Presentation Type
Lightning Talk
Location
Montvale Event Center, Spokane, WA
Start Date
16-10-2018 11:30 AM
End Date
16-10-2018 12:30 PM
Description
Public health campaigns suffer when the general public refuses to believe credible health information, such as around issues of vaccination or fluoridation. Public health marketing and media experts work to craft excellent messaging in ways that can be best heard by these audiences. However, the best messages will go unheard if individuals have already not developed critical thinking and information literacy skills over time. Librarians from all sectors (school libraries, public libraries, university libraries, and health sciences libraries) are key to helping people develop these information literacy skills. As such, impacts on library infrastructure and funding ultimately impact public health. The public health workforce should therefore make sure to include libraries and librarians in considerations of the systems and agencies that all work together to support shared improved population health goals. Librarians, both public librarians and librarians in health sciences settings, should make effort likewise to connect with people and other resources in the public health sector.
Recommended Citation
Zeigen, Laura, "Librarians: An Essential Part of the Public Health Workforce" (2018). Pacific Northwest Chapter of MLA Annual Meeting. 7.
https://digitalcommons.providence.org/pncmla/2018/0tuesday/7
Librarians: An Essential Part of the Public Health Workforce
Montvale Event Center, Spokane, WA
Public health campaigns suffer when the general public refuses to believe credible health information, such as around issues of vaccination or fluoridation. Public health marketing and media experts work to craft excellent messaging in ways that can be best heard by these audiences. However, the best messages will go unheard if individuals have already not developed critical thinking and information literacy skills over time. Librarians from all sectors (school libraries, public libraries, university libraries, and health sciences libraries) are key to helping people develop these information literacy skills. As such, impacts on library infrastructure and funding ultimately impact public health. The public health workforce should therefore make sure to include libraries and librarians in considerations of the systems and agencies that all work together to support shared improved population health goals. Librarians, both public librarians and librarians in health sciences settings, should make effort likewise to connect with people and other resources in the public health sector.
