Pam Kress-Dunn, medical librarian at Mercy Medical Center in Dubuque,Iowa, answers that question beautifully! In this latest installment article published online in the magazine
'Pulse', the reader is afforded an authentic glympse into the daily challenges of the hospital librarian, that largely stealth pillar and support of evidence-based medical practice.
'Pulse: Voices from the heart of medicine' delivers compelling, powerful first-person stories about health care written by patients and doctors, caregivers and nurses, mental health professionals and students. Real-life health care is captured in a way that is honest, intimate and unique; opening a window into the world of medicine. For more
'voices' from the
'heart of medicine' tune in weekly to
Pulse Magazine .
Labels: culture of healthcare, healthcare workers, hospital librarian, hospital services, Hospitals, medical librarian, medical library, Mercy Medical Center, narratives, stories of healthcare
The findings of a landmark randomized controlled trial which demonstrates the value and impact of the medical librarian has just been published!
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BACKGROUND: The "Just-in-time Information" (JIT) librarian consultation service was designed to provide rapid information to answer primary care clinical questions during patient hours. This study evaluated whether information provided by librarians to answer clinical questions positively impacted time, decision-making, cost savings and satisfaction...
CONCLUSIONS: In this study, providing timely information to clinical questions had a highly positive impact on decision-making and a high approval rating from participants. Using a librarian to respond to clinical questions may allow primary care professionals to have more time in their day, thus potentially increasing patient access to care. Such services may reduce costs through decreasing the need for referrals, further tests, and other courses of action."
McGowan J, Hogg W, Campbell C, Rowan M. Just-in-time information improved decision-making in primary care: a randomized controlled trial. PLoS ONE. 2008;3(11):e3785. Epub 2008 Nov 21.PMID: 19023446 [open source]. Labels: clinical care, evaluation, evidence-based medicine, health care costs, hospital librarian, hospital library, hospital services, impact of librarian, medical librarian, RCT
