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Information at the Point of Need: How New Technologies are Changing the Nature of Medical Libraries
Pat Thibodeau
New technologies that enable the rapid delivery of knowledge-based resources are having an impact on how clinicians, researchers and health students work and learn, and are changing the nature of medical libraries. For years, health sciences libraries have struggled with ways to bridge the gaps of distance and time when identifying and delivering information to the point of need. However, the ultimate vision of “information when and where it is needed” was difficult to achieve across an entire healthcare facility or academic health center due to limited staff resources and the urgency of decision making in clinical settings. Now, the technologies are in place to bridge the gaps and satisfy the demand for immediate access to relevant and high quality resources.
What does this mean for library patrons? With Web accessible databases and resources, patrons can quickly search for citations and identify online full-text journals, books and other sources. With a click of the mouse on the full-text links, knowledge is immediately available at the point of need. Through Internet protocol (IP) authentication, even the obstacles of multiple passwords have been overcome. Computer network infrastructures, Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), and proxy servers have allowed users at any institutional site to access resources that in the past were only housed in the library.
As several patrons have stated, “The best thing about the library today is that I do not have to go there.” Health professionals, researchers, and students can work more efficiently and effectively from their clinical, learning and research settings. They are less likely to forego that article because it is a ten minute walk or drive away. It is now on their desktop. In addition, online resources support multidisciplinary work; a faculty member can read an article in another field and the internist may enhance his knowledge in a medical subspecialty. It is easy to go beyond the limits of information found through personal subscriptions and society memberships. Even the traditional print collection is becoming available as libraries implement desktop delivery of scanned articles.
Mobile technologies have further changed how information is delivered and accessed, and have brought it even closer to the point of decision making. Handheld devices and wireless connections free faculty, clinicians and learners from the desktop computer. Information on how to a treat a patient is at the bedside; the researcher can check a fact while working on an experiment; and the student can tap into resources that expand and enhance a lecture.
The advantages for health sciences patrons are reflected in the transformations that medical libraries are undergoing. For many libraries, the current paper collection is being replaced with electronic collections. While the “library as place” still has an important function in providing a comfortable and quiet learning and research environment, the library must also provide workstations for accessing the virtual collections, and users are demanding wireless connections to allow them to work anywhere in the library. As mentioned earlier, scanners and desktop delivery services allow the library to bring the print collection to the users no matter where they are located. But as the emphasis continues to shift to electronics and from the legacy print copies, libraries are beginning to rethink how to use their spaces in support of their institutional missions.
Medical librarians continue to play an essential role in accessing quality health information, for while access to materials is easier than ever, it is also more overwhelming. Librarians must now provide users with training and orientations to the virtual library. The full complement of library expertise is still needed in identifying, evaluating and acquiring the best electronic resources, only now librarians must add negotiations and cost-benefit analysis to their arsenal of collection development skills. Given the myriad of electronic choices, the library’s Web page and online catalog have become crucial in helping library patrons locate and navigate the powerful new clinical and research tools. Medical librarians are assessing the new mobile technologies and influencing the selection of devices and the software tools used to support patient care. Even the easy-touse database interfaces have not negated the need for expert searching in finding best practices, supporting evidence-based health care, and mining e-resources for knowledge about rare and unusual research and clinical questions.
Have libraries realized their vision of information at the point of need? Yes and no. Information is more accessible from numerous geographic locations, but is it usable information? The question of “how it is needed” has been added to the vision. Both busy clinicians and researchers often need fast access to the facts or to filtered, analyzed, and distilled research results and cutting-edge knowledge. The next challenge for both medical librarians and the developers of technology and content is to find a way to bring the essential pieces of evidence to that immediate point of need. When the essential information is available on a mobile device, embedded in the electronic health record, or integrated with the software in the research lab, then the vision of “information when, where and how it is needed” will become a reality.
