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1 – 10 of over 9000Kathleen P. Ismond and Ali Shiri
The purpose of this paper is to identify two medical digital libraries from each of the following three countries: Canada, the USA and the UK. It aims to discuss strengths and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify two medical digital libraries from each of the following three countries: Canada, the USA and the UK. It aims to discuss strengths and weaknesses in system design in an effort to provide a basis on which to improve both the organisation of, and the access to, electronic, scholarly information.
Design/methodology/approach
Inclusion criteria for identifying the medical digital libraries were, those who: had primarily text‐based collections, intended for use by researchers or healthcare professionals; were freely accessible, and fulfilled the author's definition of a digital library as opposed to an online database. (Medical digital libraries with either a historical focus or that had primarily image/video collections were excluded.) To identify suitable medical digital libraries, the following resources were used: scholarly databases, online search engines, government and national library web sites, lists of online medical resources, and university web sites. Selection preference was given to those libraries with the most recent launch dates and service features. Each library was systematically evaluated, qualitatively and quantitatively, from the user's perspective in six distinct areas: administrative overview and site architecture, knowledge organisation, results management, interaction with the collection, additional information services, usability, and personalisation.
Findings
The study finds that each digital library had a unique set of strengths and weaknesses. Each offered different services to help users identify relevant material and to quickly understand and assess their contents. However, this required that each library have a team of experts to obtain, assess, catalogue, and annotate the information. Where available, user comments were supportive of each effort and very positive.
Research limitations/implications
Medical digital libraries are an excellent conduit between authors and practitioners. However, they require intensive resources for establishment and maintenance. For these libraries to realise their full potential, emphasis must be placed on the currency and quality of their collections, maintaining pace with the technology employed by their users, providing services that facilitate the access and digestion of complex, scholarly information, and ensuring that online users are aware of the existence of these libraries.
Practical implications
This paper contributes to the overall improvement of existing and future medical digital libraries.
Originality/value
This is the first ever evaluation and comparison of freely available medical digital libraries from three countries.
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Alison Turner, Nick Rosen and Fran Wilkie
The National electronic Library for Health has launched an informal network, Digital Libraries Network, focused on supporting marketing and training in the health community. This…
Abstract
The National electronic Library for Health has launched an informal network, Digital Libraries Network, focused on supporting marketing and training in the health community. This article discusses the development of the Digital Libraries Network, including the rationale behind the network and the building of support mechanisms. DLnet is proving popular with over 170 librarians signing up as DLnet representatives. DLnet offers a range of benefits, including the co‐ordination of local and national activities, a clearly identifiable communication route, the sharing of best practice and avoiding duplication of effort.
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In recent years, there has been a proliferation of online resources that offer health information. However, there is no guarantee that all intended users will be able to use these…
Abstract
Purpose
In recent years, there has been a proliferation of online resources that offer health information. However, there is no guarantee that all intended users will be able to use these resources effectively. This study seeks to investigate the types of help features that are available through existing internet‐based health information resources that support the use of these resources.
Design/methodology/approach
An investigation of 30 such resources was carried out with the objective of answering these questions. The paper intends to answer the following research questions: What types of help features are available in existing online health information resources? How can their formats and presentation styles be characterised based on existing interface design guidelines from the Human‐Computer Interaction (HCI) community? Were there any differences in the manner in which different internet‐based health information providers presented evidence‐based information?
Findings
The study discovered a range of help features being employed in these resources, ranging from step‐by‐step guides outlining the use of site features to the inclusion of links to resources that cater to user groups, who speak a language other than English. Further to this, the study also found that resources that were consumer‐based and commercially‐funded predominantly favoured the use of implicit help features to improve user access, whilst government‐funded libraries were more likely to make use of explicit help features to aid users in the use of specific features.
Originality/value
This study provides insightful information regarding current status and problems of the help features in existing online health information resources.
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The purpose of this paper is to examine a pilot program implemented by the Houston Academy of Medicine‐Texas Medical Center Library and The University of Texas School of Nursing…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine a pilot program implemented by the Houston Academy of Medicine‐Texas Medical Center Library and The University of Texas School of Nursing at Houston to design the multi‐institutional repository for the Texas Medical Center.
Design/methodology/approach
The steps involved in the program are outlined and the lessons learned from the implementation are analyzed.
Findings
The success of the institutional repository depends on appropriate communication with faculty, a deep understanding of the publishing process, identifying appropriate partners, designing a flexible technology infrastructure, and engaging in active collaboration with key players. The Library is the logical center for this activity.
Practical implications
The paper should assist libraries with the unique activities involved in creating a viable multi‐institutional repository in a research‐intense academic medical environment.
Originality/value
This paper analyzes the challenges inherent in introducing institutional digital repositories to the academic medical community. Currently, institutional repositories are being developed in only a small percentage of the academic medical centers in the USA.
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Mehdi Kahouei, Hassan Babamohamadi, Soheila Sadat Ghazavi shariat panahi and Jamileh Mahdi Zadeh
Health departments of Iran have attempted to encourage nursing staff to incorporate research findings into practice since 2005. Consequently, significant changes have occurred in…
Abstract
Purpose
Health departments of Iran have attempted to encourage nursing staff to incorporate research findings into practice since 2005. Consequently, significant changes have occurred in nursing area including holding computer skills courses, digital library workshops, establishing web sites in hospitals, and developing information technology (IT) training in nursing students' curriculum to increase accessibility to best practice information and opportunity for nurses and students to use research-based information in their clinical decision. So a question has raised, what information resources are used by nursing staff and students in hospitals? The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 412 nurses and students working in hospitals connected to web and digital libraries participated. They are evaluated with a questionnaire.
