Medical Reference Services Quarterly最新文献

This article describes a needs assessment performed by an academic/health sciences library to study the feasibility of a library makerspace for campus users and to determine if there was any interest for such a makerspace. A literature review, an environmental scan, a campus-wide survey, and focus groups were conducted. Results showed that there was significant campus interest. Findings emphasized that staffing and programming should precede equipment acquisition to ensure success.

Using semi-structured interviews, this study aimed to qualitatively explore the expectations and preferences of clinical users when engaging with library subject guides. Participants were generally unaware that subject guides existed but showed some preference toward guides that were quick and easy to use and provided independent learning materials, as well as resource access and guidance. Barriers to use in clinical practice included time, awareness, and issues of guide design and cognitive load. The results of this study will help inform the development of customized subject guides targeting this special population.

This column reintroduces Really Simple Syndication (RSS). RSS feeds offer a structured way to receive updates from journals, databases like PubMed and Ovid, and websites. Librarians and researchers can use it to keep track of field trends and facilitate discipline awareness. This overview covers how to retrieve RSS feeds, store them in Outlook and web-based readers, and best practices. Use cases for librarians and challenges are also included.

MedPix is a free, open-access, online database developed by the National Library of Medicine that houses a vast collection of over 59,000 medical images, 12,000 patient cases, and 9,000 clinical topics. Designed to support both teaching and self-directed learning, the platform serves a diverse audience including physicians, medical students, educators, and researchers. MedPix offers robust search capabilities as well as case-based learning tools that support Continuing Medical Education.

Osteopathic practitioners and researchers face a scarcity of readily accessible scientific literature that bridges evidence-based research with clinical practice. Additionally, there is an absence of libraries specifically dedicated to osteopathic manipulative medicine. Created to fill this gap, Osteoevidence is an online bibliographic database dedicated to advancing osteopathic manipulative medicine by providing streamlined access to scientific literature. Designed in collaboration with osteopaths, this free and user-centric platform indexes 7,391 peer-reviewed reviews, guidelines, and clinical trials from leading research repositories. It integrates a search interface with customizable sorting and lateral filtering tailored for osteopathic contexts. Since its launch in 2022, Osteoevidence aims to support clinicians, students, and researchers worldwide. This paper examines its development, functionality, and its role in osteopathic research and practice, and support information services in clinical and academic settings, including those offered by specialized medical librarians.

Background: Little is known about whether or how librarians and nursing faculty collaborate to create or use OER resources.

Methods: A comprehensive search was performed in 2024 across five databases. Three articles met the inclusion criteria and were analyzed.

Results: The included articles had unclear reporting regarding the exact nature of the role of the librarian author, but two articles described the work of librarians in the curation of OER materials for a nursing course.

Discussion: Incorporation of OER offered an opportunity for collaboration as well as descriptions of work that librarians did and suggestions for future opportunities.

Libraries with systematic review services rely on technology, often selected based on institutional subscriptions, for internal communication and data collection. Many libraries rely on manual data entry despite available no- or low-code software, like Microsoft Power Automate^® or Zapier, for automating and optimizing team workflows. This case study describes how one library implemented Power Automate^® flows to automate email reminders, support project management tasks, coordinate workflows across a large team, collect data, and facilitate assessment and reporting.

The Instituto Mexicano de Oftalmología (IMO), a non-profit eye institute, has experienced significant growth. In this case study, we analyze IMO-affiliated publications (2012-2023) and introduce the Degree of Involvement in paper authorship index (DI-index). Journal metrics were extracted from InCites Journal Citation Reports and Scimago. IMO research output grew from one publication (2012) to 31 (2023), peaking at 45 (2018). The average impact factor rose from 0.2 (2012) to 5.2 (2022). The DI-index totaled 106.6 across 227 articles. Bibliometric analysis provides valuable insights for emerging institutions, and the DI-index provides a novel approach to evaluating authorship involvement.

This column describes resident education across the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences' regional campuses.

This study sought to investigate the influence of a science educational background on librarian interactions with basic and life sciences programs. Through semi-structured interviews with 14 librarians, the study identified several key themes: understanding and enjoying science is beneficial; previous experience influences librarians' approaches; relationships are important; defining success is challenging; and collaborating with other campus units is unusual. Results suggest a science undergraduate or graduate degree and previous science-related work experience enhance librarians' comfort and communication with scientists and highlight a lack of professional continuing education related to researcher workflows.