The Health Sciences Librarian Research Guide

Health sciences librarians engaging in research gain knowledge for successful practice and build research collaborations with colleagues in and out of the profession. The research resources and tools in these guides will help librarians use, create, and apply evidence in daily practice and in supporting quality health care. Included in these guides are valuable research resources, tools and articles that will help both aspiring and experienced health information professionals learn more about the research process, common research methods, effective design and assessment strategies, funding and networking opportunities, and much more.

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Evidence-Based Librarianship Resources

These resources provide support for incorporating the principles of evidence-based library and information practice (EBLIP) into the everyday work of librarians. Resources include general library research resources, as well as resources on library assessment, program evaluation, and evidence-based librarianship.

	Resource
	LARKS LARKS (Librarian and Researcher Knowledge Space) is the American Library Association's resource for researchers of all levels of experience in school, academic, and public libraries. The website provides a wide array of references, tips, tools, and examples for all librarians interested in research.
	The Researching Librarian A website with general librarian research resources, including databases, funding sources, journals, statistics, tools, news, and conference proceedings.
	Library Research Service: Resources Sponsored by the Library Research Service, an IMLS-funded project of the Colorado State Library, these resources will help librarians get started conducting their own research.
	Planning and Evaluating Health Information Outreach Projects This calculator helps libraries demonstrate to their administrations how much money the library helps the organization save by estimating the cost of resources and services without the presence of a library. Also provides links to two other calculators that estimate the cost of books and journals and the cost of databases.
	Green, Ravonne A. Case Study Research: A Program Evaluation Guide for Librarians. Santa Barbara, Calif: Libraries Unlimited, 2011. This calculator helps libraries demonstrate to their administrations how much money the library helps the organization save by estimating the cost of resources and services without the presence of a library. Also provides links to two other calculators that estimate the cost of books and journals and the cost of databases.
	Koufogiannakis, D., & Brettle, A. (2016). Being evidence based in library and information practice. Chicago: Neal-Schuman, an imprint of the American Library Association, 2016. This calculator helps libraries demonstrate to their administrations how much money the library helps the organization save by estimating the cost of resources and services without the presence of a library. Also provides links to two other calculators that estimate the cost of books and journals and the cost of databases.
	SPEC Kit 303: Library Assessment This SPEC Kit provides a starting point for those seeking to develop a library assessment program at their own institutions.This SPEC Kit includes documentation from respondents in the form of job descriptions, assessment mission statements, plans, reports, Web sites, and an extensive bibliography on library assessment.
	LibQUAL+ The LibQUAL+ suite of services center around a widely used web-based survey, developed by the Association of Research Libraries, to assess the quality of library services
	Valuing Library Services Calculator Developed by the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, this calculator helps libraries demonstrate to their administrations how much money the library helps the organization save by estimating the cost of resources and services without the presence of a library. Also provides links to two other calculators that estimate the cost of books and journals and the cost of databases.

Health Science Research Resources

These resources help librarians engage in research with their users to contribute to positive patient outcomes, advance scientific research, and improve population health. Resources include information on expert searching, systematic reviews, research impact, and data management.

	Resource
	ITHS: Institute of Translational Health Sciences ITHS offers resources to researchers that increase the speed at which scientific discoveries can be translated into treatments that improve health outcomes for patients and communities.
	Measurement Tools/Research Instruments LibGuide This page from a University of Washington Health Sciences Library LibGuide gives tips for searching traditional literature databases for instruments, as well as links to instrument-specific resources.
	Finding the Evidence: Literature Searching Tools in Support of Systematic Reviews The Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health offers a grey literature checklist, search filters created by CADTH, and a checklist for developing search strategies, as well as a bibliography of related papers and presentations to assist librarians offering systematic review services.
	National Research Council (U.S.)., & Institute of Medicine (U.S.). (2011). Finding what works in health care: Standards for systematic reviews. Washington, DC: National Academies Press. A report from the National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine) that recommends standards for systematic reviews of the comparative effectiveness of medical http://www.nationalacademies.org/hmd/Reports/2011/Finding-What-Works-in-Health-Care-Standards-for-Systematic-Reviews.aspxor surgical interventions.
	Cochrane Information Retrieval Methods Group A list of databases, journal articles, and web pages focused on improving the methods of the search portion of systematic reviews.
	Systematic Review Toolbox A web-based catalogue of tools that support the systematic review process across multiple domains, with a variety of search mechanisms, that is updated regularly.
	Becker Medical Library Model for Assessment of Research Impact The Becker Medical Library Model for Assessment of Research Impact model is a framework for tracking diffusion of research outputs and activities to locate indicators that demonstrate evidence of biomedical research impact. It is intended to be used as a supplement to publication analysis.
	DMP Tool This tool guides grant applicants through the process of creating a data management plan. Many institutions can access DMPTool services and personal accounts can also be created for those without a university affiliation.
	ICPSR Data Management Plans Many federal funding agencies, including NIH and most recently NSF, are requiring that grant applications contain data management plans for projects involving data collection. To support researchers in meeting this requirement, ICPSR is providing guidance on creating such plans for social sciences data.
	NIH Data Sharing Policies This table lists data sharing policies in effect at NIH, including policies at the NIH, IC, division, and program levels that apply to broad sets of investigators and data.
	Health Informatics for Medical Librarians Published by the American Library Association, this book is an introductory guide to health informatics that will provide medical librarians with background knowledge knowledge to help clarify their role as it relates to health informatics.

