I attended the “Elevating by Evaluating: Recognizing and Avoiding Implicit Bias in Consumer Health Information” immersion session on May 6th. This session, moderated by Terri Ottosen and Karen Grigg from UNC Chapel Hill with panelists Brenda Linares and Emma Heet, gave attendees the opportunity to explore the pervasiveness of implicit bias in healthcare and some of the roles librarians can have in recognizing and mitigating its effect in collections. Here is a summary of what was covered:
- Karen Grigg briefly reviewed the research on implicit bias in healthcare and shared why implicit bias matters to librarians.
- From a consumer health perspective, Brenda Linares shared how implicit bias can impact the care patients receive.
- Emma Heet described a pilot project in which college students evaluated patient handouts and brochures from local clinics for implicit bias.
- We broke into groups to practice applying a consumer health bias rubric to two articles provided by the session leaders.
- Group discussion and Q&A with the panelists.
I enjoyed the mix of theoretical and practical activities in this immersion session and feel that I will be able to think more critically about the consumer health resources I encounter and share with others in my role.
Find all MLA '19 Elevate blog posts here.
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