Responding to the information needs for research success : the role of the research librarian
Paper presented at the Annual LIS Research Symposium, 24-25 July 2014, at UNISA Science Campus, Florida
Assessment and impact of a new role as an embedded librarian in nursing online journal clubs.
At the Christ Hospital—a 555-bed, not-for-profit, Magnet-designated, acute care facility in Cincinnati, Ohio—staff nurses are actively encouraged by the hospital's Research and Evidence-Based Practice Council to participate in a journal club. In addition to providing a discussion mechanism for improving patient outcomes and satisfaction through research and evidence, journal club participation may also contribute to the research component of the hospital's registered nurse (RN) professional advancement program. 
 
The electronic resources librarian was approached by the council's nurse educators to explore options for online journal clubs (OJCs), primarily as a means of including more staff nurses on various shifts than existing face-to-face clubs allowed. A rationale for selecting WordPress as a hosting mechanism for the OJC sites and a detailed description of the technical process in establishing the sites are discussed in detail elsewhere 1. Since October of 2011, the electronic resources librarian has been overseeing technical support for numerous nursing OJCs throughout the hospital. Technical support consists of creating sites using WordPress as a site administrator; electronically inviting new members selected by the club's nursing leadership; creating WordPress posts for articles and discussion questions that nurse leaders provided; conducting orientation sessions for new clubs as requested; and addressing ongoing technical issues, such as lost passwords or access issues. 
 
In addition to providing technical support, the librarian has received permission from nurse leaders to join each club as a member, monitor the clubs' discussions, and post library-relevant comments as opportunities arise. The Christ Hospital library staff has a long history of participating as members on various councils in the hospital's nursing shared governance structure, but the inclusion of the librarian in the OJCs was the first attempt at assuming a role of embedded librarianship at the nursing unit level. As a means of assessing this new role and determining the impact of librarian participation in OJCs throughout nursing units, the librarian conducted statistical data analysis and surveyed nurse participants.
Marie Curie's doctoral thesis: Prelude to a Nobel Prize
This paper is a critical account for the most significant body of Marie Sklodowska Curie's scientific work, presented in the hopes that she be remembered for more of the "right" reasons. It also offers some new insights into her methods and results.