Lisa J. Lawson, Knowledge and Evidence Specialist – Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
There was a rousing call to arms for Information professionals, “It starts now, it starts with you”.
I attended the first day (Wednesday 12th July) of the CILIP Conference 2023, having secured a bursary from the Knowledge For Healthcare Learning Academy, NHS England. Although I started my first professional library role back in 1998, and had attended other conferences, this was the first time I had attended the CILIP Conference. I was very excited to meet a few familiar faces and many new people from across the information world. It is so invigorating to share experiences face to face with like-minded people working in so many different roles and sectors.
As someone with a background in Special and Further Education libraries who has recently made the leap to Health libraries, I was looking forward to engaging with some of the key universal themes our profession (and the wider UK workforce) faces. I was inspired to hear from leaders in our profession about the benefits and challenges of harnessing Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning in the real world. Other themes, very familiar in the NHS and Education world, are personal and professional wellbeing and using an evidence-based approach to service improvement and development.
There was a rousing call to arms for Information professionals, “It starts now, it starts with you” from CILIP President John Trevor-Allen who introduced the Conference, celebrated 125 years of CILIP heritage and welcomed us all to Birmingham.
Rebecka Isaksson, the first Keynote speaker, delivered an impressive strategic message on Driving Business Value Through AI-Powered Knowledge Management. Essentially, she argued that AI powered solutions could work with and enhance human intelligence to dramatically improve outcomes. Artificial and human collaboration will undoubtedly create a new workplace culture. Rebekah argued that a knowledge-centric workplace, where employees use their implicit knowledge and experience to collaborate with others and share work in progress as a matter of course, will foster cultural and behavioural change for all.
The panel discussion on Data and AI, led by Andrew Cox, Aaron Tay and Prof Cox concentrated on the importance of building a library strategy around AI and acknowledged the many ethical challenges that AI presents, such as issues around Copyright, ‘hallucinations’, bias and social inequalities in accessing knowledge. Prof Cox argued that librarians’ practical professional skills in literacy, understanding user needs and data will help us to position ourselves into key roles in the new machine learning era.
Sam Thomas, an NHS Library Manager, gave a refreshingly realistic presentation based on his experience. He encouraged librarians to focus on their context and how AI could be practically applied by trusting in ourselves to think about the tools we have access to and how our users might use AI to fulfil their information needs. For example, by embedding AI tools within existing Information Skills sessions rather devising standalone sessions. He also urged people to collaborate more – both within (and beyond) their organisation. This struck a chord with me as I had recently joined the FutureNHS Task & Finish Group on open-source AI course development.
The Wednesday Lunchtime Keynote session was delivered by Dr Navina Evans, Chief Workforce Training and Education Officer at NHS England. Her inspiring message emphasised the need for our profession to continue to embrace change and stay a few steps ahead in how we access and make sense of knowledge. The new NHS Workforce Plan[1] will need KLS professionals to continue to contribute to a service that uses data and evidence more than ever to plan and deliver services. She acknowledged that digital poverty is real and argued that we must cater for everyone as we widen access routes into the NHS workforce.
There was a change of pace in the first of the afternoon sessions I attended. Wellbeing for Personal Resilience and Impactful Leadership presented by Ninez Piezas-Jerbi, an Executive Coach and KM Consultant. Attendees were treated to a relaxing session to showcase practical breathing techniques and top tips on maintaining personal wellbeing.
The following session was chaired by Professor Alison Brettle, Professor in Health Information and Evidence Based Practice, University of Salford. The session asked how we can take a more evidence-based approach to our daily work as librarians and information professionals. The presenters in this session outlined the importance of using evidence to advocate, demonstrate knowledge and show impact. The end of the session encouraged attendees to discuss the barriers and solutions to incorporating an evidence-based approach on their tables. It was fascinating to get into a discussion with a public librarian and an information professional working in central government.
At the final session of the day, The Role of KM Practitioners in Fostering Psychologically Safe Working Environments, I listened to passionate speakers and audience members sharing their experience of speaking up and improving their organisational culture. Once more, I was struck by the passion for getting the job done and the variety of interpersonal skills that people in our profession contribute to their organisations every day.
What a day! I was struck by the vision and clarity of leaders in our profession and the commitment and passion for the job in every librarian and information professional I met. I went away feeling inspired and reinvigorated. Technological and working culture is undergoing great change but information professionals are well placed to support our varied users in this new landscape.
[1] NHS England (2023) NHS England Long Term Workforce Plan. NHS England, London.
HLG Newsletter Autumn/Winter 2023
Health Libraries Group 