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Objective : To assess the current situation of access to information by health staff at selected central, provincial, district hospitals and health centres in Zambia. Methods : Government and non-governmental institutions were visited in the Lusaka Urban District and nine rural districts in the North-Western, Western and Central Provinces of Zambia in 2001. Thirty interviews were held with provincial and district health directors, medical doctors, nurses and clinical officers in district hospitals and rural and urban health centres. In 2006, a follow-up visit was undertaken to the health centres in the Lusaka Urban District in Lusaka Province and the Sesheke District in the Western Province. Results : There is limited access to health information for health workers in Zambia. In hospitals and health centres, where there is access, it is usually provided in an ad hoc manner without a central policy from the government. In all the places visited, there was also an overwhelming expressed need for different types of information relating to the professional or personal needs of health care workers. Conclusions : The study found that access to information was very poor. There were some excellent examples of local initiatives showing that, even under difficult financial and infrastructural circumstances, it was feasible to improve health workers' access to information by using low technology, information access initiatives. These existing local initiatives deserve to be scaled up, while new initiatives should be adopted to improve access to information in a much more structured way. Of paramount importance is the formulation and implementation of an information policy that will guarantee the provision of health information to Zambian health workers.

Objective: To document and describe the University of Zambia Medical library's responses to the fight against HIV ⁄AIDS in Zambia. Methods: The methodology adopted was a case study approach combined with an analysis of the literature such as annual reports and official documents. This was augmented by personal reflections of the author having worked at the Medical Library. Results: The University of Zambia Medical library has over the years instituted and implemented HIV ⁄AIDS information provision programmes that include the provision of information in various formats -print or electronic and, in addition, capacity building in HIV ⁄AIDS information literacy skills. Conclusion: A library's social responsibility calls for it to be part of national responses to crises that arise in society. As HIV ⁄AIDS has affected every aspect of Zambian society prevention, treatment, care and support there is an understanding that the library's role should be using the cri tical and strategic resource at its disposal -information -as part of their contribution to the fight against HIV ⁄AIDS. In this context, libraries should source, collect, organize and disseminate information on HIV ⁄AIDS in a way that is easily accessible to researchers, HIV ⁄AIDS programme implementation agencies and the ordinary public. Key Messages Implications for Practice dUtilize available opportunities and spaces to provide HIV ⁄AIDS information. Innovative LIS curricula that is responsive to everyday user needs.

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