Supporting Mental Health in a Public Library Context: A Mixed Methods Brief Evaluation
Publication: Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health
21 November 2022
Abstract
An ongoing consideration of community mental health services is how to optimize outreach to best support a wellness approach. Public libraries provide a potential site for mental health services due to use by a diverse range of patrons. The purpose of this study was to explore a mental health wellness hub situated in a core urban library. Following a mixed methods approach, the study explores: (1) the desirability of this form of co-location; (2) the impact on library staff; and (3) how this hub integrated, or not, with the broader mental health system. Ultimately, findings demonstrated a significantly positive experience by patrons, mental health hub staff, and library staff.
Résumé
L’une des principales préoccupations des services communautaires de santé mentale est l’optimisation de la sensibilisation pour soutenir plus efficacement une démarche de mieux-être. Les bibliothèques municipales constituent des sites potentiels pour les services de santé mentale en raison de leur fréquentation par un large éventail d’usagers. Cette étude visait l’exploration d’un centre de mieux-être en santé mentale situé dans une bibliothèque centrale urbaine. Suivant une approche à méthodes mixtes, l’étude explore : 1) le caractère souhaitable de cette forme de centre co-implanté ; 2) l’incidence sur le personnel de la bibliothèque ; et 3) la façon dont ce centre s’intègre, ou non, au système général de santé mentale. En conclusion, l’étude montre que les usagers, le personnel du centre de santé mentale et celui de la bibliothèque ont vécu une expérience très positive.
Formats available
You can view the full content in the following formats:
References
Abdel-Baki A., Aubin D., Morisseau-Guillot R., Lal S., Dupont M. È., Bauco P., Shah J. L., Joober R., Boksa P., Malla A., and Iyer S. N. 2019 Improving mental health services for homeless youth in downtown Montreal, Canada: Partnership between a local network and ACCESS Esprits ouverts (Open Minds), a National Services Transformation Research Initiative Early Intervention in Psychiatry 13 20 -28
Ayers S. 2006 The poor and homeless: An opportunity for libraries to serve The Southeastern Librarian 54 1 13
Bachrach L. L. 1992 Psychosocial rehabilitation and psychiatry in the care of long-term patients American Journal of Psychiatry 149 11 1455 -1463
Braun V. and Clarke V. 2006 Using thematic analysis in psychology Qualitative Research in Psychology 3 2 77 -101
Brewster L. 2014 The public library as therapeutic landscape: A qualitative case study Health & Place 26 94 -99
Brien, S., Grenier, L., Kapral, M., Kurdyak, P., & Vigod, S. (2015). Taking stock: A report on the quality of mental health and addictions services in Ontario. An HQO/ICES Report. Toronto, Health Quality Ontario and Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences. http://www.hqontario.ca/portals/0/Documents/pr/theme-report-taking-stock-en.pdf
Canadian Mental Health Association. (2018). Ending the health care disparity in Canada. https://cmha.ca/ending-health-care-disparity-canada
Canadian Urban Library Research Council [CULRC]. (2011). An analysis of public library trends. http://culc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/CULC-Public-Library-Trends.pdf
Chattoo C. D. 2002 The problem patron: Is there one in your library? The Reference Librarian 36 75–76 11 -22
Clarke A. M., Kuosmanen T., and Barry M. M. 2015 A systematic review of online youth mental health promotion and prevention interventions Journal of Youth and Adolescence 44 1 90 -113
Coleman M., Connaway L. S., and Morga K. 2020 Public libraries respond to the opioid crisis with their communities: Research findings Collaborative Librarianship 12 1 COV6 https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=lond95336&id=GALE%7CA628947201&v=2.1&it=r&sid=AONE&asid=0bc21a05
Cresswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2007). Designing and conducting mixed method research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Fraga, J. (2016). Humanizing homelessness at the San Francisco Public Library. City Lab. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-29/the-social-workers-humanizing-homelessness-at-the-san-francisco-public-library
Forsman A. K., Nordmyr J., Park A., Matosevic T., McDaid D., and Wahlbeck K. 2016 Technology-based interventions for mental health promotion in later life: An evidence review: Anna Forsman The European Journal of Public Health 26 suppl_1 ckw 172 -044
Foster, P. (2016). Public libraries and community outreach: Program assessment for serving homeless patrons. https://conservancy.umn.edu/bitstream/handle/11299/180903/Foster_Pamela_Professional_Paper_Final_20160427.pdf?sequence=5
Freeman L. M. and Blomley N. 2019 Enacting property: Making space for the public in the municipal library Environment and Planning. C, Politics and Space 37 2 199 -218
Gorham, U., Greene, T. N., & Jaeger, P. T. (Eds.). (2016). Perspectives on libraries as institutions of human rights and social justice. https://www.emerald.com/insight/publication/doi/10.1108/S0065-2830201641
Government of Ontario. (2019). Hallway health care: A system under strain. https://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/public/publications/premiers_council/docs/premiers_council_report.pdf
Hankivsky O., Grace D., Hunting G., Giesbrecht M., Fridkin A., Rudrum S., and Clark N. 2014 An intersectionality-based policy analysis framework: Critical reflections on a methodology for advancing equity International Journal for Equity in Health 13 1 119 -119 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-014-0119-x
Hill T. and Tamminen K. A. 2020 Examining the library as a site for intervention: A mixed-methods case study evaluation of the “Innovative Solutions to Homelessness” project Journal of Library Administration 60 5 470 -492
Huang S. L., Li R. H., Huang F. Y., and Tang F. C. 2015 The potential for mindfulness-based intervention in workplace mental health promotion: Results of a randomized controlled trial PloS One 10 9 e0138089
Kirmayer, L. J., Whitley, R., & Fauras, V. (2009). Community team approaches to mental health services and wellness promotion. Montréal, Canada: Culture & Mental Health Research Unit, Institute of Community & Family Psychiatry, Jewish General Hospital.
