The document discusses the significance of libraries, particularly in relation to health information literacy, as vital components for education and research within society. It outlines the evolution of library services from basic to advanced offerings, emphasizing the importance of information literacy and its critical role in lifelong learning and effective decision-making. Moreover, it identifies challenges faced by medical libraries in Delhi and the need for improved information literacy programs to enhance user understanding and access to health information.

1. Sangeeta Narang
All India Institute of Medical Sciences
New Delhi

2. Library is a collection or group of collections of
books and/or other print or non-print materials
organized and maintained for use (reading,
consultation, study, research, etc.) (ODLIS)

3. Five Laws of Library and Information Science

4.  Libraries matter to us because knowledge matter to
all of us. The basic principal has increased in value
as we move into a world that is fuelled by
information.
 Communities thrive that are informed and
knowledgeable.
 Libraries are constituent to civilization and good
governance.
 Libraries are integral to research and educational
mission of the Institute.

5. Literacy is “ability to read and write” (National
Literacy Mission )
In present context-
Literacy is “using printed and written information
to function in society, to achieve one’s goals, and
to develop one’s knowledge and potential” (U.S.
National Center for Education Studies)

6. 6

7. Earlier librarians used to provide:
 Basic library orientation programs
 Basic services-purchasing, processing, issue-return, weeding of books,
membership etc.
With the Influx of technology librarians provide :
 Advanced library services –formulate policies-selection, purchase,
organize, manage, print/non-print materials, create repositories,
membership & disseminate valuable information etc. & facilitate them
 Teach information literacy to students etc.- Literature searching,
database searching, evidence based practice, PBL, copyright,
plagiarism , evaluation of resources
 Collaborate with academicians , administrators - develop guides and
tutorials and curriculum design

8. Outline- Part A
 What is information literacy (IL) ?
 Why IL is a critical competency for an institution &
workplace and for everyday life ?
 What does it mean in those contexts?
 What are the issues?
 Why IL is important ?
 What are IL standards ?

9. Information literacy is a set of abilities
enabling individuals to “recognize when
information is needed and have the ability
to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the
needed information” (American Library
Association, 1989)

10.  People lack awareness about importance of libraries and
information literacy courses.
 21st century workplace and everyday information
literacy are not well understood or sufficiently
researched
 Many people do not apply, share or transfer information
and skills to their successors

11. It means that information literate person should be
able to :
 Formulate precise, accurate question to the problem
 Locate, understand, organize, use and synthesize
information from variety of media and formats in order to
solve the problem
 Able to examine the credibility of information
 Able to monitor trends and readily adapt to them
Information literacy skills is must for an institutional success

12. It enables -
 Lifelong Learning
 Critical Thinking
 Problem-solving
 Information Fluency
 Informed Learning
 Analytical reasoning, oral and written communication
skills
 Social skills, the ability to listen, teamwork, collaborate

13. Information
skills
Values &
beliefs
Generic
skills
Discipline
Topic
INFORMATION LITERACY
Information literacy elements

14. Generic Skills Information skills Values & beliefs
Problem solving Information seeking Use information ethically
Collaboration &
teamwork
Information use Social responsibility
Critical thinking Information technology
fluency
Community participation

15. Information Literacy Standards

16. Recognize information need
Distinguish ways of addressing the gap
Construct strategies for locating
Locate and access
Compare and evaluate
Organize , apply and communicate
Synthesize and create
Novice Advanced Beginner Competent Proficient Expert
SEVEN PILLAR MODEL OF IL BY SCONUL

20. Information Literacy Skills
Universal Access Quality Information
REQUIREMENTS -

21.  Why do we need Health Information?
 Definition-Health Information Literacy
 About Health Science Libraries
 Health Information Literacy cycle
 Statement of Problem, Objectives, Scope, Methodology
 Changes in Information Landscape & the challenges
 Factors that influence Literacy- skills, tools, technology,
availability of resources, accessibility
 Outcome of this study

22.  The people’s life chances are strongly influenced
by both their access to and understanding of
various information resources,
 It applies to everyone. No one - rich or poor,
young or old - is exempt from the need to
understand information about their own health or
that of those for whom they are responsible.
 Even complex concepts and technical jargon can
be made accessible and intelligible to interested
lay people.

