Advanced Google Instruction as a Tool for Promoting Evidence-Based Practice

1. Advanced Google Instruction as a Tool for Promoting Evidence-Based Practice By Jeff Mason, Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region Shauna-Lee Konrad, London Health Sciences Centre

2. RQHR’s Google Initiative: Advanced Google for Dummies Motivation • Low interest for traditional library classes • Desire to try something new and different for the summer as part of co-op student’s placement Rationale • Health care practitioners’ use of Google is inevitable • Proper training is necessary to achieve evidence-based results

3. Literature Review • Many advocate the use of Google as a tool for information literacy • Few actual experiences are published • Three case studies - Google as a tool for information literacy

4. Case Study: Virginia Commonwealth University • 1.5 credit hours honours module for undergraduate students Content • Google as a tool for information literacy • Overview of Google & search techniques Conclusions • Positive experience • Promote library’s education & outreach services • Foster on-going dialogue about information retrieval, organization and evaluation

5. Case Study - The Google Game • Grade 9 English class • Developed game to teach students to refine web searches • Pre-teaching session followed by Google game Game • Assigned search question • Winner correctly answers question with least results Conclusions • Student recognition of decreased search time • Student opinion about searching improved • Increased credibility for librarians

6. Case Study - Become a Google Power User • Various Grade 10 English classes • To teach students to be better Internet Searchers by using 15 power searches in Google Method Pretest > Instruction > Practice Assignments > Post test Conclusions • Significant improvements in students’ searching habits • Increased students’ confidence and interest in searching • Students’ increased knowledge of relevancy, credibility, web terminology

7. RQHR Course Development Overall Goal • Teach Google features that will be useful for finding information to promote evidence-based practice General Google Information • How Google works • Scope of Google • Google for health information Google Special Features • Calculator, Translator, I’m Feeling Lucky, Related Pages, Google Images, Google Scholar Google Search Techniques

8. Google Search Techniques

9. RQHR Teaching Process • Weekly Drop-in Sessions in July & August • Computer Lab (8 seats) • Live demonstration • Explanations with health examples • Practice time • Handout

10. Marketing Process • Promotional Posters • Health Region Weekly Newsletter • Health Region Intranet Page • Library Intranet Page • Health Region-wide email

11. Initial Response • First class: Minimal attendance • Subsequent classes well attended • Introduced survey after 2nd class • Very positive to all sessions • Increased interest in library • Promotes discussion about credibility of web information • Departmental requests for class

12. Survey Design • Consulted with health region research office • Developed 10 question survey • Purpose of Survey • To learn why staff use Google • To evaluate success of course

13. Results - 1 • Who attended? • 188 usable responses • 5 groups • Health care providers • Health administrators • Allied health care providers • Educators/researchers (includes students) • Other

14. Results – 2 • Only 1 physician attended surveyed classes • Allied HCP – primarily pharmacists and dieticians

15. Current use of Google >50% ALWAYS use Google as their search engine. Results - 3

16. Results - 4 • Use of Google for work information

17. Results - 5 • What Users Like About Google • 28% - User friendly • 24% - Fast • 17% - Scope

18. Results - 6 • What Users Do Not Like About Google

19. Results - 7 • Where else do users find information? 1 – Google 2 – Subscription databases 3 – Free databases 4 – Other search engines 5 – Library staff

20. Results - 8 • Why users attended session • 42% - learn to search better/save time • 30% - just want to learn • Was the session useful? • 57% - extremely useful • 8% - not useful

21. Results - 9 • What users liked about the session • 22% - tips and tricks • 9% each – practical/hands on • Do users want to learn more? • 58% - yes!

22. Discussion - 1 • Survey supports original ideas: • Google is being used heavily • Is being used for health care decisions • Staff do not use it effectively • There is a need to provide this type of education

23. Conclusion - 1 • Providing staff with a session they want/need: • Allows library to promote EBP by explaining strengths and weaknesses of Google/Internet sources. • Raises library profile, reaches non-traditional users • Increases credibility of librarians

24. Conclusion - 2 • Future Directions • Sessions that compare Google results to proprietary database results. • Sessions that use health care literature search examples in Google.

25. Thank You • Mary Chipanshi and Susan Powelson, RQHR Health Sciences Library • Ali Bell and Nicole Aitken, RQHR Research and Performance Support

26. Contact Information • For more information please contact: • Jeff Mason, Client Services Librarian, RQHR – jeff.mason@rqhealth.ca • Shauna-Lee Konrad, Reference Librarian, LHSC - shauna.konrad@lhsc.on.ca