The loneliness of the long-distance blogger : using blogs to reach isolated rural health professionals

Abstract

Background. The Greater Western Area Health Service (GWAHS) occupies an area of 444,900 sq. km. or 55.52% of the state of New South Wales. While the health service has 5 small libraries, many users are several hundred kilometres from the nearest one. This paper describes the use of blogging to reach remote users in this vast area. Using blogs to address remoteness. The GWAHS Libraries Blog www.gwahslibrariesblog.blogspot.com was commenced in February 2007 as a means of bringing relevant resources to remote users. It concentrates on resources and events which may be of interest to rural health staff. The GWAHS Libraries Blog has been emulated by a recent arrival, NCAHS Library Clippings which has attempted to reach isolated users on the NSW North Coast. Other examples of resource-based blogs exist in New Mexico and other isolated areas. Results. All 5 libraries contribute to the blog, usage continues to increase, and feedback is extremely positive. The library service now receives several queries from remote parts of the health service which had previously been poorly serviced. For many users in remote locations, the blog serves as an up-to-date virtual library of new and relevant resources. However, for many staff in isolated areas, Internet connections are traditionally unreliable, and the use of Internet-based applications is a new way of thinking. There is an ongoing education role regarding use of the blog’s resources. However, in situations where users are too physically remote to visit the library, the blog provides an excellent accessible point of contact with library services.