23. Health Information Literacy is the set of abilities needed to:
recognize a health information need; identify likely
information sources and use them to retrieve relevant
information; assess the quality of the information and its
applicability to a specific situation; and analyze,
understand, and use the information to make good health
decisions.(Medical Library Association )

24. Realize the
need of HI
Able to
identify,
locate HI
source
Able to
evaluate HI
resource
Use health
information
ethically
Synthesize
and share HI
Define
problem
Know search
strategies and
formulate a query
Creating and presenting
new information
Select, analyze the right
source & judge authenticity of
information, website
Organize information using
bibliographic management
software
HIL
Cycle
Health Information Literacy Cycle

25. They may be located in -
 Universities and medical Colleges
 Hospitals and postgraduate centers
 Private societies
 Government sponsored bodies
 Pharmaceutical companies
 Research Institutes
 Other educational establishments

26. Not much literature or statistics appear to be
available on information literacy coming from
medical librarians of Delhi/India except for the
sparse references or articles in learned journals,
books, conference-papers, pamphlets or
souvenirs.

27. Competencies to
Acceptance of change
Knowledge of user interaction with knowledge resources
Provide quality service
Be adoptive, flexible and resistant
Be resourceful
Excellent communication, constantly update personal knowledge base
Create awareness among the users
Be an information management strategist etc.
Knowledge & Skills about
resources (books, journals, i.e. resources, Internet)
IT facilities and resources (computer, online catalogues, databases,
websites, LANs etc.)
Financial (budget) and Human resources (skills for manpower training)
Benefits of information literacy

28.  To assess the information literacy skill levels amongst the library
users in select medical institutions of Delhi
 To find out the status of information literacy programs offered by
librarians in the medical institutions of Delhi
 To investigate the relationship between library users and librarians
in the development of the information literacy programs
 To relate these practices to the expectations and competencies
outlined in the Information Literacy Standards
Also,
 To find the status of medical librarians in terms of their pay scales,
staff strength and resources, services and trainings offered

29.  The project concentrates on selected medical
libraries located in Delhi.
 Delhi being the capital of India most of the
medical libraries including NML, ICMR, NIHFW
are situated here.
 Libraries located in Delhi give a representative
view about medical libraries of India

30.  This research uses quantitative method that involves the
use of questionnaires to know about the collection details,
technological infrastructure, services/facilities rendered
and implementation, of IL programs curriculum, training
and teaching ways adopted by librarians – Questionnaire-I
 Questionnaire-II given to the library users in the medical
institution of Delhi to determine their information literacy
skill level
 Data analysis and interpretation will be based on the
feedback received from the respondents.

31. Challenges/Observations
 Need trained manpower/ support staff
 Collection development policies, resource sharing
 Automation soft wares- Online catalogues;
 Develop full text databases of indigenous resources;
 Adopt to international standards, website creation;
 Explore ways and means to manage & preserve information
in a way that can sustain the future requirements of ICT;
 Enhance utilization of resources, giving better service
conditions, better physical facilities and networking
 Provide efficient library services to fulfill the demand for
right information at right time to the right user
 Data collection

32.  Information literacy skills assessment will be seen as a
crucial element. It will note gaps in research and raise
research interest among librarians and library users.
 It will help in remodeling the curriculum of medical
education to involve more tools and techniques for
enhancing health information literacy.
 It will make realizations towards developing collective
programs, strengthening library & health programs &
communities.

33.  Ivanitskaya L, O’Boyle, I and Casey , AM Health information literacy and
competencies of information age students: results from the
interactive online research readiness self-assessment (RRSA) J Med
Internet Res. Apr-Jun; 8(2): 2006 Available at
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1550696/
 Majid M, Foo S, Luyt B, Zhang X, Leng Y, Yun-Ke C, Mokhtar IA Adopting
evidence-based practice in clinical decision making: nurses’
perceptions, knowledge, and barriers J Med Libr Assoc. Jul;99(3):2011
Available at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3133901/
 Candy, Philip C Running amok with a chainsaw: A personal
perspective on Information Literacy (in Three Acts)
Director of Education, Training and Development
NHS Connecting for Health [ power point slides]