Current Research

Compiled by Trish Chatterley

Aspinall EE, Beschnett A, Ellwood AF. Health literacy for older adults: using evidence to build a model educational program. *Med Ref Serv Q*. 2012 31(3):302–14. doi: 10.1080/02763869.2012.698174.

HeLP MN Seniors was a pilot program aimed at developing an evidence-based educational program to improve health literacy/health information literacy skills in older adults. A two-part workshop series was created and a pilot test was conducted with residents of a senior living community. After attending the pilot workshops, older adults reported that they used several workshop tools and tips, were more empowered to ask questions, and were more successful in finding online health information. Based upon evidence gathered through formal program evaluation, the pilot curriculum was further customized and developed into a model educational program that has been made available for use by others.

Compiler's note: The workshop program, which includes instructor scripts, handouts, assessment tools, and promotional materials, may be found on the Minnesota Health Literacy Partnership website at http://www.healthliteracymn.org/resources/help-mn-seniors.

Berg S, Jacobs HLM, Cornwall D. Academic librarians and research: a study of Canadian library administrator perspectives. *Coll Res Libr*. 2012 May 29 [Epub ahead of print].

Within the literature exploring the role of research in academic librarianship, very little attention has been paid to the perspectives of upper library administrators. This perspective is critical because library administrators play a key role in hiring, evaluating, supporting, promoting and tenuring professional librarians. As a way of bringing the administrative perspective to these discussions, our study examines how library administrators within the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL) view the role of research in their own libraries and within academic librarianship, as well as how they perceive the current and future climate for librarians' research. Our study reveals key areas in need of further research and identifies several issues that librarians and upper administrators would benefit from exploring together in order to advance discussions about research.

Ilic D, Tepper K, Misso M. Teaching evidence-based medicine literature searching skills to medical students during the clinical years: a randomized controlled trial. *J Med Libr Assoc*. 2012 July;100(3):190–96. doi: 10.3163/1536-5050.100.3.009. PMID: 22879808.

**Objectives:** Constructing an answerable question and effectively searching the medical literature are key steps in practicing evidence-based medicine (EBM). This study aimed to identify the effectiveness of delivering a single workshop in EBM literature searching skills to medical students entering their first clinical years of study.

**Methods:** A randomized controlled trial was conducted with third-year undergraduate medical students. Participants were randomized to participate in a formal workshop in EBM literature searching skills, with EBM literature searching skills and perceived competency in EBM measured at one-week post-intervention via the Fresno tool and Clinical Effectiveness and Evidence-Based Practice Questionnaire. **Results:** A total of 121 participants were enrolled in the study, with 97 followed-up post-intervention. There was no statistical mean difference in EBM literature searching skills between the 2 groups (mean difference = 0.007 (P = 0.99)). Students attending the EBM workshop were significantly more confident in their ability to construct clinical questions and had greater perceived awareness of information resources. **Conclusions:** A single EBM workshop did not result in statistically significant changes in literature searching skills. Teaching and reinforcing EBM literature searching skills during both preclinical and clinical years may result in increased student confidence, which may facilitate student use of EBM skills as future clinicians.

Macdonald J, Vallance D, McGrath M. An evaluation of a collaborative bibliotherapy scheme delivered via a library service. *J Psychiatr Ment Health Nurs*. 2012 Sep 18 [Epub ahead of print]. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2850.2012.01962.x. PMID: 22989064.

This paper reports on the evaluation of a bibliotherapy scheme delivered via a local library service, in conjunction with General Practice (GP) practices, local social welfare agencies and through self-referral. The Read Yourself Well (RYW) scheme was based on principles established from other similar schemes and as a way of delivering support for adults experiencing mild to moderate mental health
problems for whom clinical treatments are not appropriate. The intervention consisted of initial referral and evaluation by the scheme bibliotherapist, a one-hour session at the beginning and end of the intervention where a purpose-designed questionnaire and two mental health assessments were carried out (the General Health Questionnaire and the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation questionnaire). Contact and support from the bibliotherapist was provided during the intervention period. One hundred and fifty-seven participants were recruited to the evaluation of whom 114 provided full data. Statistical analyses of the mental health scores showed significant improvements post treatment, for, both male and female participants, for all three referral routes, and for participants who were previously library users, and those who joined the library service to participate in the RYW scheme. The results of this large sample evaluation support the proposal that library-based bibliotherapy can be effective in the treatment of mental health problems.

Nourbakhsh E, Nugent R, Wang H, Cevik C, Nugent K. Medical literature searches: a comparison of PubMed and Google Scholar. *Health Info Libr J*. 2012 June;28(3):214–22. doi: 10.1111/j.1471-1842.2012.00992.x. PMID: 22925384.

**Background:** Medical literature searches provide critical information for clinicians. However, the best strategy for identifying relevant high-quality literature is unknown. **Objectives:** We compared search results using PubMed and Google Scholar on four clinical questions and analysed these results with respect to article relevance and quality. **Methods:** Abstracts from the first 20 citations for each search were classified into three relevance categories. We used the weighted kappa statistic to analyse reviewer agreement and nonparametric rank tests to compare the number of citations for each article and the corresponding journals' impact factors. **Results:** Reviewers ranked 67.6% of PubMed articles and 80% of Google Scholar articles as at least possibly relevant (P = 0.116) with high agreement (all kappa P-values < 0.01). Google Scholar articles had a

higher median number of citations (34 vs. 1.5, P < 0.0001) and came from higher impact factor journals (5.17 vs. 3.55, P = 0.036). **Conclusions:** PubMed searches and Google Scholar searches often identify different articles. In this study, Google Scholar articles were more likely to be classified as relevant, had higher numbers of citations and were published in higher impact factor journals. The identification of frequently cited articles using Google Scholar for searches probably has value for initial literature searches.

Vasileiou M, Rowley J, Hartley, R. The e-book management framework: The management of e-books in academic libraries and its challenges. *Libr Info Sci Res*. 2012 Oct;34(4):282–91. doi: 10.1016/j.lisr.2012.06.005.

E-book management in academic libraries is examined, and a framework of the stages in the e-book management process is generated; the framework summarizes the key activities and associated issues and challenges for each stage. Academic libraries are one of the main markets for textbooks and other e-books. As such, the relationships that they forge with e-book vendors (publishers and aggregators), and the resolution of some of the challenges that they currently face in managing their collections of e-books, will have significant consequences for the adoption of e-books in learning. An interview-based study with a purposive sample of interviewees working as managers, subject librarians, metadata officers, and e-resources coordinators from seven academic libraries in the UK was conducted to investigate the libraries' experiences and perceptions of e-book management. The resultant e-book management framework identifies the processes associated with the management of e-books, and also offers insights into the challenges and issues associated with each stage. The stages in the framework are: collection development policy, budget, discovery, evaluation and selection, license negotiations, cataloging and delivery, marketing/promotion, user education, monitoring and reviewing, and renewals and cancellation.