Planning Your Research Project

Research is a multi-stage process with the goal of answering a question using objectivity. The process also systematically collecting and analyzing data for the purposes of basing future decisions on this evidence. This process is used in all research and evaluation projects.

These resources support the preliminary steps in the research process, providing information on selecting a research topic, study design and methods, and research glossaries and definitions. These resources are helpful to librarians who are starting the process of conducting their own research and evaluation projects.

	Resource
	Sage Research Methods Project Planner This walk through tool is designed to guide novice researchers through the stages of planning a research project, from the philosophical foundations through the dissemination of results. The tool includes links to paid content, but the majority of essential content is available for free.
	Pickard, A. J., & Childs, S. (2013). Research methods in information. Chicago: Neal-Schuman The first book to focus entirely on the needs of the information and communications community, it guides the would-be researcher through the variety of possibilities open to them under the heading "research" and provides students with the confidence to embark on their dissertations. The focus here is on the 'doing' and although the philosophy and theory of research is explored to provide context, this is essentially a practical exploration of the whole research process with each chapter fully supported by examples and exercises tried and tested over a whole teaching career.
	Wildemuth, B. M. (2016). Applications of Social Research Methods to Questions in Information and Library Science This textbook illustrates research methods for library and information science, describing the most appropriate approaches to a question. It comprehensively covers all research methods (qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods) used in library and information science, discussing their strengths, weaknesses, and biases.
	HEALER Research Toolkit This toolkit is intended to help librarians in the health sector to carry out research from small-scale, local service evaluation to much more formal research. The toolkit is intended as a starting point for those wishing to undertake a research project.
	Being Evidence Based in Library and Information Practice The book provides the background to evidence-based library and information practice (EBLIP), an overview of EBLIP developments, examples of successful implementations, and includes a useful model for its application in the workplace.

Conducting Research

These resources support the process of conducting research, including data collection via surveys or other instruments, data analysis software and techniques, and the practical application of research methods. These resources are more practical and detail-oriented than the more theoretical design resources on the Planning Your Research Project section above.

	Resource
	Bibliography of Research Method Texts Sponsored by the ACRL Instruction Section Research and Scholarship Committee, the selective bibliography provides texts on research methods relevant to library and information science. The list is reviewed and updates every three years.
	Research Methods Library of Alexandria Research Methods Library of Alexandria is a comprehensive collection of research methods and includes free video and slide lectures on research-related topics.
	Connaway, L. S., & Powell, R. R. (2010). Basic research methods for librarians. Santa Barbara, Calif: Libraries Unlimited This book is aimed at information science students, professionals, and practicing librarians. The book covers research methods that would likely apply to library science. How to design, conduct, and publish the results of the research is reviewed. Included is also a chapter on analysis.
	Research Methods Knowledge Base This website provides information on quantitative and qualitative methods and can be used in a variety of disciplines. The Research Methods Knowledge Base covers everything from the development of a research question to the writing of a final report, describing both practical and technical issues of sampling, measurement, design, and analysis.
	NVivo A purchased software product that is helpful for qualitative data analysis, such as coding interview transcripts.
	MAXQDA MAXQDA is professional software for qualitative and mixed methods data analysis for Windows and Mac. Analyze interviews, reports, tables, online surveys, focus groups, videos, audio files, literature, images, and more. Easily organize and categorize any kind of unstructured data, search and retrieve information, test theories and create impressive illustrations and reports. MAXQDA has transcription tools onboard and multimedia functionality to directly analyze all kinds of media files. Outstanding mixed methods features allow for a direct connection of standardized quantitative data to your qualitative information.
	IBM SPSS Statistics IBM SPSS Statistics is an integrated family of products that helps to address the entire analytical process, from planning and data collection to analysis, reporting and deployment.

