Making an impact: the new 2024 Medical Library Association research agenda.

Objective: This research project sought to identify those subject areas that leaders and researcher members of the Medical Library Association (MLA) determined to be of greatest importance for research investigation. It updates two previous studies conducted in 2008 and 2011.

Methods: The project involved a three-step Delphi process aimed at collecting the most important and researchable questions facing the health sciences librarianship profession.

Learning while doing: program evaluation of the Medical Library Association Systematic Review Project.

Objectives: The Medical Library Association (MLA) Systematic Review Project aims to conduct systematic reviews to identify the state of knowledge and research gaps for fifteen top-ranked questions in the profession. In 2013, fifteen volunteer-driven teams were recruited to conduct the systematic reviews. The authors investigated the experiences of participants in this large-scale, volunteer-driven approach to answering priority research questions and fostering professional growth among health sciences librarians.

A study in usability: redesigning a health sciences library's mobile site.

A mobile site redesign was conducted at a medium-sized academic health sciences library with the goal of creating a site that meets the mobile information needs of its users. The redesign phases included (1) needs assessment, (2) usability testing, and (3) site design. The survey results showed that Apple devices were the most prevalent; the most desirable activities performed on a mobile site were searching for articles, accessing full-text articles and e-books, searching databases, and searching the catalog.

Defining the Medical Library Association research agenda: methodology and final results from a consensus process.

Objective: Using a group consensus methodology, the research sought to generate a list of the twelve to fifteen most important and answerable research questions in health sciences librarianship as part of a broader effort to implement the new Medical Library Association (MLA) research policy.

Methods: The delphi method was used. The committee distributed a brief survey to all estimated 827 MLA leaders and 237 MLA Research Section members, requesting they submit what they considered to be the most important and answerable research questions facing the profession.

Approaching usability: a study of an academic health sciences library web site.

A usability study was conducted at a medium-sized academic health sciences library with the goal of providing data to inform the future redesign of the library's Web page. A two-stage approach was used: (1) A preliminary survey designed to identify common tasks and issues on which to focus, and (2) usability testing. Responses to the survey indicated general satisfaction with the site and suggested areas for testing.

Baseline assessment of public health informatics competencies in two Hudson Valley health departments.

Information technology has the capability to improve the way public health is practiced. Realization of this potential is possible only with a workforce ready to utilize these technologies. This project team assessed informatics competencies of employees in two county departments of health.

Asked and answered--online: how two medical libraries are using OCLC's QuestionPoint to answer reference questions.

This paper imparts the experiences of two similar but unaffiliated medical libraries that use QuestionPoint, OCLC's collaborative virtual reference product. The authors introduce the major features of QuestionPoint, with particular emphasis on its asynchronous e-mail reference service. After presenting how both libraries have employed this service in their respective environments, the paper examines the quantity and quality of reference questions submitted via QuestionPoint.