Health sciences librarians' attitudes toward the Academy of Health Information Professionals.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the study was to ascertain health sciences librarians' attitudes toward the Academy of Health Information Professionals (AHIP). SAMPLE: Systematic sampling was used to select 210 names from the list of members of the Midwest Chapter of the Medical Library Association. METHODS: A questionnaire containing open- and closed-ended questions was used to collect the data. RESULTS: A total of 135 usable questionnaires were returned. Of the respondents, 34.8% are members of the academy and most are at the senior or distinguished member levels. The academy gives them a sense of professionalism and helps them to keep current with new trends. The majority of participants (65.2%) are not members of the academy. Among the various reasons proffered are that neither institutions nor employers require it and that there is no obvious benefit to belonging to the academy. CONCLUSIONS: More research needs to be done with a larger sample size to determine the attitudes of health sciences librarians, nationwide, toward the academy.

The Academy of Health Information Professionals: a review of the first five years.

The Medical Library Association (MLA) has provided its members with a credentialing program since 1949. This article reports on a five-year review of the current program, the Academy of Health Information Professionals. The review included an analysis of the financial basis of the academy and the use of three different survey instruments designed to gather input from MLA members and other opinion leaders. A final report to the MLA Board of Directors set forth eight recommendations based on questions and concerns identified during the review process.