Findings
The results indicated that the students and the nurses preferred experiential knowledge to research-based information in their clinical decisions and they had little tendency to high-level evidence. Results showed that lack of skill in using library was the most important deterrent in using research-based information.
Originality/value
It could be concluded that provision of the infrastructures for using research-based information in clinical decisions was not sufficient. In addition to infrastructures, the paper must invest on organizational, system-wide approaches such as organizational culture, information literacy culture, acceptance of innovation, role of clinical librarians and advanced nursing informatics, and social marketing in evidence-based practice to facilitate the use of higher-level evidence in practice.
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Alireza Isfandyari‐Moghaddam and Behrooz Bayat
The purpose of this paper is to review the literature of digital libraries (DLs), explore some issues and indicate some considerations. The paper also demonstrates the current…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review the literature of digital libraries (DLs), explore some issues and indicate some considerations. The paper also demonstrates the current situation and orientation of research topics and priorities in DLs.
Design/methodology/approach
Keywords such as “DL research”, “DL evaluation”, “DL management”, “DLs”, “DL studies” and so on were searched for on the web as well as in some leading databases, including Emerald, Proquest, SagePub, ScienceDirect and Springer. The search focused on three main categories in relation to DL literature: evaluation or performance appraisal, management, and education.
Findings
The review demonstrates that a lot has been learned in a short time via DL studies. However, a number of issues are yet to be resolved. In other words, research in the arena of DLs is still growing and it is predicted that new horizons will emerge, along with a variety of issues.
Research limitations/implications
The review does not claim to be comprehensive.
Practical implications
It is hoped that matters such as legal issues, social issues, standards, metadata, management of intellectual and digital rights and interoperability, not included here, will be discussed in future works.
Originality/value
The paper can serve as a road‐map of digital library research for researchers, designers and users.
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Meixing Liu and Fang Xu
The purpose of this study is to explore the information needs and behaviors of Chinese first-time mothers from the perspective of information journey theory.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to explore the information needs and behaviors of Chinese first-time mothers from the perspective of information journey theory.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses the popular coding language Python to write a program to extract 366 posts published by first-time mothers in the Babytree community of China's largest maternal and infant platform. Content analysis is used to analyze and encode the collected data.
Findings
This study summarizes the information needs of first-time mothers in China specifically, which includes six aspects of health, pregnancy care, postpartum parenting, socialization, self-actualization, and entertainment. Then, based on its hierarchical and stage characteristics, more flexible information needs matrix for Chinese first-time mothers has been developed to reflect their changing 15 types of information needs more fully. Finally, it constructs the information journey model of Chinese first-time mothers including five stages.
Originality/value
This is the first time that information journey theory has been applied to the research on information needs and behaviors of first-time mothers. The authors have also further expanded the information seeking and acquisition phases and found new gaps in the phases to further refine the information journey model. This study can help us better understand the online information needs and behaviors of Chinese first-time mothers and provide support for organizations and online health community managers to develop new information services or improve the quality of existing services.
Peer review
The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/OIR-10-2021-0538.
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Abstract
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Salman Bin Naeem, Rubina Bhatti and Khurshid Ahmad
This study is a part of the doctoral dissertation that proposes concrete measures to improve health-care information outreach program for rural health-care professionals in…
Abstract
Purpose
This study is a part of the doctoral dissertation that proposes concrete measures to improve health-care information outreach program for rural health-care professionals in primary and secondary health care in Punjab, Pakistan. This study aims to report on the barriers to accessing and using online health-care information from rural settings of the Punjab province of Pakistan.
Design/methodology/approach
A cross-sectional survey was conducted in primary and secondary health-care settings in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The study’s population consisted of the rural primary care physicians (PCPs), who were geographically dispersed across 2,873 different remote health-care settings across Punjab. These practice settings included 2,455 basic health units, 293 rural health centers, 89 tehsil headquarter hospitals and 36 district headquarter hospitals.
Findings
Limited internet access, non-availability of required equipment and lack of training facilities were identified as the main barriers. PCPs’ gender, previous enrollment in post-graduation programs and type of health-care facility were significant factors in the perceived barriers related to both “non-availability of required equipment” and “inadequate training facilities on the use of information resources”.
Practical implications
The findings of the study hold some important practical implications for different stakeholders. This study identifies and addresses the barriers to accessing and using health-care information for PCPs in rural settings. The success of the health-care information outreach program in Punjab, Pakistan, should rely on the eradication of these barriers.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first large-scale study in Pakistan that assesses the barriers and proposes ways to overcome these barriers to effectively access and use health-care information.
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Mehdi Alipour-Hafezi and Hamid Amanollahi Nick
– The purpose of this study is to identify the situation of evaluating Iranian digital libraries using DigiQUAL protocol.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to identify the situation of evaluating Iranian digital libraries using DigiQUAL protocol.
Design/methodology/approach
Evaluative survey research method is used in this study to assess digital libraries. In this way, digital libraries of Iranian research institutes constitute the study population. DigiQUAL protocol actually was used to evaluate eight Iranian digital libraries. Systematic observation and interview based on researcher-made checklist was used for data collection. In fact, checklist was constructed based on DigiQual protocol.
Findings
The results showed that Digital Library of Isfahan Science and Technology Town has the best performance and Noor digital library has the lowest operation in studied digital libraries. The overall score of all studied digital libraries was under 60 (out of 100) which shows the average performance of the digital libraries.
Originality/value
This study emphasizes on evaluating active digital libraries in Iran by DigiQUAL protocol. Because digital libraries are new in Iran and their progress need to evaluate their activity, this research was done to demonstrate their situation.
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