How Do Public Library Partnerships Impact Health? A Scoping Review

Abstract

During the past decade, public libraries have been framed as key health promotion partners for everything from telemedicine to the opioid crisis. This study’s goal was to evaluate the impacts of health promotion initiatives involving public libraries as collaborators. Using preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, a search of three databases (PubMed, CINAHL Complete, and Library and information science abstracts (LISA)) for articles written in English referencing “health” and “public libraries” returned 985 unique citations, of which 67 papers were selected for review, based on the criteria of being peer-reviewed articles on health initiatives involving public libraries. All studies were published between 1957 and 2023, with 88% published in the 2000’s, and 76% conducted in the United States. Most studies consisted of descriptive accounts of health promotion initiatives, with minimal reporting of outcome measures for the populations targeted. Better understanding the impacts of health promotion initiatives involving public libraries requires more rigorous assessment mechanisms, and the long-term success of these partnerships depends on stronger and sustained linkages between those working in health and those working in libraries, particularly public libraries.