Barriers to the use of the library service amongst clinical staff in an acute hospital setting: an evaluation

Abstract

This article reports on research into the reasons why clinical staff in an acute hospital may be reluctant to use library services. The research was conducted by Gaynor Thomas at the Prince Philip Hospital in Llanelli in Wales as part of the dissertation she completed for an MSc in Economics. She graduated in July 2014 from Aberystwyth University and has co-written the article with Hugh Preston, her dissertation supervisor. The article summarises the key findings from the interviews undertaken as part of the research process and lists the resulting recommendations. Gaynor also highlights the initiatives which have been put in place with the express aim of removing barriers to use and encouraging clinical staff to make the most of the library which is, she argues, a time-saving resource. AM Clearly, the provision and use of quality information is vital within the health sector, and any barriers to obtaining this information could have a negative effect on patient health. This article reports a case study, undertaken at Prince Philip Hospital (PPH) in Llanelli, West Wales, which looked at the reasons why clinical staff there might not use the library facilities available, and what can be done to remove any barriers to use. Literature reviewA review of the literature suggests that the main barriers are time, accessibility and psychological factors. TimeClinicians do not have lots of spare time, and this coupled with 'information overload' and limited searching skills means that they will often choose the most rapid and convenient sources over evidence-based resources during clinical practice. 3,4

Library Jargon Creates Barriers for Potential Users of Health Library and Information Services

“…Continuous, consistent outreach is key to highlighting the services available for users (Thomas & Preston, 2016). Whilst this research alone cannot offer any easy solutions to the difficulties of language use, it does demonstrate that a lack of terminological understanding is something that health care library and information professionals must take into consideration when developing their outreach and promotional tools, and when speaking to service users.…”

“…In recent studies with health libraries, jargon has not featured as a priority subject, although barriers to outreach and uptake have been explored more generally. Thomas and Preston’s (2016) study around barriers to usage of a clinical library service highlighted three key factors which affected uptake of library services: time, accessibility and psychological factors which included ‘a gap between users’ perception of what the library is able to provide and the actual services available’ (Thomas & Preston, 2016).…”

The story continues: an overview of the ‘Dissertations into Practice’ feature

“…Gaynor Thomas conducted research into the reasons why clinical staff in an acute hospital may be reluctant to use library services. She located her research in the Prince Philip Hospital in Llanelli in Wales where she used interviews to collect her data.…”

Identifying and Classifying User Typologies Within a United Kingdom Hospital Library Setting: A Case Study

“…Health and hospital libraries are unique within the library sector with a very time-limited user base due to clinical demands. The users are primarily busy clinicians and nurses who have patient care responsibilities, who demand instant access to information and who have no available workstations within their workplace (Thomas & Preston, 2016) A large proportion of our users can be students or student doctors who appear to be using mobile technologies on the wards (Chamberlain, Elcock & Puligari, 2015). To satisfy the demands of these different users and engage with their current and future service needs, a short-life working party was set up within the National Health Service Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) Library Network.…”