, can help offer ideas for other libraries to help find solutions that meet the demands of a changing learning environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Informationists at the Taubman Health Sciences Library, University of Michigan, formed a research impact consultation and education initiative in early 2017 to increase engagement with the health sciences community around the informed, responsible use of a range of citation and alternative metrics and associated tools. So far, the Research Impact Core has primarily entailed developing training content and cultivating partnerships related to publication metrics and associated best practices. This article reports on progress from the first two years of the Research Impact Core, including a snapshot of information session registrants, and a broader discussion of collaborative partnerships around research impact in the health sciences and library system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers brief information on several articles published in various periodicals. Topics include Development of a Search Filter to Identify Reports of Controlled Clinical Trials within CINAHL Plus; a study to examine the impact of individualized research consultations offered by academic librarians; and a study analyzing the manner in which rural libraries provide health information to their patrons.

The increase in distance education students and the changing preferences for online instruction led the Health Sciences Library to seek creative approaches to traditional classroom instruction. Library instructors compared two different class formats: online-only classes and in-person classes with online sections. The second format, called 'co-streaming,' provided instruction in traditional classroom and virtual environments at the same time. A postclass survey was used to gather users' evaluations of the instruction and the format via which it was offered. This paper examines the user response to, and satisfaction with, the co-streaming classes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virtual chat services represent an exciting way to provide patrons of medical libraries with instant reference help in an academic environment. The purpose of this article is to examine the implementation, marketing process, use, and development of a virtual reference service initiated at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and its three-campus libraries. In addition, this paper will discuss practical recommendations for the future improvement of the service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As academic health sciences libraries assume larger roles in informatics instruction within medical school curricula, librarians are challenged to develop useful and accurate measures for assessing the effectiveness of instructional approaches. The need for this evaluation has intensified as medical schools increase their emphasis on integration of curriculum content and shift to competency-based education and assessment of medical students. This paper reports on a pilot project developed at Dahlgren Memorial Library, Georgetown University Medical Center, for two courses using an instructional intervention and tailored assignment for assessing student competencies [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spurred by the National Institute of Health mandating a data management and sharing plan as a requirement of grant funding, research data management has exploded in importance for librarians supporting researchers and research institutions. This editorial examines the role and direction of libraries in this process from several viewpoints. Key markers of success include collaboration, establishing new relationships, leveraging existing relationships, accessing multiple avenues of communication, and building niche expertise and cachè as a valued and trustworthy partner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2022, a benchmarking survey was completed to gage learner satisfaction with library services, spaces, and resources across 10 Mayo Clinic Libraries. The discussion for this project began around a previously published survey of what medical students wanted from their library. Librarians were asked if Mayo Clinic Libraries could do a similar survey, as a full survey of the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science had not been done. Overall, the findings were positive and provide a baseline for future surveys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In fall 2011, the Scott Memorial Library purchased 53 letters belonging to an 1841 graduate of Jefferson Medical College, John Plimpton Green. The library staff transcribed and digitized the letters, creating an online collection in the university's institutional repository, Jefferson Digital Commons. This article will detail the process of transcribing and digitizing the collection along with sharing statistics and the benefits of this project to global researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article presents abstracts on topics including the how prototypes can be used as persuasive tools, propensity for library users, and determining the degree to which leading online evidence-based medical textbooks update their treatment recommendations.

The article presents abstracts on medical topics which include digitization program in the library by Jane Monson, the attitudes and perceptions of clinicians by Maura G. Flynn and Claire McGuinness, and bibliometric analysis on point-of-care clinical information products by Andrea M. Ketchum, A. A. Saleh and K. Jeong.

This article presents information from a paper entitled "Peer Mentoring: One Institution's Approach to Mentoring Academic Librarians," by Allison V. Level and Michelle Mach and published in issue no. 6/7 (2005): 301-10 of "Library Management," 26. The article discusses a peer mentoring program implemented in an academic library and its value in the support and development of a professional staff.

The article reviews several articles including "Library eBooks: Some Can't Find Them, Others Find Them and Don't Know What They Are," by James A. Buczynski, which appeared in the periodical "Internet Reference Services Quarterly," "A Mobile Strategy Web Developers Will Love," by Daniel Chudnov, which appeared in the periodical "Computers in Libraries," and "Resources for Supporting the APA Publication Style," by Paul M. Blobaum, which appeared in the "Journal of Hospital Librarianship."

