Four health science librarians’ experiences: How they responded to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis

In this article, four health sciences librarians from four academic libraries across the country will share their personal or library experiences in reaching out to faculty and students to meet their needs through their initiatives and continuous efforts using various technologies and tools. Three of the four academic libraries are located in two COVID-19 hard-hit states, Michigan and New Jersey. The article will describe their practice of health sciences librarianship during the unprecedented time and provide examples demonstrating how each of them strives to stay relevant, proactive, and become integral to their institutional efforts in support of students and employees working remotely. These examples showcase their efforts in four main areas of library core functions: references/consultation services, library instruction, research support, and resource

Sustaining librarian vitality: Embedded librarianship model for health sciences libraries

With biomedical information widely accessible from anywhere at any time, health sciences libraries have become less centralized, and they are challenged to stay relevant and vital to the mission and strategic goals of their home institution. One solution is to embed librarians at strategic points in health professions' education, research, and patient care. This article discusses a proposed five-level model of embedded librarianship within the context of health sciences libraries and describes different roles, knowledge, and skills desirable for health sciences librarians working as embedded librarians

Use of Mobile Devices to Access Resources Among Health Professions Students: A Systematic Review

This systematic review examines types of mobile devices used by health professions students, kinds of resources and tools accessed via mobile devices, and reasons for using the devices to access the resources and tools. The review included 20 studies selected from articles published in English between January 2010 and April 2015, retrieved from PubMed and other sources. Data extracted included participants, study designs, mobile devices used, mobile resources/apps accessed, outcome measures, and advantages of and barriers to using mobile devices. The review indicates significant variability across the studies in terms of research methods, types of mobile programs implemented, resources accessed, and outcomes. There were beneficial effects of using mobile devices to access resources as well as conspicuous challenges or barriers in using mobile devices

Leadership Training in Undergraduate Medical Education: A Systematic Review

Background: This review seeks to characterize existing curricular interventions implemented to develop leadership skills in undergraduate medical students at LCME-accredited medical schools and elucidate best practices for leadership curriculum development. Methods: PRISMA guidelines were used to guide the review. Comprehensive literature searches of five databases retrieved peer-reviewed journal articles with empirical data published in English. Two phases of screening were conducted to identify studies describing leadership development curricular interventions, followed by data extraction and synthesis. Results: Comprehensive literature searching and hand searching identified 977 articles potentially eligible for inclusion, with a final set of 16 articles selected for the review. A majority of the leadership development programs targeted preclinical students, while others spanned the entire curriculum. "Mixed settings," including both classroom and clinical and community components were common. There was a wide range of cohort sizes spanning from over 100 students to fewer than 10. Using the competencies defined by Mangrulkar et al, we determined that all of the programs described leadership skills development, including conflict management and emotional intelligence. Out of the 16 selected studies, curricula that emphasized the development of skills were evidence-based medicine and practice, and 6 curricula targeted interprofessionalism. Conclusions: Leadership development needs to be standardized in undergraduate medical education, ideally using a competency-based framework to develop these standards. Longitudinal programs that had a didactic and project-based component received consistently high quality and effectiveness scores, as did programs with smaller cohort sizes that received more consistent mentorship and monetary investment from institutions

Use of Mobile Devices to Access Resources Among Health Professions Students: A Systematic Review

La désertification, les changements climatiques et la perte de la diversité biologique sont des problématiques cruciales pour les régions sèches d’Afrique où ils conjuguent leurs effets pour éprouver les efforts de développement des pays et concomitamment les moyens de vie des populations les plus pauvres de la planète. En effet, nul doute que les écosystèmes ont une influence sur le climat, et  réciproquement, les changements climatiques exercent des impacts considérables sur le climat local, accroissant la désertification, la dégradation des terres et la perte de la diversité biologique. Aujourd’hui, alors que le concept de changements climatiques est une référence constante, la désertification, en dépit de nombreuses études scientifiques qui lui sont consacrées, intéresse peu les décideurs politiques. Pourtant, aucune passerelle, ni scientifique, ni politique à travers la synergie des conventions internationales sur l’environnement, n’est réellement construite sur les liens évidents entre désertification, changement climatique et diversité biologique. L’adaptation aux variabilités et changements climatiques, question centrale dans les récents travaux du Groupe Intergouvernemental sur l’Evolution du Climat (GIEC), constitue un enjeu capital pour les régions sèches affectées par la désertification et soumises à la variabilité et aux extrêmes climatiques. Les expériences de lutte contre la désertification et de conservation de la biodiversité pourraient constituer un point de départ judicieux pour l’étude et la compréhension de l’adaptation aux changements climatiques. Le présent article propose une analyse conjointe de la désertification, du changement climatique et la diversité biologique à la fois au plan scientifique à travers les définitions et les manifestations de ces phénomènes dans les régions sèches d’Afrique, mais aussi au plan institutionnel par l’examen des textes, des outils et des décisions relatives aux conventions internationales qui leur sont dédiées.Desertification, climate change and loss of biodiversity, currently the most compelling issues in African drylands, are compromising development efforts and jeopardising the livelihoods of the poor. A growing amount of evidence is confirming the linkages between  desertification and climate change. One illustration of these linkages is that ecosystems influence the climate, and reciprocally the global climate change affects the local climate, thus exacerbating desertification, land degradation and loss of biodiversity. While the concept of climate change is an ubiquitous theme in the international meetings, desertification suffers a chronic lack of interest on the part of decision-makers. Hitherto, there are no scientific and political links through the synergy between the international environmental conventions. Climate change adaptation is crucial to addressing both issues in the context of drylands. The experience gained in combating desertification and biodiversity conservation could be an entry point for studying and understanding adaptation to climate change in Africa. This article aims to propose an integrated scientific analysis of desertification, climate change and biodiversity, in the light of the three phenomena’s definitions and manifestations in Africa’s drylands. At the institutional level, the examination of the tools and decisions taken through the multilateral conventions dedicated to climate change (UNFCCC), desertification (UNCCD) and biodiversity (UNCBD) is required

