Podcasting

With the rapid changes in healthcare, health care professionals are encouraged to be lifelong learners to provide quality care. This past year, I personally have seen increasing offers for podcasts that brings information to me in my car, on the beach, home and workplace. This tool for disseminating information is simple, and dynamic as the other tools discussed in previous postings. Podcasts can be used on an MP3 player, on a computer, or a mobile phone. It also enhances the process of chunking information which is a useful in information processing. The capability of seeing and hearing provides fertile ground for educating health professionals when attending a conference or meeting may be impossible. With the current views of library no longer a physical place to seek and find information, the podcast offers innovative ways for the librarian to disseminate information anytime and anywhere. Remote communities can have access to current information. All that is needed is a microphone, a computer, audio software – free from the web, music, copy right permission, webpage to publish the podcasts, a podcast feed, and a place to record (Ralph & Olsen, 2007). Another tool to place in a librarians repetoire at providing information anytime and anywhere.

References
Ralph, J., & Olsen, S. (2007). Podcasting as an educational building block in academic libraries. Australian Academic & Research Libraries, 38(4), 270 – 279.