Working towards the informationist

Abstract

Current information is a critical component of good healthcare. In this article we offer a definition of a new health professional, the 'informationist', whose function it is to ensure evidence-based health practice. We describe the literature and discussions that led to the proposal of this new role, and offer a description of the steps being taken to further elaborate this career. In particular, we describe efforts at Johns Hopkins to train informationists and informaticists and to offer services that lead to the integration of these and other information professionals into clinical care, public health and research.

Evolving academic library specialties

“…The informationist is perceived as a “technology expert for [their] team” (Rankin et al., , p. 198). The informatics dimension, which includes the ability to provide not only relevant electronic resources, but also information management software and “customized technology solutions” (Oliver & Roderer, , p. 44), is arguably a significant requirement that has not traditionally been associated with clinical librarians. To some degree the concept is anticipated in Abbott's () speculation about the potential for a hybrid role between librarianship, scholarship, and computer science.…”

The perioperative librarian: luxury or necessity?

“…Now, many academic medical libraries have begun integrating their services and staff into clinical settings through liaison programs. In these programs, librarians are assigned to specific departments, schools, and centers on the medical campus and offer outreach services such as literature searching, search alerts, one-on-one consultations, and group instruction on the use of library resources, and reference services [11 ].…”

WelServe: The DBMS for Capturing and Tracking Welch Medical Library's Embedded Informationist Service Delivery at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions

“…Operations work includes Welch Web site content updates, planning the Welch Classes and Lectures Series, and other work stemming from internal operations committees such as Action Planning, Communication, Internet Services and Research. The intent to use this database to record instances of direct service to JHMI community members as well as the work of ongoing project collaborations with user groups was present from the start in 2001, when the public services department first reconceptualized and reconfigured traditional reference services into a liaison librarian program (Oliver & Roderer, 2006), and the need for a more robust tool to track services interactions became apparent.…”