Speed and 24/7 access to evidence-based resources are critical to Fraser Health librarians and the health professionals they work with.  Librarians provide essential information, directly impacting patients’ health and well-being. They may be asked to search for medical information related to court cases, locate evidence-based resources on rare and specialized diseases, or find up-to-date information for directors to present on emerging public health issues.

Fraser Health serves a population of 1.5 million people, and in the past 5 years has treated over 5.3 million patients in its hospitals alone. It is the largest health authority in British Columbia and is predicted to grow to nearly 1.9 million people by 2020. Fraser Health Library Services includes four large, fully-staffed resource libraries, and 12 libraries total, all located in hospitals and care centres.

Seamless access to evidence-based resources is key for students and health professionals within British Columbia, according to Linda Howard, Interim Library Services Manager at Fraser Health, and Librarian of Surrey Memorial Hospital. She explains, “We have continuity of service this way, regardless of where the health professional ends up working,” adding that in the past those who accepted jobs in remote and rural areas were often unable to access vital resources. Howard underlines the importance that the resources available in the health sector are the same students use in college and university, so that new health professionals begin their positions adept at accessing necessary information.

The economic benefits to province-wide collaboration “level the playing field and create greater equality of access,” says Howard, adding that this is especially important for the publicly-funded health system. She believes e-HLbc not only to be beneficial in its own right, but a positive step towards working together in the future, and explains that “the lessons we have learned in collaboration and resource sharing through e-HLbc will be invaluable in navigating the electronic information jungle of the future”.