Emerging technologies in health libraries:an overview

For the Saskatchewan Health Libraries Association (SHLA)

Dean Giustini, UBC biomedical librarian| dean.giustini@ubc.ca |May 2014

Objectives

– To provide an overview of emerging [information] technologies in health libraries, using different examples to highlight tools & how they are used by health librarians in Canada & the US

– To show you a range of emerging technologies /highlight trends and //open discussion about using these tools to deliver new library services

SOURCE

Cassidy ED. Higher education and emerging technologies: shifting trends in student usage. J Acad Librarianship 40.2 (2014): 124-133.

VALUE OF EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES

• Patient care• Innovative library services• Productivity, efficiency• New skills

…an emerging technology librarian is defined as an information professional whose “main role is to explore, evaluate, promote, and implement various emerging technologies”. The ETL works to identify, test and assess new and emerging technologies and report back to colleagues and their users.

Dale Storie, University of Alberta, JW Scott Health

Sciences Library

CHALLENGES

• So many apps, tools & technologies• How can we better share our skills &

knowledge?• Librarians can hold workshops / sessions

– Boule M. Mob rule learning: camps, unconferences and trashing the talking head. Cyber Age Books, 2011.

IFLA Marketing Award 2nd PrizeRQHR Caitlin Carter, Stephanie Sanger, Client Services Librarians https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSu9FvdX2CA

Caitlin Carter helping a patron

TEACHING & TECHNOLOGY

• Teaching with technology (SECTIONS) http://hlwiki.slais.ubc.ca/index.php/Teaching_with_technology

• Trends: online & flipped learning (and blended) learning• More interactive teaching & sharing of information• M-learning or mobile learning ‘on the go’

Co-streaming classes: a follow-up study in improving the user experience to better reach users. Med Ref Serv Q. 2011;30(4):349-56.

CREATING ONLINE TUTORIALS

• Screencasting • where on-screen computer activities are recorded for later

viewing• i.e., How to search Medline or search the library catalogue

• Most popular tools are Adobe Captivate and Camtasia• Newer screencasting technology

• Articulate Storyline e-learning with powerful authoring tools

• Jing & Screenr (free tools)

PRODUCTIVITY APPS• New apps make it easier to work on the go• Cloud-based storage tools

• Box • Dropbox• Google Drive • Microsoft’s OneDrive

• Evernote (note-taking)• Reference managers: Zotero, Mendeley, • Article readers: QxMD www.readbyqxmd.com ReadCube

http://www.readcube.com/libraries• Data management

• Sync.com https://www.sync.com/

OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE• Open source options for libraries http

://pubs.chla-absc.ca/doi/full/10.5596/c11-057 (blogs, wikis, content management systems, etc.)

• Vendors control products & we “buy in” to usage model• But switching to OSS, for some, means more “freedom” & control

– SubjectsPlus - http://www.subjectsplus.com/– Guide on the Side – DocFetcher (the open source desktop search tool)

USING MOBILES IN LIBRARIES• Use of mobiles popular in clinical settings in Canada• Students & clinicians obtain information on the go, anywhere• Apple’s iPhone & iPad are very popular with medical students & also

health professionals & librarians• Apple now has a major presence in medicine• Tablet computers are educational tools

– literature mentions circulating tablets, e-readers & phones

SELF-SERVICE TECH IN LIBRARIES• New technologies changing library services

• Reference services & collections• Ebooks, circulating materials• Teaching

• 3D printers create physical objects from digital files• Print bone, skin, complete organs• Potential to radically change medicine • Create medical objects i.e., biological tissue, blood vessels• Artificial organs & novel cyborg parts

• Falling costs make 3D printers inexpensive technology• Medical librarians should be familiar with it, wide-reaching impact

CURRENT AWARENESS• ALA Connect Emerging Technologies http://connect.ala.org/ • ALA TechSource http://alatechsource.org/• Almetrics Top 100 in 2013

http://www.altmetric.com/top100?utm_source=altmetricblog&utm_medium=online&utm_campaign=top%20100%20altmetric%20blog%20%E2%80%93%20not%20sure%20about%20fine-tuned%20search%20capabilities%20to%20discover%20area-specific%20articles

• CLA Emerging Technologies Working Group http://www.cla.ca/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Emerging_Technologies

• Pat Anderson, Emerging Technologies Librarian http://etechlib.wordpress.com/

• Guus van den Brekel, Medical Information Specialist at the University Medical Center Groningen http://hlwiki.slais.ubc.ca/index.php/Guus_van_den_Brekel

Guus van den Brekel:• …we are starting a new medical curriculum called G2020 based on the

concept of learning communities. We hope for a more important role for the library as the School is seen as a central digital "bookshelf" ... the medical school is planning to use is Flipboard to support themed learning periods (every 3 weeks a new topic)Can you tell me please Dean, do you know of medical education programmes' that use that or a similar tool? http://www.rug.nl/umcg/education/medicine/g2020-concept/

CURRENT AWARENESS• iMedicalApps.com http://www.imedicalapps.com/• Internet Librarian http://www.infotoday.com/il2013• JCHLA/ABSC Product Reviews Column • NMC Horizon Report

http://www.nmc.org/pdf/2014-nmc-horizon-report-he-EN.pdf• Quantified Self http://quantifiedself.com/ &

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantified_Self• Ted Talks: Ideas Worth Spreading http://www.ted.com• Top 100 Tools for Learning http://c4lpt.co.uk/top100tools/

See Appendix B – WEB-BASED PRODUCTIVITY TOOLS 2014