Shah C, Parmar HD.
Case study: library usage at an Indian medical college.
Health Info Libr J. 2011 Mar;28(1):77-81.
The article discusses library usage in a medical school in a small town (Bhavnagar). It covers the use of a physical collection, since computers were added to the library after this research was completed. The authors analyze the usage pattern and compare it to other studies in India. They mention that though majority were satisfied with the library there is a need for more effort towards self directed learning through the use of library resources. They conclude that librarians can do more to increase library usage, and that the administration has agreed to provide more “reference books”
It is very interesting that a study of this nature has been done in a small town. In QMed’s interactions with doctors/students we often hear comments ranging from – “We don’t feel the need for a library, thanks to the Internet” to “We do not get most things free on the Internet”. The common factor however for both is that they do not think of approaching their library! We believe, and the article mentions the same thing in different words – that many students and health professionals do not know what they can get or expect from their library. There is an urgent need for sensitization in this regard. We believe that in addition to providing more resources, librarians should be training users in how they get the most out of their library. We hope many more institutions take up similar research, and make a positive change to ensure that their library budgets and information resources are well exploited.
Appeared in QMedCONNECT Vol 4, Issue 8, Aug 2011