Research Funding, Dissemination, and Participant Protection

These resources support the process to apply for grants and other funding for research projects, the process of the Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval, the protection of research participants, and the disseminating your research results through publishing and presenting at conferences.

	Resource
	Community Tool Box: Applying for a Grant The Community Tool Box resource is more generally focused on non-profit community organizations, but this section of its resource on grant applications is a great starting place for new researchers.
	MacKellar, Pamela H, Stephanie K. Gerding, and Susan Hildreth. Winning Grants: A How-to-Do-It Manual for Librarians., 2017 Authors provide a manual for developing a successful grant proposal for libraries. The authors emphasize the importance of library planning as the critical first step in writing a successful grant.
	MLA Sponsored Grants, Scholarships, and Fellowships A list of funding opportunities sponsored by the Medical Library Association for a variety of activities, including continuing education, attending annual conferences, and research projects.
	Funding Opportunities This NN/LM page lists funding opportunities available to network members from all the NN/LM regional programs, which can be filtered by region and category. It also provides useful links to the extramural programs of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) that support information management. Additionally, the site provides links to NIH funding opportunities, as well as other funding opportunities of interest to health sciences librarians and information on writing grant proposals.

	Resource
	PubMed PubReMiner This web-based tool will take a PubMed search strategy and analyze the search results, generating frequency tables for journals, authors, titles, abstracts, and other metadata. Useful for developing researcher interest profiles, finding a journal to publish in, or finding experts in a particular field.
	Designing Conference Posters This is likely the ultimate resource for posters – filled with do’s and don’ts and some very practical advice on posters as well as some information only learned from “walking the walk.” The references are also terrific. Colin Purrington’s online presence has many hints, templates, and opinions that can make any poster presenter even better.
	The 38 Best Tools for Data Visualization This recent list of tools for data visualization includes standards like Tableau as well as less well-known resources like MIT's open source Exhibit interactive map-making tool. Each resource comes with a description of the tools capabilities and ease of use.
	SPARC Data Sharing Policies This community resource for tracking, comparing, and understanding the research data sharing policies of both current and future U.S. federal funders is a joint project of SPARC & Johns Hopkins University Libraries.

	Resource
	Office for Human Research Protections The Office “provides leadership in the protection of the rights, welfare, and wellbeing of subjects involved in research … by providing clarification and guidance, developing educational programs and materials, maintaining regulatory oversight, and providing advice on ethical and regulatory issues in biomedical and social-behavioral research.”
	Code of Federal Regulations: Elements of Informed Consent This document includes a list of all of the legally-recognized elements of informed consent and can act as a useful checklist when applying for IRB approval.
	Does Your Project Need IRB Approval? Simple guidelines for beginning researchers to determine whether a particular research project requires IRB approval.
	CITI Program CITI Program is a leading provider of research ethics, compliance, and professional development education. Topics of online courses include research ethics, compliance, and professional development education on a number of subjects for various audiences, including researchers, students and faculty; IRB members; research administrators; institutional biosafety committee members; and IACUC members. Librarians who are affiliated with a subscribing organization can take CITI Program courses assigned to them by their organization for free. Those who are not affiliated with a subscribing organization can purchase courses as independent learners.

Professional Development

These resources support librarians looking to grow their skill sets, meet others with similar research interests, and learn from experienced librarian researchers in the field.

	Resource
	MLA Research Mentoring Program The MLA Research Section Mentoring Program pairs librarians with research experience with librarians who are starting the research process. Mentors have a passion for research and experience in this field. Mentees are librarians who are new to research or a research area and are seeking to find someone with research expertise to guide them through the process. Participants must be MLA members.
	American Library Association Mentoring Resources Comprehensive list of the mentoring programs and resources available through the American Library Association and their affiliates.

	Resource
	NN/LM Professional Development This web page is a gateway to the in-person and online training and educational resources offered by the National Network of Libraries of Medicine. It includes links to training opportunities on Assessment/Evaluation, Consumer Health, Outreach/Advocacy, Technology, and many other topics.
	Institute for Research Design in Librarianship This institute, held annually in the summer, offers intensive research instruction and is geared for academic and research librarians. Participants receive expert instruction on research design and small-group and one-on-one assistance in revising their research proposals.
	Canadian Association of Research Libraries Librarians’ Research Institute Sponsored by the Canadian Association of Research Libraries, the Librarians' Research Institute provides practicing academic librarians in Canada an opportunity to immerse themselves in sustained conversations and activities related to scholarly research, inquiry, and publishing. Participants are provided with an intensive workshop experience, intended to take their current research projects to the next level (a conference paper to an article; an article to a larger project; several articles to a grant, etc.), as well as provide librarians with the opportunity to meet other researching librarians from across Canada.
	National Library of Medicine Biomedical Informatics Course Co-hosted by Augusta University’s Robert B. Greenblatt Library and the National Library of Medicine, this week-long in-person survey course familiarizes individuals with the application of, and policies related to, computer technologies and information science in biomedicine and health care.
	Jankowski, Terry A. Expert Searching in the Google Age. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2016 The book provides general and detailed information about the literature search process. It is a practical and useful guide to help health sciences librarians develop skills as expert searcher.

