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Dear all Apologies for giving you the wrong URL. It must have been the excitement of getting ready for ICML. The correct URL for our project report is http://www.le.ac.uk/li/lgh/library/clinlib.htm As before, comments welcome. Linda -----Original Message----- From: Ward, L.M. Sent: 01 July 2000 08:53 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: From a clinical librarian/informationist Dear all Usually a 'lurker', I feel I have to contribute to the list on this subject as we have been offering a clinical librarian service at Leicester since October 1999. (A much better title than Informationist btw). This was as a pilot project, funded by HA Modernisation funds. We are about to secure joint LIS/Trust funding to continue the service for 3 years. The report of our pilot project is at http://www.le.ac.uk/li/library/clinlib.htm [comments welcome] A number of points have been raised so far which I would like to add to. The NHS does cough up the money for additional services, especially if they can be demonstrated to support clinical governance and EBP. Offering the service has had the effect of raising the profile of the library service generally within the organisation. We have become more visible and represented on various guidelines and clinical effectiveness / clinical governance groups. EBP demands that research evidence is identified in a systematic and thorough way. Clinicians do believe that evidence and information are important despite an appropriate level of cynicism) and are aware of developments in their field of expertise. The clinical librarian can provide information in a less serendipitous way and overcome some of the barriers to information use in clinical practice (lack of time, skills etc.) Re: the question of clinical training for librarians. Although the librarian and myself who carried out the pilot project both have nursing backgrounds, we felt that this wasn't vital. The essential point is the development of partnerships with clinicians, bringing together information and clinical skills. Our aim is to be as accepted a part of the multidisciplinary team as haematology or radiology. Filtering search results. Being present at clinical meetings can provide useful context and enable an accurate literature search to be carried out. Clinicians for their part are happy to receive abstracts and select appropriate articles. We feel that there is a role for the clinical librarian in raising quality issues. Providing a commentary on the methodology of the research available, the clinicians deciding on its applicability to their patients. I must say that I liked Mike's reminder that clinicians tend to seek out a person for information. A clinical librarian can be that person, placing the library service at the point where clinical questions arise, answering questions that might not normally be answered. A robust evaluation of the service is an issue that we need to address now. Response to questionnaires in the pilot project was poor, as we might have expected given the demands on clinicians' time. We can measure our activity but has anyone got any suggestions about how the use of evidence in practice can be measured? A pot of gold at the end of the rainbow but a question that I'm sure all health librarians would appreciate the answer to. Linda Ward Information Services Librarian Education Centre Library Leicester General Hospital Gwendolen Rd Leicester LE5 4PW Tel. 0116 2588124 Fax. 0116 2584244 Email. [log in to unmask] %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%