The University of Florida Health Science Center Libraries created a task force representing various departments to review data from its 2004 LibQUAL+ survey. This review compared results from the 2002 and 2004 LibQUAL+ surveys, and the data from the Association of Academic Health Science Libraries 2004 cohort. The task force analyzed the key components of the LibQUAL+ survey: Affect of Service, Information Control, Library as Place, and user comments. At the conclusion of this review, the task force made recommendations and suggestions along departmental lines to meet the patrons' needs and expectations. In addition to following the task force recommendations, the Libraries independently implemented several new services and hired additional personnel after the completion of the 2004 survey. Combined, these changes should improve overall library service and increase customer satisfaction. Looking towards the 2006 LibQUAL+ survey, the task force will be convened in advance and will guide the entire process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This column introduces a new recurring section, and its editors, in Medical Reference Services Quarterly. The inaugural column addresses the ways in which academic medical libraries define and deliver essential services in the shifting landscape of budget constraints, an ongoing pandemic, and user needs that change as technology evolves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To ensure academic standards are met for athletic training curriculums, it is essential that librarians and faculty understand student research habits and information literacy instruction preferences. This article provides results from a survey of undergraduate athletic training students conducted at two universities. Athletic training students prefer information literacy instruction at the beginning of the semester. When seeking research assistance, students ask their classmates first, followed by friends and Google. Most students spend up to 60 minutes researching online before seeking assistance and prefer in-person communication for assistance from the library followed by email. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Childrens Hospital Los Angeles is a pediatric hospital and research institute affiliated with the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC). Historically, the library at Childrens Hospital was staffed by a hospital-employed librarian. In 1999, the library position was outsourced to USC's Norris Medical Library. The new position is staffed by a librarian who divides her time equally between two locations: the Childrens Hospital Library and the Norris Medical Library. This staff sharing arrangement has three primary goals: increase the collaboration between the libraries; improve access to resources and library staff experience; and provide faster document delivery service to the Childrens Hospital library. This paper presents the details of the positions, and addresses the pros and cons for both libraries and the librarian. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article presents the discussion on basic data literacy skills defined as data collection, calculation, analysis and interpretation, and communication correlating with the ability for assessing library performance and the MTAM being a useful assessment tool.

