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Lightning Talk

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Lightning Talk: 

Libraries Without Walls: Connecting Hospital Patients to Public Library Resources

Presenters:
Heidi Babatsikos, Alice Anderson
Date:
Tuesday 12 May | 11:30am – 12:00pm 

Lightning Talk Description:

In South-East Melbourne’s Monash City Council area, an innovative partnership between a public library and hospital library has been formed to promote digital library memberships to patients and their families. This unique quality improvement connects community members with their local library from within hospital through online memberships, which enables immediate access to a wide range of digital resources and entertainment during a hospital stay.

Monash Health Library and Monash Public Library Service partnered to design, promote and implement the program. The aim is to foster library use among Monash Health patients and their families. By supporting bibliotherapy, reducing boredom and promoting digital engagement, the program enhances patient wellbeing and strengthens ties to local library services. For the health service, it aligns with NSQHS accreditation requirements to work communities and consumers.

The initiative is underpinned by collaboration among hospital staff, volunteers and the Community Engagement library team, with nursing support playing a key role. Pilot training sessions have equipped employees and volunteers to assist patients in joining the library online and navigating apps such as BorrowBox, Libby, and Beamafilm. To support this, librarians from both teams work together to develop tailored instructional leaflets, refined with input from the Patient Experience team, ensuring materials are clear, accessible, and patient-centred.

 

 

Heidi Babatsikos

Team Leader Community Engagement, Monash Public Library Service

Presenter Bio

Heidi Babatsikos BA, GradDipEd, MLIS is the Team Leader Community Engagement at Monash Public Library Service. She is responsible for leading the development and delivery of a suite of innovative and contemporary library and outreach programs in digital literacy, sustainability, diversity, and inclusion to the Monash community. She has worked across multiple public library services in Victoria and has the following speaking experience at conferences and webinars:
– 2024 Demystifying the Digital: Libraries engaging communities in technology and online (Public Libraries Victoria Digital Innovation Festival)
– 2024 CRIG Seminar panellist: What makes a library a library?
– 2021 PLV Can Stories Save Us? Webinar
– 2021 LibMark in Lockdown Conference
– Co-Convener LibMark Public Libraries Victoria Special Interest Group

Alice Anderson

Head of Library Services, Monash Health

Presenter Bio

As Head of Library Services at Monash Health, Alice Anderson BIMS, GradCertEdStud (DigitLrn), Dip PWE leads the library department comprising five physical libraries across the Monash Health network in South-East Melbourne, and a vast array of clinical resources and online services. The library team’s services focus on evidence-based clinical care, access to high quality information, world class research and research skills education for lifelong learning. Alice has worked in corporate and law libraries including managing Lander & Rogers law library, and as a librarian at the Law Institute of Victoria and TABCORP. Alice recently completed a Graduate Certificate in Digital Education at the University of South Australia.