The role of health science librarians in preparing tomorrow’s doctors to manage information

Abstract

For much of this century medical schools tended to be rather closed institutions, defending their isolation from social changes on the grounds that the content and methods of education could only be determined by biomedical scientists and clinicians. 1 In the closing years of the 20th century, this position seems less defensible as professional bodies and associations seek to reassure the public that doctors are accountable and responsive to the needs of society. 2,3 Following the publication of the General Medical Council (GMC) Report 'Tomorrow's Doctors' 4 in 1993, medical schools across the UK have been reviewing their curricula, their learning resources and their teaching methods to ensure that they are providing the type of education the GMC demands. By the year 2000, all UK medical schools will have implemented a new curriculum with explicit aims and learning objectives, new assessment methods, new forms of delivering the curriculum and new approaches to teaching and learning. In parallel with these changes aimed at producing more independent, life-long learners, there has been major investment in IT infrastructure to support new methods of teaching and learning. 5 Developments in the National Health Service (NHS) have created additional reasons for rethinking and reforming medical education. From the point of view of those responsible for health informatics programmes, the 1990 and 1998 NHS information strategies have provided a vision as to how information can contribute to better patient care and a more effective health service. To achieve the outcomes specified in Information for Health6 educational providers must examine the opportunities and incentives students have to develop knowledge, skills and positive attitudes in relation to the information component of their profession. It was against this backdrop of change that the Council of Heads of Medical Schools, in consultation with the Education and Training Programme in IM&T, commissioned a survey of informatics teaching in UK medical schools to provide evidence as to what medical schools are doing to implement the GMC recommendations in the area of health informatics. Aims The purpose of the survey was to provide baseline data as to what medical schools are doing to prepare students to collect, share and use information, for research, education and patient care. The expectation was that these findings could be used in the future to monitor the impact of the new medical curricula on the teaching of informatics skills. Methods For reasons of time and resources, it was decided to restrict the data collection to the medical schools in London (n = 7) and Scotland (n = 4). Following the recent reorganization of London medical schools, there are now 25 medical schools in the UK, so the survey encompassed 44% of all schools. Approval was sought from the undergraduate deans and postgraduate tutors of all the schools to conduct interviews with librarians, tutors, clinicians and preregistration house officers (PRHOs). All schools agreed to participate on the understanding that the results would be reported in an anonymous fashion and the research protocol would be made available in advance of the site visits. In all, 71 people were interviewed, seven of whom were librarians. Table 1 indicates the roles of the respondents and the numbers in each category.