Demonstrating added value can be very challenging, yet it is becoming important in academic libraries. The current literature primarily discusses citation analysis and usage reports to demonstrate return on investment for collections or impact on scholarly activity. However, value is not only in our collections but also in the library staff who support the institutional mission. Vanderbilt University's Annette and Irwin Eskind Family Biomedical Library and Learning Center has been experimenting with several methods to supplement the collections data with services performed by the staff. This article discusses the project's four phases as part of the goal to strategically demonstrate the biomedical library's added value to the university and medical center. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2009, the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine at Florida International University opened its doors. From the start, its medical library sought student feedback by administering a survey to each class. The responses found that students use online resources far more than the facility, that the hours are mostly adequate, and that most students prefer a combination of print and electronic textbooks. By analyzing the data, the library determined students' preferences for space, services, and resources and how those preferences have changed over time. This data will inform future decisions about the library's collection, services, and facility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article provides a comprehensive summary of clinical librarian service models in the US, Canada, and the UK from a cross-sectional study. An online survey received 182 responses from clinical librarians in hospital (62%), academic (26%), and other (10%) libraries. These clinical librarians shared the services they provide, patrons they work with, and their perceptions of the value they add to clinical environments. Overall, this study quantifies the services offered most frequently by clinical librarians, the services felt to be most valuable, and the variety of health care clientele whom clinical librarians serve. These findings have implications for current clinical librarians, libraries and health care institutions, and for those who may become clinical librarians in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pop-up libraries have been a trending form of outreach by public and academic libraries during recent years but they are still a novel concept in clinical and hospital settings. Engaging with healthcare staff in common spaces with an inviting temporary display provides an opportunity to proactively raise awareness of library resources and services to non-library users while also piquing interest in a timely topic or special theme. Mayo Clinic librarians describe how a pop-up library was implemented as a unique form of outreach at the Rochester, Minnesota campus in early 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Library liaisons from three universities distributed an anonymous survey to graduate occupational therapy students to gauge preferred methods of communication when conducting research. This article discusses three findings: whom the students prefer to turn to when seeking research assistance, which methods of communication students prefer, and how long students spend searching before asking for assistance. From 193 responses, the liaisons reasoned that students prefer consulting with their peers before seeking help from librarians or faculty or instructors and they prefer assistance face-to-face. Additionally, the majority are willing to research from 30 min to one hour before seeking research help. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Predatory publishing tactics are well-documented in the literature; however, the way in which academic librarians handle questions about these deceptive practices is not. A thorough review of the literature revealed a need for true decision-making tools that were easy to use and share. Based on this evidence, the authors developed Scholarly Tools Opposing Predatory Practices (STOPP) to empower librarians to make informed decisions by providing the appropriate context and tools for appraising journals, websites, conferences, and thesis converters. While geared toward academic medical librarians, these tools are built to evolve and adapt across disciplines as predatory practices evolve and adapt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experienced medical librarians have been recruited by Mayo Clinic to provide contingency staffing. Functioning as just-in-time librarians, a nontraditional staffing plan was introduced in 2016 to affordably lessen stressors caused by fluctuating demands for library services such as literature searching. Contingent medical librarians were also needed to provide staffing coverage during the absences of existing full-time librarians, particularly Mayo's librarians employed as solo librarians working in hospital and smaller academic libraries. A four-year, nontraditional staffing plan which incorporates contingent medical librarians has proved to be a helpful, affordable, and sustainable staffing alternative for the libraries at Mayo Clinic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academic health sciences libraries increasingly are urged to develop research support services for faculty and students. However, moving to a research-centric culture is not easy. It requires assessment of existing competencies (defined as knowledge, experience, and skills) to identify capacity and gaps and to inform individualized and unit-level professional development activities. This case study examines the self-assessment process undertaken by librarians at a large urban academic health sciences library as they began to build a new research support services unit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital libraries and their librarians face a challenge to remain visible to users since almost all their resources can be accessed without having to visit the library space. Libraries with a primarily electronic collection can promote their visibility through creative programing that draws people into the library space or provides opportunities for users to engage with librarians. A new, primarily digital academic health sciences library shares its experiences with developing creative user events and programs to promote the library's visibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Health sciences libraries are often challenged to make decisions regarding physical space allocation without quantitative data to support specific user preferences. This multisite, longitudinal study sought to answer the following questions related to academic health sciences libraries: (1) Which library spaces are popular with health sciences patrons? (2) How does time of day and allocated seating space affect patron choices? (3) What similarities and differences occur in space usage across four different health sciences libraries? Results suggest health sciences libraries must develop a nuanced understanding of their patrons' preferences to best serve patrons' needs regarding space allocation. Libraries can benefit from these types of methodological studies that target specific populations, supporting more informed space allocation decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Library staff at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell implemented a digital repository to collect and showcase the scholarly output of the medical school and the Northwell Health system. This repository, entitled Zucker School of Medicine Academic Works, promotes scholarship by faculty, trainees, and staff via a centralized public website. With links to the full text and faculty profiles, the repository facilitates access and discoverability in alignment with the value of scholarship at the institution. Subsequent implementation of a research information management system to harvest publications further enhances the goals of tracking, promoting, and reporting impact of the scholarly activities. This article reviews successes and challenges, and collaboration with other stakeholder departments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Establishment of a new bioinformatics service at the Samuel J. Wood Library of Weill Cornell Medicine was successfully achieved through reference to existing programs and utilization of established success factors. Setting the vision, focusing on the essentials, designing for value, and implementing continuous improvement through feedback, helped to create a successful and integrated bioinformatics service for the medical research community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this content analysis was to identify commonly used content and design features of academic health sciences library home pages. After developing a checklist, data were collected from 135 academic health sciences library home pages. The core components of these library home pages included a contact phone number, a contact email address, an Ask-a-Librarian feature, the physical address listed, a feedback/suggestions link, subject guides, a discovery tool or database-specific search box, multimedia, social media, a site search option, a responsive web design, and a copyright year or update date. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this article is to describe the recent space and furniture utilization study conducted through direct observation at the small, academic-centered Schusterman Library. Student workers from the library’s reference desk monitored two semesters of use and went on to observe a third semester after electrical power upgrades were installed. Extensive use details were collected about where library patrons sat during which parts of the day, and certain areas of the library were ultimately identified as much more active than others. Overall, the information gathered proved useful to library planning and will be valuable to future space initiatives. This article further demonstrates feasible means for any library to implement a similar study with minimal resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Common reading programs have become increasingly popular on college and university campuses as a means for increasing student engagement, retention, and success. This article describes the characteristics, goals, and benefits of common reading programs and provides examples from the literature of academic library involvement in them. Finally, an example is provided of how one academic health sciences library participated in its institution’s First-Year Summer Reading program. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article presents a summary of three articles published in various journals. The articles "Using Research to Justify Your Service: Cause and Effect," by Andrew Booth in the December 2005 issue of "Health Information & Libraries Journal, "What's Coming Off the Shelves? A Reference Use Study Analyzing Print Reference Sources Used in a University Library," by Jane T. Bradford in the November 2005 issue of "The Journal of Academic Librarianship," and "The 'Impact Factor' Revisited," by Peng Dong, M. Loh, and A. Mondry in the December 2005 issue of "Biomedical Digital Libraries," are reviewed. The article discusses health librarians, library reference collections, and the management of library information resources.

Twitter is a popular social media platform used by organizations for communication and marketing purposes. Many libraries, including members of the Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries (AAHSL), have Twitter accounts, but how do these libraries use Twitter to communicate with their constituents and are they using it effectively? This study is a large-scale observational study of Twitter use within AAHSL libraries and reflects on the usage patterns present in the context of social media best practices. This study also aims to expand upon best practices for implementing and maintaining a Twitter account in a health sciences library setting. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

BrowZine is a mobile application and web service that helps users create their own personalized library/collectlon of journals. This column will showcase some special features of this app and describe its format and capabilities for mobile devices. BrowZine enables users to organize and manage journals and articles that are commonly read in their field and disciplines in order to track and keep abreast of new research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]