Using On-site Office Hours to Connect with Health Care Professionals

Abstract

Four librarians at the A. Alfred Taubman Health Sciences Library recently began offering on-site office hours to four distinct units within the University of Michigan Health System and academic health sciences environment: the School of Dentistry, School of Public Health, Cardiovascular Center, and a research laboratory in the Comprehensive Cancer Center. The goal of each office hour experience was to better reach and more proactively support the information needs of underserved clients, while also providing the librarians with more visibility in the units. Despite relatively low walk-in rates, the librarians found that the exposure gained by offering the office hours made each experience an invariable success.

Keywords:

• collection development
• consultations
• health sciences libraries
• instruction
• office hours
• outreach
• service models

Notes

Comments and suggestions should be sent to the Column Editors: Julia M. Esparza (E-mail: [email protected]) or Kristen Young (E-mail: [email protected]).