J Michael Homan1. 1. Mayo Clinic Libraries, Mayo Clinic, 200 First Street SW, Rochester, MN 55905, USA. homan@mayo.edu
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The 2009 Janet Doe Lecture reflects on the continuing value and increasing return on investment of librarian-mediated services in the constantly evolving digital ecology and complex knowledge environment of the health sciences. SETTING: The interrelationship of knowledge, decision making based on knowledge, technology used to access and retrieve knowledge, and the important linkage roles of expert librarian intermediaries is examined. METHODOLOGY: Professional experiences from 1969 to 2009, occurring during a time of unprecedented changes in the digital ecology of librarianship, are the base on which the evolving role and value of librarians as knowledge coaches and expert intermediaries are examined. CONCLUSION: Librarian-mediated services linking knowledge and critical decision making in health care have become more valuable than ever as technology continues to reshape an increasingly complex knowledge environment.
OBJECTIVE: The 2009 Janet Doe Lecture reflects on the continuing value and increasing return on investment of librarian-mediated services in the constantly evolving digital ecology and complex knowledge environment of the health sciences. SETTING: The interrelationship of knowledge, decision making based on knowledge, technology used to access and retrieve knowledge, and the important linkage roles of expert librarian intermediaries is examined. METHODOLOGY: Professional experiences from 1969 to 2009, occurring during a time of unprecedented changes in the digital ecology of librarianship, are the base on which the evolving role and value of librarians as knowledge coaches and expert intermediaries are examined. CONCLUSION: Librarian-mediated services linking knowledge and critical decision making in health care have become more valuable than ever as technology continues to reshape an increasingly complex knowledge environment.