I agree with Carsten (though could also be useful to discuss with
students- good learning experience for them, for a start) Needs the rest
of us too, tho.

It's the same as we would expect if, for example, JISCMAIL were doing a
user assessment of lis-medical - we would expect them to come to us. The
nearest we can get to that at the moment is to us at the sharp end . As
in the ones explaining to endusers that yes, there may be access to an
article and isn't that wonderful, but they cant just click on the full
text link on PubMed, but need to note the ref and go via NeLH or NHSS
elibrary.. (and no, that doesn't mean I think that such access is
possible- its just an example!)

Which actually makes me think that it would be useful if any options for
e-libraries were researched with a reasonable sample of 'real' endusers,
at a stage when choice is still possible? Apologies if that has been
done already.

I appreciate it would not be research that could be seen as definitely
reflecting the whole range of health professions and their level of
skill/interest in IT.

And its very noticeable how different the English and Scottish
e-libraries are (we have users in both countries). There are different
ways of doing it, tho I appreciate both are now in established
structures, and I'm not suggesting either is perfect (tho I do have a
preference!) I believe there is already some communication between those
organising these services, which has to be a good idea.
(http://www.nelh.nhs.uk/ and http://www.elib.scot.nhs.uk/, tho of course
some resources in both are password protected).

Oh dear, I really didn't mean to get into this message. Another problem
we share with health profs- too much work to fit in to too little time,
let alone finding time to think about wider issues!

TGIF

Fiona

-----Original Message-----
From: Carsten Mandt
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
Sent: 29 October 2004 10:55
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: National Library for Health work on user needs

I'm slightly confused now, Sally. Why would you want to limit debate on
these issues to the ivory towers of academia and leave answering your
questions to students who - I am generalising, I know - don't have much,
if any, real life experience of working full time in a library, let
alone of the inner workings of the NHS library world. Although you can
certainly gain a useful perspective from that sort of debate, and I
don't want to dismiss the input library/information studies lecturers
can give to that debate either, I'm sure they can only provide one piece
in the puzzle... 

There has to also be debate amongst those who are actually affected by
these developments and feel day in, day out how the changes in
healthcare librarianship are actually making a difference. Not based on
theorizing but on lived experience. Those who are already in the NHS
workplace, and who maybe have decades worth of experience, have to be
able to share their views and inform the debate. If nothing else, to
ensure it remains grounded in reality... [I've spent enough time in
academic circumstances to know that those in academia sometimes find
that focus on real life needs and pragmatic solutions a bit of struggle
(generalising again, I know...)] If current healthcare librarians feel
that a forum like lis-medical is a good place for sharing and discussing
their views and concerns regarding such far-reaching developments like
NLH, then I for one can't think of any reason why one might want to
suggest they don't use lis-medical to that end.

Carsten Mandt
Clinical Librarian
Greater Glasgow Primary Care Division
West House
Gartnavel Royal Hospital
1055 Great Western Road
Glasgow
G12 0XH
Phone: 0141 - 211 0633
 

-----Original Message-----
From: Sally Hernando [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
Sent: 29 October 2004 09:51
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [LIS-MEDICAL] National Library for Health work on user
needs

Dear Colleagues,
As an infrequent visitor to lis-medical, I've only just picked up these
messages.  Like others, I'm disappointed at the intellectual level of
the
debate on this topic.  NLH, however, IS a legitimate topic for debate,
and
if I were in the enviable position of being a lecturer in a school of
information studies, these are the questions I would wish to discuss
with my
students:
*When we appraise clinicial research, we are taught to consider the
origin
of the funding for the research.  How might this principle be applied to
consultancy on public services, such as the TFPL review?
*How relevant or necessary are national information systems, such as the
National Library for Health or National Core Content, in a global
economy?
*The NHS National Core Content Project did not attract the level of
criticism which the National Library for Health project is currently
doing,
even though it required large amounts of money to be topsliced from WDC
library budgets.  What lessons can we take from this?
I would be genuinely interested in the views of library school students
on
these issues, and think that a debate on this level would contribute
considerably to the knowledge base of health care librarianship.  This
should, however, take place in our universities, not on lis-medical.
Best wishes,
Sally Hernando
Head of Knowledge Resources Development Unit
NHS South West Workforce Development Confederations