The New York Public Library (NYPL) requests $450,000 in funding from the National Library of Medicine to implement CHOICES, Community Health Onsite Information Centers, into its range of public library service. The recent explosion of information about medicine and health for the general public and the increasingly active role individuals must take in the decisions and choices affecting their personal health care have resulted in an increased demand for consumer level health information in public libraries. At the same time, studies have shown that providing education and information increases patient compliance, thereby reducing future health care costs. CHOICES is The New York Public Library?s response to this growing need for consumer health information in public libraries. Through CHOICES, the Library will provide open access to a broad range of information on health and medical topics needed by users to make decisions related to disease prognosis and to support a healthy lifestyle. Staff will be trained to provide information and public programs that are current, relevant and appropriate to the needs of the culturally and educationally diverse communities served by the Library, and will reach out to local health care providers to join as partners in this information and education effort. Information will be delivered in every neighborhood at the point of access in the most suitable format and in the shortest possible time. The NYPL model as proposed herein is a structured way in which to implement a quality consumer health initiative in a large urban public library setting using additional staff to assist with phase-in, and slowly incorporating the additional expenses of this service into the library?s regular, ongoing operating budget. NLM funding will be critical in this effort and will result in the creation of a model that can be duplicated in other libraries to expand access to health information nationwide.
