54: EVALUATING THE EXTENT OF AJUMS LIBRARIANS AWARENESS AND ATTITUDE TOWARD EBL

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: evidence-based librarianship (EBL) is the incorporation of scientific research into the professional practices of librarianship. In other words, EBL attempts to apply the best existing evidence topromotelibrary services for patrons. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the awareness and attitude of librarians toward implementing EBL in their daily practice. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted through a survey and included all 50 Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences' librarians. Due to small size of the population, no statistical sample was established. A researcher-made questionnaire was utilized for the survey and the face validity and reliability was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha coefficient 0.75. For analyzing the data, descriptive statistics (frequency and percentage) were used. RESULTS: Most librarians (45 percent) had intermediate familiarity with the application of EBL. However, they had a positive attitude toward EBL and the majority of them acknowledged its implication in their job promotion. The major barriers to implementing EBL from librarians' viewpoint were lack of familiarity with the concept of EBL and the novelty of the subject (42 percent), Lack of access to some of the evidence-based resources (52 percent) and finally the large volume of information available in the medical field (42 percent). CONCLUSION: EBL skills such as information seeking skills need to be thought in order to enable librarians to better and faster serve their community according to the best evidence and latest findings in EBL.