136 - Reflecting on the Connection Between Medical Faculty & Resident Scholarly Activity and Their Library Usage: Results of a Schoolwide Survey

Objectives: Medical faculty and residents at the University of Tennessee Graduate School of Medicine (GSM) are expected to participate in scholarly activity and the library situated in the medical center is dedicated to providing research support, but the connection between scholarly activity (SA) and library usage is unknown. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between medical faculty and resident SA and their usage of library resources and services.

Methods: A thirteen-question survey questionnaire was developed, pilot tested, and distributed through institutional e-mail listservs to 246 faculty and 237 residents. IRB approval was received. Survey questions were a combination of multiple-choice, Likert scale, and one open-ended question. The questions aimed to measure what SA prompted medical faculty/residents to utilize library resources/services, what databases they use during SA, and how frequently they use research support services, along with their department and rank. The survey data was collected in SurveyMonkey software and imported to Microsoft Excel. Descriptive and frequency statistics were used for analysis.

Results: There were a total of 97 responses for a response rate of 20%, with all GSM departments represented. In the last five years, 90.72% (n=88) of respondents have participated in some type of SA. Of residents who participated in SA, grant proposals were the only activity not reported. The research planning stage was the most frequent SA stage that prompted them to utilize library resources and services, including searching library databases, requesting articles, or requesting a literature search. Overall, 75.4% turn to a librarian at some point when working on a research project. Most respondents who answered the optional open-ended question for additional comments wrote in notes of gratitude. Others expressed issues related to accessing online resources or services.

Conclusions: Library resources and services are utilized consistently for all SA included in the survey. As expected, faculty participated in SA more frequently than residents. Nearly 30% (n=28) of respondents have not used the literature search service in relation to SA, which may mean they perform their own searches. Due to the low reported usage of some databases, we plan to market those resources to determine if the low usage is due to unfamiliarity or user-perceived lack of value. Limitations of this study include a low response rate and that only one institution was surveyed. Some opportunities were identified to expand library involvement in grant research. Overall, participation in SA and library usage does overlap.