For the Health of It

Having been what she calls “a patient of the Internet” when her mother was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor, Karen Parry knows how difficult it is to find trustworthy health information. So after her mother died in 2009, Parry started Just for the Health of It! at the East Brunswick Public Library (EBPL).

Along with a “cozy corner” of health books, Parry and her team set up a customer health research service. Whether consumers are looking for a better understanding of their medications, advice on how to talk to their doctor, or just tips on improving their general wellness, they can get it by asking the Just for the Health of It! team.

In 2010, Parry signed up EBPL as an affiliate member of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NNLM). It has been a boon, she says. EBPL librarians receive ongoing training, and three NNLM grants have enabled it to create and market a 24-7 Just for the Health of It! community portal.

Now EBPL’s program is both in-library (with more than 50 local health-care partners who provide programs there) and mobile, with tables set up weekly at community events such as town halls, fairs, and farmers markets, as well as at Robert Wood Johnson Hospital’s Health and Wellness Center.

While everyone has questions about their health, East Brunswick’s demographics mean information about wellness and health care are particularly in demand from recent immigrants and older patrons. Serving communities like these drives Parry’s zeal for health-focused library programs.

“Librarians, with their research skills and passion, have limitless potential to influence the health of their communities,” says Parry, who envisions “health literacy as the next generation of [library] reference.”