Lincoln, Y. S. & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
Malachowski C., Skopyk S., Toth K., and MacEachen E. 2019 The integrated health hub (IHH) model: The evolution of a community based primary care and mental health centre Community Mental Health Journal 55 4 578 -588
McCall L. 2005 The complexity of intersectionality Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 30 3 1771 -1800 https://doi.org/10.1086/426800
Mental Health Commission of Canada. (2015). Guidelines for recovery-oriented practice. https://www.mentalhealth-commission.ca/sites/default/files/MHCC_RecoveryGuidelines_ENG_0.pdf
Minkler, M., & Wallerstein, N. (2001). Introduction to community based participatory research. In Minkler, M. & Wallerstein, N. (Eds.), Community based participatory research for health (pp. 3–26). San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass.
Muntinga M. E., Krajenbrink V. Q. E., Peerdeman S. M., Croiset G., and Verdonk P. 2016 Toward diversity-responsive medical education: Taking an intersectionality-based approach to a curriculum evaluation Advances in Health Sciences Education 21 3 541 -559
Osa J. O. 2002 The difficult patron situation: Competency-based training to empower frontline staff The Reference Librarian 36 75–76 265 -278
Park M. M., Zafran H., Stewart J., Salsberg J., Ells C., Rouleau S., and Valente T. W. 2014 Transforming mental health services: A participatory mixed methods study to promote and evaluate the implementation of recovery-oriented services Implementation Science: IS 9 1 119 -119 https://doi.org/10.1186/s13012-014-0119-7
Pateman, J. (2014, November). Open for all? Open Shelf: Ontario Library Association. http://open-shelf.ca/class/
Patton, M. (2002). Enhancing the quality and credibility of qualitative analysis. In Patton, M. (Ed.), Qualitative research & evaluation methods (pp. 541–598). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Philbin M., Parker C., Flaherty M., and Hirsch J. 2019 Public libraries: A community-level resource to advance population health Journal of Community Health 44 1 192 -199 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-018-0547-4
Pitre, K. (2015). Community hubs in Ontario: A strategic framework and action plan. https://dr6j45jk9xcmk.cloudfront.net/documents/4815/community-hubs-a-strategic-framework-and-action.pdf
Premier’s Community Hubs Framework Advisory Group. (2015). Building the evidence base: The foundation for a strong community hub. https://www.ontario.ca/page/building-evidence-base-foundation-strong-community-hub
Ramsay, C. (2014). Edmonton Public Library expands program helping homeless. Global News. https://globalnews.ca/news/1681802/edmonton-public-library-expands-program-helping-homeless/
Rathbun-Grubb S. and Marshall G. 2009 Public librarianship as a career: Challenges and prospects Library Trends 58 2 263 -275 https://doi.org/10.1353/lib.0.0083
Raykov, T., & Marcoulides, G. A. (2011). Introduction to psychometric theory. Routledge.
Reith, T., & Huncar, A. (2014). Homeless find hope, refuge and community at public libraries. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/homeless-find-hope-refuge-and-community-at-public-libraries-1.2841221
Richter S., Bell J., Jackson M. K., Lee L. D., Dashora P., and Surette S. 2019 Public library users: Perspectives of socially vulnerable populations Journal of Library Administration 59 4 431 -441 https://doi.org/10.1080/01930826.2019.1593711
Schweizer, E. (2018). Social workers within Canadian public libraries: A multicase study (master’s thesis, graduate studies). https://prism.ucalgary.ca/bitstream/handle/1880/106632/ucalgary_2018_schweizer_elizabeth.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Shuman, B. A. (1999). Library security and safety handbook: Prevention, policies, and procedures. Chicago: American Library Association.
Sterling E. W., Silke A., Tucker S., Fricks L., and Druss B. G. 2010 Integrating wellness, recovery, and self-management for mental health consumers Community Mental Health Journal 46 2 130 -138
Thornicroft G., Deb T., and Henderson C. 2016 Community mental health care worldwide: Current status and further developments World Psychiatry 15 3 276 -286
Whiteman E., Dupuis R., Morgan A., D’Alonzo B., Epstein C., Klusaritz H., and Cannuscio C. 2018 Public libraries as partners for health Preventing Chronic Disease 15 E64 -E64 https://doi.org/10.5888/pcd15.170392
Williment K. W. 2009 It takes a community to create a library Partnership: The Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research 4 1 2 -11
Wright J. C. 2002 Partnership with community resources-campus police: Revisiting policies to reflect the 21st century The Reference Librarian 36 75–76 287 -292
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health
Volume 41 • Number 2 • April 2022
Pages: 25 - 45
History
Version of record online: 21 November 2022
Key Words
Mots-clés
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Other Metrics
Citations
Cite As
Abe Oudshoorn, Amy Van Berkum, Jacquie Burkell, Helene Berman, Jessica Carswell, and Colleen Van Loon. 2022. Supporting Mental Health in a Public Library Context: A Mixed Methods Brief Evaluation. Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health.
41(2): 25-45. https://doi.org/10.7870/cjcmh-2022-013
Export Citations
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.
There are no citations for this item
View Options
View options
Get Access
Login options
Check if you access through your login credentials or your institution to get full access on this article.
Subscribe
Click on the button below to subscribe to Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health