Population-Specific Resources

While we all fall under the umbrella of health science librarians, there are a variety of positions and roles that health science librarians can hold, which require different skill sets. Additionally, as we journey through our careers as health science librarians, we require different kinds of support as we pursue research.

These resources support four major types of health science librarians: Academic Health Librarians, Corporate/Solo Librarians, Hospital Librarians, and Library School Students/New Librarians.

	Resource
	HLWIKI International: Research Portal for Academic Librarians A wiki-style page providing an introduction to the concept of medical librarian research, common barriers to research that librarians are faced with, and an extensive list of resources for those interested in pursuing research.
	The Journal of Academic Librarianship The Journal of Academic Librarianship, an international and refereed journal, publishes articles that focus on problems and issues germane to college and university libraries. JAL provides a forum for authors to present research findings and, where applicable, their practical applications and significance; analyze policies, practices, issues, and trends; speculate about the future of academic librarianship; and present analytical bibliographic essays and philosophical treatises.
	Annual Statistics of Medical School Libraries in the United States and Canada The American Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries produces annual statistics with comparative data on collections, expenditures, personnel, and services in medical school libraries in the United States and Canada.
	Association of Research Libraries: Academic Health Sciences Library Statistics The ARL provides statistical data on collections, expenditures, personnel, and services in health sciences libraries that are at ARL member institutions in the United States and Canada.
	Academic Writing Librarians This blog was created by Helen Fallon, an academic librarian, as a means to support librarians writing for publication. There are links to resources as well as posts of announcements of calls for papers, book chapters, and other publications.
	A Guideline for the Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure of Academic Librarians These guidelines for appointment, promotion, and tenure of academic librarians were reviewed and revised in 2009-2010 by members of the ACRL Committee on the Status of Academic Librarians. They were approved at the ALA Annual Conference in June 2010.
	Academic Librarian Status Wiki The Academic-Librarian-Status is a wiki page devoted to the professional status of academic librarians in the United States. There is a directory of librarians’ status at institutions on the page indicating status of librarians as faculty, tenure, tenure-like, professional, or mix.
	10 Practical Tips for Compiling Your Promotion or Tenure File A summary of some useful tips for the academic librarian undergoing the promotion and tenure process.
	Hollister, Christopher V. Handbook of Academic Writing for Librarians., 2014 This book provides an overview of scholarly writing for librarians who wish to publish in the professional literature.

	Resource
	SLA Solo Librarians Division Additional professional organization resources geared towards solo librarians.
	MLA Health Association and Corporate Libraries Section A section of the Medical Library Association devoted to health science librarians working in corporate or industry positions, which are often solo positions.
	SLA Research This page includes of list of studies, grant projects, and other work done by SLA members. Many of the examples are relevant to corporate librarians.

	Resource
	Hospital Librarian’s Power Toolkit LibGuide-style resource with links to websites, books, articles, statistics, and training relevant to Hospital Librarians.
	Journal of Hospital Librarianship The Journal of Hospital Librarianship focuses on issues that are of vital interest and concern to hospital librarians. The journal provides a forum for research strategies and reporting research results and quality improvement projects in hospital library settings, discussions of technological challenges and solutions, and articles on health care administration issues which have implications for hospital librarians such as managed care health care economics, hospital mergers, as well as patient safety and consumer health information.

	Resource
	Pagowsky, Nicole, and Miriam E. Rigby. The Librarian Stereotype: Deconstructing Perceptions and Presentations of Information Work. Chicago: ACRL, A division of ALA, 2014 Essays from different perspectives about perceptions of librarianship and information science. A useful resource for new librarians seeking to collaborate with non-librarian faculty and researchers.
	Lawal, Ibironke O. Library and Information Science Research in the 21st Century: a Guide for Practising Librarians and Students. Oxford: Chandos, 2009 The first of its kind, this book provides not only a theoretically informed research guide, but also draws attention to areas of potential research in Library and Information Science. It explores the nexus of theory and practice and offers suggestions for collaborative projects. The clear text, simple style and rich content make the book an invaluable resource for students, scholars and practicing librarians, as well as the general reader who may be interested in library and information science research.