Demonstrating the value and impact of a hospital library service is an on-going challenge for managers.
Members of the Quality Panel of the UK NHS Librarians’ Group (the Library and Knowledge Development Network) have carried out a systematic review of research studies published up to September 2003. Studies looking at the impact of library services run by on-site librarians (including clinical librarian projects) have been included with at least one outcome measure relating to health benefits for patients or members of the public, and/or to time saved by health professionals.
There is clearly evidence that health care libraries can influence patient outcomes in various ways; Rapid diagnosis, appropriate investigation(s) and choice of drug(s), reduced length of stay, avoiding hospital acquired infection, avoiding additional outpatient visits and so on. Clinical librarian and other library services can also result in savings of health professionals’ time. Much of this recent research has been based on case-studies, including critical event analyses, and cross-sectional surveys. These are the most practical study methods but the available research is of variable quality and does not always minimise the potential for bias. It is also becoming clear that researchers should look for quantitative and qualitative data from a number of sources to obtain a reliable estimate of true impact.
One outcome of the review will be the development of a pragmatic method of evaluation, based on best practice, for health care libraries to obtain an unbiased measure of the value and impact of their service and to guide improvements. This survey will be piloted in settings in the UK and Australia early in 2004 and the evolving methodology will be presented at the meeting.
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