Culturally competent library services and related factors among health sciences librarians: an exploratory study

Objective: This study investigated the current state of health sciences libraries’ provision of culturally competent services to support health professions education and patient care and examined factors associated with cultural competency in relation to library services and professional development. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. Data were collected with a survey questionnaire that was distributed via SurveyMonkey to several health sciences librarian email discussion lists. Results: Out of 176 respondents, 163 reported serving clients from diverse cultural backgrounds. Various services were provided to develop or support initiatives in cultural competency in health professions education and patient care. A considerable number of respondents were unsure or reported no library services to support initiatives in cultural competency, although a majority of respondents perceived the importance of providing culturally competent library services (156, 89.1%) and cultural competency for health sciences librarians (162, 93.1%). Those who self-identified as nonwhites perceived culturally competent services to be more important than whites (p=0.04). Those who spoke another language in addition to English had higher self-rated cultural competency (p=0.01) than those who only spoke English. Conclusions: These findings contribute to our knowledge of the types of library services provided to support cultural competency initiatives and of health sciences librarians’ perceived importance in providing culturally competent library services and cultural competency for health sciences librarians. The results suggest implications for health sciences libraries in fostering professional development in cultural competency and in providing culturally competent services to increase library use by people from a wide range of cultures and backgrounds

The Utilization of Peer Feedback During Collaborative Learning in Medical Education: A Systematic Review

Background Peer evaluation can provide valuable feedback to medical students, and increase student confidence and quality of work. The objective of this systematic review was to examine the utilization, effectiveness, and quality of peer feedback during collaborative learning in medical education. Methods The PRISMA statement for reporting in systematic reviews and meta-analysis was used to guide the process of conducting the systematic review. Evaluation of level of evidence (Colthart) and types of outcomes (Kirkpatrick) were used. Two main authors reviewed articles with a third deciding on conflicting results. Results The final review included 31 studies. Problem-based learning and team-based learning were the most common collaborative learning settings. Eleven studies reported that students received instruction on how to provide appropriate peer feedback. No studies provided descriptions on whether or not the quality of feedback was evaluated by faculty. Seventeen studies evaluated the effect of peer feedback on professionalism; 12 of those studies evaluated its effectiveness for assessing professionalism and eight evaluated the use of peer feedback for professional behavior development. Ten studies examined the effect of peer feedback on student learning. Six studies examined the role of peer feedback on team dynamics. Conclusions This systematic review indicates that peer feedback in a collaborative learning environment may be a reliable assessment for professionalism and may aid in the development of professional behavior. The review suggests implications for further research on the impact of peer feedback, including the effectiveness of providing instruction on how to provide appropriate peer feedback

The Utilization of Peer Feedback During Collaborative Learning in Undergraduate Medical Education: A Systematic Review

Background Peer evaluation can provide valuable feedback to medical students, and increase student confidence and quality of work. The objective of this systematic review was to examine the utilization, effectiveness, and quality of peer feedback during collaborative learning in medical education. Methods The PRISMA statement for reporting in systematic reviews and meta-analysis was used to guide the process of conducting the systematic review. Evaluation of level of evidence (Colthart) and types of outcomes (Kirkpatrick) were used. Two main authors reviewed articles with a third deciding on conflicting results. Results The final review included 31 studies. Problem-based learning and team-based learning were the most common collaborative learning settings. Eleven studies reported that students received instruction on how to provide appropriate peer feedback. No studies provided descriptions on whether or not the quality of feedback was evaluated by faculty. Seventeen studies evaluated the effect of peer feedback on professionalism; 12 of those studies evaluated its effectiveness for assessing professionalism and eight evaluated the use of peer feedback for professional behavior development. Ten studies examined the effect of peer feedback on student learning. Six studies examined the role of peer feedback on team dynamics. Conclusions This systematic review indicates that peer feedback in a collaborative learning environment may be a reliable assessment for professionalism and may aid in the development of professional behavior. The review suggests implications for further research on the impact of peer feedback, including the effectiveness of providing instruction on how to provide appropriate peer feedback

Integration of arts and humanities in medicine to develop well-rounded physicians: the roles of health sciences librarians

Over the past ten years, there has been a growing interest in integrating arts and humanities in medicine to increase learners’ empathy and resilience, improve personal well-being, communication, and observational skills, enhance self- reflection, and promote professionalism. These desired skills and qualities are becoming increasingly important for the physicians of tomorrow. Parallel to curricular interventions of integrating arts and humanities to medical education, there has been an increasing research interest in investigating the impact of such interventions on medical students with respect to improving and sustaining students’ empathy as they progress in their medical education and develop their professional identity. Research has yielded interesting findings on the types and effect of the interventions in the medical curriculum. The Association of the American Medical Colleges (AAMC), recognizing the unique and unrealized role of arts and humanities in preparing and equipping physicians for twenty-first-century challenges, proposed seven recommendations for advancing arts and humanities integration into medical education to improve the education, practice, and well-being of physicians and physician learners across the spectrum of medical education. Institutional initiatives of arts and humanities integration in the medical curriculum in response to the AAMC’s recommendations afford health sciences librarians expansive opportunities and a new landscape of playing an important role in these initiatives. With their diverse educational background in arts, humanities, social sciences, and many other disciplines and fields, health sciences librarians are poised for meaningful contributions to their institutional goals in developing a humanistic, compassionate workforce of future physicians