Radical collaboration Medical Librarians, Student Scholarship Competencies and Academic Learning Communities in the 21st Century Rebecca raworth, university of victoria Lindsay alcock, memorial university of newfoundland HEALTH SCIENCES LIBRARY www.library.mun.ca/hsl

Objective To determine librarians’ roles in student learning communities and in facilitating student achievement of research and research 2.0 competencies in the undergraduate medical curriculum HEALTH SCIENCES LIBRARY www.library.mun.ca/hsl

Questions How many librarians in are mentors (or equivalent) in undergrad academic learning communities? How are librarians helping UG med students in achieving scholarship/research/info lit competencies? How do Deans perceive librarians’ roles in helping students achieve scholarship and research competencies?

Design Online Survey Librarians UGME Deans Literature search to inform survey Survey validated Ethics approval obtained from University of Victoria and Memorial University of Newfoundland

Setting AAMC accredited Canadian and American medical schools Undergraduate medical education exclusively

Study population Librarians associated with undergraduate medical school programs in Canada and the United States Deans (or equivalent) of undergraduate medical school programs in Canada and the United States

Methods Invitation to participate via emails to listservs Email includes introduction, implied consent, and link to survey Survey open for 3 weeks Option for follow-up interviews Data downloaded, cleaned and analyzed

Response Rates Librarians 117 responses 54 incomplete 63 complete 79% USA 19% Canada 2% blank Deans zero

Academic Learning Communities “…intentionally developed groups that aim to enhance students’ medical school experience, deliver curriculum, and/or provide student support services, and foster among students a higher level of student engagement and intellectual interaction with peers, faculty, curriculum, and/or their own individual intellectual development to maximize learning.”

Schools with ALCs? Yes: 53% Not yet: 22% Don’t know: 21% Blank: 1% Also referred to as: Families Houses Communities Colleges Educators for CARE Societies Teams

Primary goals of ALCs Establish academic support networks Fostering meaningful relationships Professionalism Social Engagement in scholarship activities Student support services Interprofessional teamwork Academic mentorship

Librarians assigned as ALC members? “House librarian” i.e. on demand Instruction/Seminars Mentor in SLC group / program leader Volunteer Informal mentor Reference librarians for learning communities for first year students

Student scholarship “…the appraisal, creation, dissemination, application and translation of medical knowledge, using both print and digital means”

Scholarship activities 71%: current dedicated curricular time 52% planned dedicated curricular time in the near future (37% blank) Knowledge creation Critical appraisal Research design Information/data use Knowledge management Research papers

Formal mentorship (70% no) “regular in person meetings” Office consults Seminar teaching “student will come learn how to search PubMed” Analysis of literature searches “evaluate search assignments” Consults via email Skype

Some comments “our librarian faculty do have formal interactions with medical students…include teaching within the curriculum, facilitating PBL, mentoring students re: their research projects…” “…I do not know all the intricacies of the scholarship component of the undergraduate medical program.” “…our roles and activities are still evolving” “…when the learning communities first began it was a slow process to get us…fully ‘on the radar’…five years into the program it has now become very effective” “…librarians are imbedded in various learning community activities, e.g. surgery clerkships, clinical medical librarian activities…OSCE question development”

Initial thoughts ALCs are not standard in UGME Inconsistent attitude toward librarian involvement Varying definitions of ALCs Varying definitions of formal and informal Part of regular responsibilities? Assigned directly to ALCs? Librarians involved in many areas of scholarship Challenges to scholarship facilitation Lack of curriculum time Lack of faculty/student buy-in Evaluation techniques Lack of support

Thanks.