Librarian Consults Through Epic: New Opportunities for Collaboration and Education.

The Center for Families Resource Library at St. Louis Children's Hospital was integrated into the hospital's new Epic electronic medical records system in June 2018. The new system enables clinicians to request consults from the Center for Families Resource Library. The librarian can participate more actively and collaboratively with patient education by providing reliable health information and charting it as part of the patient's permanent record. The article reviews improvements over the former system and reveals an enhanced role for the health services librarian.

Use of emergency departments and primary care visits for asthma related conditions in the 3 years following an asthma education program.

BACKGROUND: This study examines changes in Primary Care Visits (PCVs) and Emergency Department Visits (EDVs) among 1918 patients with asthma who attended either two visits, one visit or were no-show referrals at the Dr. Patrick Gill Asthma Education Center (AEC) in Charlottetown Prince Edward Island (PEI) between January 1, 2003 and March 31, 2008 compared to 2799 controls selected from a list of PEI asthma patients developed for the Canadian Chronic Disease Surveillance System (CCDSS). METHODS: Hurdle regression was used to model counts of PCVs and negative binomial models were used to model counts of EDVs at 12 months prior to AEC contact and 0-1, >1 to 2 and >2 to 3 years after AEC contact. The PEI Research Board approved the project. RESULTS: No-show referrals had a significant increase in pediatric EDVs and PCVs in the first year after referral. The higher rates of PCVs and EDVs prior to contact with the AEC in patients referred to the AEC were reduced after contact with the AEC, although they remained significantly higher than the CCDSS controls. CONCLUSIONS: Compared to patients who attended the AEC, referred patients who did not attend the AEC did not achieve similar reductions in pediatric EDVs and PCVs in the first year after referral.

The Mobile School Health Information Initiative: Creating and Sustaining a Free Curriculum for P-12 Staff to Find Credible Health Information.

Three health sciences librarians created a curriculum to connect pre-school - grade 12 (P-12) personnel with credible health information. The course focuses on MedlinePlus® and KidsHealth.org®. They obtained external funding to deliver a revised curriculum for free throughout the metropolitan area. The funded portion of the project reached 93 people at 8 sites. Efforts to sustain the program beyond its funded cycle have reached another 33 people. Evaluations indicate the curriculum successfully equips staff to be health information champions within their schools. Participants report increased confidence locating credible health information. Written comments indicate both short-term gains and sustained use of the knowledge.

Empowering parents through asthma education.

Asthma is the most common chronic illness in children and has a significant impact on children and their families. Asthma management requires a multi-faceted approach, including an effective educational component. The purpose of this pilot study was to compare outcomes for parents who participated in empowering and traditional approaches to asthma education. Specific outcomes that were examined included (a) knowledge, (b) sense of control, (c) ability to make decisions, and (d) ability to provide care. The sample consisted of 57 families who participated in a multi-session educational intervention. Twenty-nine families participated in the empowering approach; the remaining 28 families received the traditional approach. Data were collected before, immediately after, and 6 months following the educational intervention. Significant differences were found regarding sense of control, ability to make decisions, and ability to provide care for parents who participated in the empowering approach. Both approaches resulted in increased knowledge. These findings have implications for asthma education and for the education of health professionals.