| The collections, reference services and other activities of the 161 Department of Veterans Affairs Library Services located throughout the United States and Puerto Rico are designed to meet the specific needs of their user populations, i.e., staff, residents, students, and patients. Numerous forces are in motion that will change the future of health sciences libraries during the next decade. Foremost among these are the changing health care environment, growth of information, advances in technology, changes in education, and economic factors.;Analysis of the data indicated that there is no significant difference in the library manager's and health care administrator's perceptions. Results of the survey indicate that both groups believe that libraries serve an integral role in VA medical centers and one that cannot be performed as successfully off-site. The data also appear to support the idea that there is a clear consensus on the part of both groups for increased Library Service involvement in educational activities and information delivery.;Seven recommendations resulting from the findings are discussed in the last chapter of the paper. These recommendations focus on the steps that librarians and health care administrators can undertake in order to implement those activities that both groups perceive as desirable.;This study is an analysis and evaluation of the perceptions of VA librarians and health care administrators toward the future role of libraries within the VA system. Participants were asked to provide their viewpoints of the desirability and probability of twenty-five predetermined statements and to identify the forces which they believe would have an impact, either positively or negatively, on these same statements. |
