Health information support provided by professional associations in Canada

Abstract

Background: Healthcare practitioners in Alberta and across Canada have varying levels of access to information resources depending on their institutional and professional affiliations, yet access to current health information is critical for all. Objectives: To determine what information resources and services are provided by Albertan and Canadian professional health associations to their members. Methods: Representatives of professional colleges and associations were interviewed regarding information resources and services offered to members and perceptions of their members' information needs. Results: National-level associations are more likely to provide resources than provincial ones. There is a clear distinction between colleges and associations in terms of information offered: colleges provide regulatory information, while associations are responsible for provision of clinical information resources. Only half of the associations interviewed provide members with access to licensed databases, with cost being a major barrier. Conclusions: There is considerable variation in the number of electronic resources and the levels of information support provided by professional health associations in Alberta and Canada. Access and usage vary among the health professions. National licensing of resources or creation of a portal linking to freely available alternatives are potential options for increasing access and awareness.

Health sciences journals: an overview of outputs by Chinese authors

“…This evidence‐based information also enables health researchers from ML, HK and TW gain an insight into the strengths and weaknesses of health research of each region. Librarians can provide services such as creating health publication reports for health researchers and health research institutions, advise on where to publish, and identify potential research gaps . Further, it is suggested that health practitioners and health researchers should turn to librarians to access health information.…”

“…We found that the accumulated IF of articles from TW (2361.45) was much higher than those from ML (1281.65) and HK (904.29, v 2 = 4.014, P = 0.1344). However, articles from HK had the highest average IF (2.18), followed by ML (2.08), and TW (2.03; v 2 = 5.009, P = 0.0817; Table 1 21). The differences among the three regions were not statistically significant (v 2 = 0.8711, P = 0.6469; Fig.…”

Informing the public health

“…In this issue breadth of the Health Information and Libraries Journal we are pleased to publish contributions originating from Canada, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America …”

“…Mohammadhassanzadeh et al . consider the Iranian contribution to world literature on neuroscience whilst the health information support provided by professional associations in Canada is examined by Chatterley et al …”