Meeting with Public Health Librarian

Yesterday, August 6, I met with Matt who is the public health librarian. He had never thought about becoming a librarian for public health, he instead studied English Language at James Madison College in Virginia. His friend had inspired him where he was working in a library to become a librarian. He then decided to go the University of Illinois to receive a degree as a public health librarian. The important things that he does are helping people find information that they need, making sure that they need it and when they it. The challenging thing that his does in his job is never having enough money to go through the evaluation of what resources are to be received. He communicates with people through email, Facebook, Twitter, going to different places, and attending student orientations. In the students orientations he talks about the information that the public health library offers, and the availability of the resources.

A typical day for him is checking his email, dealing with people's problems through email, and meeting with medical students. He says that a key trait that one needs for his job is being curious about things. Some things that are necessary to keep him happy in his job are getting paid, having fun, and enjoyable colleagues. He is also working on a special project that let students, who perform certain requirements, be paid to the Public Health Association meeting. He says that it is an educational experience for them. His job has allowed him to travel around the country such as San Diego, Orlando, and Columbia where he trained people. The achievements his most proud of are making tough decisions and making them happen. Matt has been in this job for 11 years and hopes that he is still having fun in the future.