Dartmouth Biomedical Libraries

SBM Hematology Assignment - 2008

Background

Helping patients understand their diseases and connecting them to useful information can promote their participation in their own healthcare.

This assignment asks you to respond to a patient's questions about a recently-diagnosed hemoglobinopathy. It shouldn't take you more than a couple of hours to complete.

This assignment will help you:

• Communicate effectively with patients at their levels of understanding.
• Learn about a particular hemoglobinopathy.

Evaluation procedure:

• Your Library Advisor will review the resources used and the effectiveness of communication.
• Dr. O'Donnell will supply answers to these questions for accuracy.

Assignment

What to do...

• On 10/29/08 your Library Advisor will send you some questions from a patient concerning a specific hemoglobinopathy. These questions have been developed by Dr. O'Donnell.
  
  
• Answer these questions as if you were a physician responding to the patient. (See sample response.)
  2 - 3 pages is enough to write.
  
  
• Include a list of the resources you used to answer the questions. See sample response.
  
  
• On Friday, 11/14/08 or before, send your answers and resource list back to your Library Advisor.
  
  
• You will receive an evaluation form via email. Complete this and you are done.

What Else…

• Your Library Advisor will review your responses with attention to the resources referenced and provide you with suggestions about additional resources.
  
  
• The Library Advisor will send comments to you by Monday, 12/1/08.
  
  
• Four points on the final grade will be awarded for this exercise.
  

How to get Help…

• See the Resource List. You may also ask your Library Advisor or stop at any of the Reference Desks [click here for reference desk hours].
  
  
• See the Health Literacy Guidelines about communicating with patients.
  
  
• This assignment should take a couple of hours to complete. Please don't hesitate to ask the reference staff for suggestions.