Chat reference service in medical libraries: part 1--An introduction.
Chat reference services offer the opportunity to provide immediate access to quality information to meet the medical information needs of students, faculty, staff, physicians, nurses, and allied health care professionals. Part 1 of this two-part article on chat reference service in medical libraries is an introduction to the management of chat reference services and to features available for chat reference. The management of chat reference services raises issues of planning, staffing, selecting, and marketing. Planning issues focus on the identification of the users, the users' medical information needs, and the users' information-seeking behavior. Staffing issues relate to the selection of chat hours, the location of the chat service, and participation in collaborative agreements. Selecting chat software weighs the sophistication of the chat features against the related cost. Marketing uses techniques similar to traditional reference services and often begins slowly as chat expertise develops. Part 2 of the article discusses trends in chat reference services in medical libraries.
University of South Florida School of Library and Information Science, 4202 East Fowler Avenue, CIS 1040, Tampa, FL 33620, USA. cdee@chuma1.cas.usf.edu
Cheryl R
CR
Dee
D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007318:Inservice Training; D020407:Internet / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007993:Libraries, Medical / Q000458:organization & administration*; D007999:Library Services / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D040541:Marketing; D020380:Needs Assessment; D010561:Personnel Staffing and Scheduling; D012577:Schools, Medical / Q000458:organization & administration; D012984:Software; D014481:United States; D014584:User-Computer Interface