Multi-year Consortial Award: Information Resources for Alaska's Healthcare Providers and Public Libraries: Outreach in the Last Frontier

The primary goal of the project is to improve the quality of life and health for citizens of Alaska by providing information outreach services to the healthcare workforce, especially in 95 areas, over a five-year period from May 2016 through April 2021. Additionally, Alaska Medical Library AML at University of Alaska Anchorage hopes to expand outreach to include public schools and public libraries to teach and promote health literacy in the communities we visit. Healthcare providers in 95 Alaska will 1 be able to access electronic resources and services of the National Library of Medicine NLM and the Alaska Medical Library AML, 2 be able to identify appropriate resources to meet their health information needs, and 3 know how to contact AML for health information issues and needs. For health literacy outreach at libraries and schools, participating community members will be able to identify reliable and appropriate health information sources to meet their needs. To determine whether these outcomes have been achieved, AML will 1 track volume of literature and information requests and 2 distribute via SurveyMonkey a survey in years two and five asking clients if their information needs are being met. To evaluate success of consumer instruction, participants will be asked to complete a brief 3-4 questions, anonymous survey. The project lead will travel and conduct onsite instruction, collaborate with other librarians to develop online training materials to supplement outreach visits, maintain contact with AML clients via newsletter and email, and continue collaborative outreach efforts with other organizations.