As a person in Uganda, an African Country counted among those least developed, I understand what Rossetta Cole in Sierra Leone is going through.

However, as a Librarian in the health sector, I also know that wherever I am my readers or Library users need new and updated information especially since health has ever emerging issues. These are some of the ways we have managed to reduce the gap between those who have updated information and those that can not access it easily.

I work with a project that operates on stakeholder collaboration or partnership that strongly collaborates with the Ministry of Health. This means that all those with a stake in HIV Counseling Training in the country (which is our focus) have access to our Resource Center. Therefore as Librarian I gather as many information resources as I can get especially in bulk and redistribute them to whoever needs them. I use our Trainers (who go all the way to communities to train), HIV counselors (who do the home visits and know many of the clients’ needs) and any body who walks into the Resource Center (including students). Usually it starts with a Question like "Might you be interested in information about...?"

Most cases people in the same field know each other. Therefore I know most of the librarians in the surrounding organizations that deal with health although with a bias towards HIV. We exchange updates a lot. Through this kind of partnership, I have dealt with those in charge of the medical Library in the major Referral hospital in Kampala (our capital) and in way we want to compete (well, a healthy competition) to ensure that we have all the up to date information we can access.

I have also received many information resources from the UN organizations and all I had to pay was an affordable price for postage or in some cases they sent them through their offices in Uganda. Once I am registered with one organization all I have to do is keep reminding them to send me updates since I am entered onto their mailing list.

Lucky for me, Uganda has major bookstores that bring in medical books. But many times I have had to make special orders and paid heavily for this. On the plus side, my readers can come and use the updated materials that are available even if I get one new book every five months.

As a way to cater for those that do not have internet access, yet we subscribe to HINARI and other health databases that offer free information, I print and photocopy material that might be useful. This way I can send it to wherever the reader might be in hard copy. This of course is done putting into consideration that the author is acknowledged and repacking is done only within copyright restrictions.

I have also just been informed that our application to TALC was accepted so we will be receiving some materials. It is now up to me to ensure that the information materials stretch as far as possible. I’m sure this is what the Librarians in University of Leeds do.

With all of the above, I would like to encourage you to approach the various donor funded projects or organizations that might be able to access materials from outside the country. I would also like to encourage you to talk to the librarians or information managers in Sierra Leone to pave way for the easy flow of information to reduce this gap. If you do not ask them for more up dated material, they will assume that what you have is good enough.

Thank you

Sylvia Matovu
Librarian
(TASO/SCOT)

HIFA2015 profile: Sylvia Matovu works with a project called Strengthening HIV Counsellor Training in Uganda, carried out under a bigger organization called THE AIDS Support Organisation Uganda Ltd. MatovuS AT TASOUGANDA.ORG

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From: ssbhopal AT googlemail.com
Sent: Wednesday, October 28, 2009 2:43 PM
To: HIFA2015 - Healthcare Information For All by 2015
Subject: [HIFA2015] Access to information for medical students - Sierra Leone

We are two medical students from the UK (Sunil Bhopal, University of Leeds) and Sierra Leone (Rossetta Cole, College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences, Freetown). We are trained in a similar manner, first in lectures and other formal teaching arrangements in a university, and then by spending more and more time in hospitals until we emerge finally as junior doctors ready to tackle the next hurdle. We met when I (Sunil) spent a month on medical elective in Freetown.

The starkest difference in our education has been in access to information. While in Leeds I (Sunil) have access to thousands of books through the university library, hundreds of journals in print and online and am a mere (university funded) bus ride away from a copyright library containing everything ever printed in the UK, in Freetown I (Rossetta) have had to make do with 20 year old donated textbooks, no paper journals, and access to HINARI online journals once (through a local internet cafe) over the 6 year course.

The issue of accessing information is a particular problem in Sierra Leone where there is no bookshop selling new books, and no medical text book importer. Even those who have money must send this abroad with friends and relatives to buy. Not only is this a cumbersome system, but it means that schemes such as BookPower and TALC are not having their desired effects.

We want to see this change. Not just for students of medicine, but for those of nursing and the other health professions, and all those already working in the health system. Whilst internet and computer is so minimal, books are the way to get information to providers.

Can any HIFA members help? We have heard from Bookpower, who are keen to be involved. Donations would help, but so would setting up a supply chain to get books into the country on a regular basis. Perhaps there are creative solutions that HIFA friends have used elsewhere? Maybe those working on this would like to get in touch.

With very best wishes,
Sunil & Rossetta

HIFA2015 profile: Sunil Bhopal is a final year medical student at University of Leeds, UK. He holds a BSc from the Nuffield Centre for International Health, Leeds and is past vice-president of Medsin-UK, the UK student global health network. ssbhopal AT googlemail.com

posted 29 October 2009 by MatovuS from email