Public Libraries Supporting Health and Wellness: A Literature Review

Heather Elia

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Library Science and Administration Library Science and Information Literacy Web and Library Services

Abstract

The purpose of this literature review is to examine the ways in which public libraries are supporting the health and wellness needs of their communities. Although public libraries are not commonly thought of in association with healthcare, research shows that many libraries are partnering with other community organizations and healthcare professionals to provide programs and services intended to address the health and wellness needs of their patrons. Using scholarly journals, as well as trade and news publications, the author investigated numerous methods of health-themed service provision, including: consumer health information, embedded professionals, visiting health services, mental health support, wellness-based programming, and responses to the opioid crisis. Details on these programs are provided in this review so that readers can build upon existing ideas when considering their own health and wellness service offerings. Future work connected with this topic should involve a discussion of how to increase successful partnerships between libraries and other health-based organizations, how best to obtain funding for health and wellness public library initiatives, and how to publicize library health and wellness offerings to maximize their utilization by the public.

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2018Public Libraries: A Community-Level Resource to Advance Population Health 2016Beyond Books: Public Libraries As Partners For Population Health 2013Preparing public librarians for consumer health information service: A nationwide study 2016Rural Public Libraries as Community Change Agents: Opportunities for Health Promotion 2018Health information programming in public libraries: a content analysis 2018“I Want to Provide Patrons with Good Information”: Public Library Staff as Health Information Facilitators 2016Evolution of an academic–public library partnership 2017Movement-Based Programs in U.S. and Canadian Public Libraries: Evidence of Impacts from an Exploratory Survey

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2024Virtual reality training for crisis communication: Fostering empathy, confidence, and de-escalation skills in library and information science graduate students 2025How Do Public Library Partnerships Impact Health? A Scoping Review 2024A Study on How Libraries Operate as Health Spaces in the United States 2023Connections are the Opposite of Addiction: Recovery Reading Groups in Public Libraries

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