8.1 Involving users
Involving the people who use the resource centre in developing
the collection and services is an important way to ensure that
the resource centre continues to meet users’ needs. It
also helps to attract funding, because it shows that the resource
centre is responding to a demonstrated need.
Encouraging users or staff from the organisation to become
members of a resource centre advisory committee (see
Section 2.2: Advisory committees) is a good way to involve
these people. However, it is also important to encourage them
to understand what part the resource centre plays in their own
work, how it can help, and how their involvement in the resource
centre can enhance both their own work and that of the resource
centre. It can be useful to arrange meetings with groups of
staff to talk about the how the resource centre can assist them.
For example, the resource centre can help them to update their
knowledge and support their personal development, or help them
to complete a training programme or distance education course.
If possible, these meetings should be held in the resource centre.
It is useful to spend some time during the strategic planning
process (see Section 1.2: Strategic planning)
listing different types of users and others interested in the
resource centre, and then grouping those with similar interests
together, and considering how to involve the different groups.
For example, groups of users may include:
- health workers
- allied health workers
- rehabilitation workers
- community workers
- members of the local community
- educators and trainers
- students
- members of health committees and health teams
- programme/project staff
- government staff
- people from related sectors such as education and environment.
8.1.1 Involving key people
Within each group, it is worth identifying key people to promote
the resource centre as information ‘gatekeepers’. It
is also important to involve trainers and people linked with communities
based away from the resource centre.
Information gatekeepers It is useful to identify
individuals within each group who have a particular interest
in information, and encourage them to become champion resource
centre users, or information ‘gatekeepers’ for their
group (such as nurses, students or members of health teams).
They should be encouraged to identify and share information
with their group, encourage other members of the group to use
the resource centre, and help them to use the materials. They
should also gather information relevant to any team or committee
meetings that they participate in, to encourage the use of information
in decision-making.
Information gatekeepers also have the role of keeping the resource
centre staff up-to-date on information needs and topics of interest,
and highlighting which materials have been particularly useful
for which types of activities, meetings or user groups.
As well as having information gatekeepers, it is useful to
set up ‘journals clubs’. Each member of staff keeps
up-to-date with the contents of specific journals, and shares
this information with their colleagues.
Trainers It is important to involve those
responsible for training activities or continuing education.
Training methods that involve the use of resource centre materials
are increasingly being used for both initial training and continuing
education. These include, for example, problem-based learning
(where participants solve a problem or answer a question by
seeking out information and discussing it), and individual course
members taking it in turns to make presentations to colleagues.
Time could be allocated within official working hours for staff
to visit the resource centre, as part of staff development or
in-service training programmes. For example, they could visit
the resource centre on a rota system, if other duties permit.
Close working relationships between resource centre staff and
trainers and managers should be encouraged, to promote the use
of the resource centre as a learning strategy. Managers should
encourage staff to seek solutions to problems by looking for
information in the resource centre. They should promote the
resource centre as a source of information to help staff carry
out practical tasks and answer queries arising from ward round
or health visits.
Staff who are responsible for arranging training workshops
can encourage participants to continue learning afterwards,
by displaying examples of relevant materials during the workshop,
and encouraging participants to visit the resource centre to
find more materials.
People in the community People who work in
the community, outreach workers, or those who work for organisations
based some way from the resource centre, should be encouraged
to use the resource centre, and pass on information to the people
they work with. It is important to ask them about the information
needs of the groups that they are working with.
8.1.2 Ideas for involving individual users
Individual users can be involved in a number of ways, such as:
- asking them to give new users an introductory talk or reference
interview (see Section 7.4: Advisory
services), and encouraging them to ask questions
- asking users to help identify gaps in the collection and
suggest materials to add
- inviting users to take part in planning meetings
- asking users to distribute an annual report or regular newsletter
- this is particularly relevant to those who work in the community
or are members of teams or committees, as it helps to publicise
the resource centre more widely
- encouraging users to write down their comments on the services
provided and suggestions for how to improve them, and putting
these in a ‘suggestions box’ in the resource centre.
Giving introductory talks or reference interviews is especially
useful for people who are running training courses, as they can
then encourage participants to use the materials as part of their
training, and they themselves will develop a good knowledge of
what is available on the subject area. Carrying out reference
interviews with new students or staff also helps trainers to know
more about the current knowledge and information and training
needs of the user.
next: 8.2 Promoting the
resource centre
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