In the closing session of day one Ruth Carlyle opened our eyes by talking about how to use existing policies to help us get support and embed our services, versus shaping implementa- tion and influencing the development of new policies to help get proposals put forward. The skills we already have are key to this kind of work by clarifying the questions, finding the evidence, curating the evidence and finally syn- thesising evidence. She encouraged us to get words like evidence, knowledge, research, learning and improvement into as many trust policies as possible. The setting of the botanical gardens at the Royal College of Physicians was perfect for our evening garden party that ended the first day. We were lucky to enjoy fine weather, good company, as well as unlimited pizza, drinks and ice cream. It was a relaxed environment for everyone to catch up with friends old and new and reflect on the day’s events. Day two started with a keynote from Jo Cornish, CILIP’s Chief Development Officer. Jo spoke about CILIP’s commu- nity strategy, the new Member Fest in October, CILIP’s member council and the pilot of a new online platform for member networks and communities. Jo also highlighted the many ways that CILIP has worked with HLG: FeDIP grants and bursaries, PKSB for health guide and #AMillionDecisions, as well as shared training with the Library and Information Research Group (LIRG). The magnificent Michael Rosen making a surprise appearance as a guest speaker was a highlight for many attendees, talking of his experiences in ITU with COVID and his recuperation, he read eloquently from his own work and the diary that was kept for him in ITU by the staff who cared for him. It was a rollercoaster of a ride from laughter to tears resulting in a standing ovation. He stayed with us for the morning and spoke to many delegates and posed with them for photographs, leaving a lasting impression. What an advocate for libraries and the NHS. To quote Michael
Photo © Jamie Hodgskin
Health Libraries Group Committee.
“I used to like librarians,... I still do!” A series of lightning talks peppered the programme enabling presenters to showcase the amazing work that goes on across our networks, including a series on HLG partnerships that highlighted our work with NHS England on the #AMil- lionDecisions campaign. Did you know for instance that the NHS has 1.7 million interactions every day, and that many health care decisions are underpinned by evidence provided by library services? HLG were also proud to have Louis Coifaitt-Gunn with us to deliver our closing keynote and present our prizes for posters, a prize draw and the prestigious Cyril Barnard Award to joint winners, Sue Lacey-Bryant and Meg Gorman. Louis spoke of being just six weeks into his role as CILIP CEO and that he was still in looking and learning mode. He is keen to hear from us about what CILIP should be doing to support us. He also held up HLG as a ‘jewel in the crown’ of CILIP’s Special Interest Groups.
Conferences are important in being one way of ensuring that we don’t become siloed in our own particular sector – we know our skills are transferable no matter what sector we are but we can find ourselves self-labelling as a particular ‘type’ of information professional, for instance law, academic or health. Confer- ences allow us to extend our boundaries, our networks, our knowledge and our
Photo © Jamie Hodgskin
thinking. We can take ideas back to our workplace that we might not use exactly, but they spark other ideas, and we meet people we might never have come across otherwise.
The feedback from HLG2024 has been overwhelmingly positive and reinforces how much people gained from hearing other perspectives, and from engaging with people who were once strangers. To quote one of our attendees: “What an incredible two days filled with inspiring, welcoming and knowledgeable colleagues.” What connects us all, no matter what sector we work in is our commitment to provide the best possible service we can to the communities we serve. This and our active engagement with learning from and with each other is one of our greatest strengths, keeping us relevant for whatever the future brings. Whatever word you choose to use, be it connecting, collaboration, sharing, partnerships, these are all words that can be used to describe how we come together as a profession, whether it’s through local and national networks of subject specialists or locally or nationally across professional boundaries.
Michael Rosen at the Health Libraries Group Conference. September 2024
This is where the upcoming Member Fest comes into its own. Taking place from 14-18 October, with in-person events on 17 October, which will be organised by the Regional Member Networks. Regional Member Networks are designed to be cross-sectional so this is your opportunity to meet with colleagues from across all sectors in your locality. Please sign up, take part, be vocal, proud and learn from one another. Libraries do change lives, no matter what sector you work in, and we are stronger together than apart. As a special interest group HLG will also be taking part in Member Fest and we are currently putting together a programme of events to coincide with this week. Keep an eye out for further information on these over the next few weeks. Find out more about Member Fest at www.
cilip.org.uk/membersfest24 and visit
www.cilip.org. uk/HLG to connect to the group.” IP
INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL 29
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