Enhancing information literacy skills of undergraduate medical students : a curriculum and policy analysis

With the growing size and complexity of library collections coupled with the explosion of medical information in diverse formats, medical students require competencies in identifying, locating, retrieving, evaluating, synthesizing, and effectively utilizing information. There is a need, therefore, for medical students to acquire Information Literacy Skills (ILS) to master content, extend their investigations, and become more self-directed and life-long learners. The objectives of the study were to: examine the ILS curricula in place to facilitate the delivery of ILS among medical undergraduate students at Moi University and the University of Nairobi, and to assess the methods used to enhance the delivery of ILS among medical undergraduate students at Moi University and University of Nairobi. A pragmatic research paradigm with a mixed-methods approach was employed in the study. The study adopted a descriptive survey design applied within a multiple case study, combining concurrent triangulation in data collection and analysis. The target population was 685 students comprising 6th-year medicine, 5th-year dentistry, and 4th-year nursing students, and 182 lecturers. A combination of stratified simple random and purposive sampling techniques was employed to obtain 353 medical undergraduate students, 62 lecturers in medicine, dentistry, and nursing specializations, 2 university librarians, 2 heads of medical librarians, and 6 heads of departments. Data was collected using questionnaires and interview schedules. Quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and presented using frequency distribution tables and bar charts while qualitative data was analyzed thematically based on the objectives and research questions and presented as narrative. The findings revealed that although ILS curriculum and policy were available, there was little implementation and accountability, indicating that the ILS curriculum and policy had not been reviewed to incorporate contemporary ILS. The study concluded that students had not acquired sufficient ILS competencies due to a combination of factors such as poor perception of ILS, low pedagogical expertise among ILS trainers, and absence of sustainable ICT infrastructure to facilitate the acquisition and utilization of fourth ICT revolutions’ competencies. The study recommends that institutions of higher learning should introduce four ILS credit-scored course units.