ABSTRACT

The goal of this research was to examine U.S.-based librarians’ history of training on public health topics and their comfort delivering adolescent-focused public health interventions. A total of 269 library staff from 37 states completed a brief online survey. Eighty-four percent of respondents stated that their library had hosted public health programs for youth ages 10–17. Eighty-five percent reported they would be interested or very interested in facilitating an intervention focused on youth (ages 10–17). Ninety-eight percent of participants reported receiving training on at least one public health topic. The most common trainings reported were related to infectious diseases, including COVID (82.9%) and adolescent health and development (78.4%). Most participants were comfortable discussing public health topics, such as sexual and reproductive health (83.6%), adolescent health and development (82.5%), substance use (81.4%), and infectious diseases (81%). Having learned about the topic on their own and having had experience related to the topic were the most common reasons stated for feeling comfortable discussing public health topics with youth. These findings suggest that librarians are interested in and comfortable enough to serve as resources for health promotion among adolescents when adequately trained.

摘要

这项研究的目的是调查美国图书馆员接受公共卫生主题培训的历史以及他们提供以青少年为中心的公共卫生干预措施的舒适度。来自 37 个州的 269 名图书馆工作人员完成了一份简短的在线调查。84% 的受访者表示，他们的图书馆举办了针对 10 至 17 岁青少年的公共卫生项目。85% 的人表示他们有兴趣或非常有兴趣促进针对青少年（10-17 岁）的干预措施。百分之九十八的参与者表示接受过至少一项公共卫生主题的培训。最常见的培训与传染病有关，包括新冠肺炎 (82.9%) 和青少年健康与发展 (78.4%)。大多数参与者很乐意讨论公共卫生话题，例如性与生殖健康（83.6%）、青少年健康与发展（82.5%）、药物滥用（81.4%）和传染病（81%）。自己了解该主题并拥有与该主题相关的经验是与年轻人轻松讨论公共卫生主题的最常见原因。这些发现表明，经过充分培训后，图书馆员有兴趣并愿意作为青少年健康促进的资源。