Research on Health Information Management in UK Health Think Tank Libraries

Lin Yirong
Library of the Party School of Guangdong Provincial Committee of CPC (Guangdong Institute of Public Administration), Guangzhou

Abstract

This study employs network survey and interview methods to investigate the current state of health information management in UK health think tank libraries. The research finds that health information management in these libraries can be categorized into four major aspects: health information collection, information organization, information analysis, and compilation/dissemination of outcomes. The process adheres to four key principles: evidence grading, open access, privacy protection, and professional competence. Based on these findings, the study offers the following insights: strengthening full lifecycle management of health information; adhering to professional knowledge systems and standard norms; and enhancing orderly guidance at the macro level.

Keywords: Health think tank; Library; Health information management

Health think tanks are professional institutions dedicated to health research that aim to influence public health decision-making through systematic research, rigorous analysis, and scientific policy recommendations. UK health think tanks are renowned for their long developmental history and extensive influence internationally. Emphasizing both data collection and organization, they stress evidence-based in-depth analysis and scientific research, conducting high-level health information management. This is crucial for generating high-quality decision-support materials, policy consultation outcomes, and evidence-based policy recommendations. Under this conceptual framework, UK health think tanks have gradually recognized that with increasingly complex health governance issues, establishing professional libraries with the core task of analyzing health information is essential for producing high-quality decision-support materials.

The King's Fund Library, for instance, established the world's largest health-focused collection in 1945. The Nuffield Foundation and The Health Foundation have jointly employed co-word clustering and machine learning algorithms to systematically analyze knowledge resources accumulated in their repositories, with relevant conclusions adopted by think tank personnel and transformed into policy consultation recommendations. These practices demonstrate that health information management in UK think tank libraries successfully transforms health data into policy practice.

Health think tank libraries are specialized information institutions that integrate health data resources and provide medical knowledge services. Against the backdrop of China's initiatives for efficient health data utilization and enhanced information management capacity across health institutions, health think tank libraries should play a pivotal role. However, investigations reveal that among Chinese health think tanks, only a small percentage have established dedicated library and information departments, with most relying on their affiliated university libraries. This phenomenon results in fragmented health information collection and organization, while simultaneously limiting the professionalism of intelligence analysis and knowledge mining.

2. Current State of Health Information Management in UK Health Think Tank Libraries

UK health think tank libraries have assumed critical functions of evidence integration and knowledge translation. Their health information management encompasses four progressive stages: health information collection, information organization, information analysis, and outcome compilation/dissemination.

Health Information Collection:
Given that their service targets are highly professional and scientific policy research institutions, UK health think tank libraries attach great importance to the comprehensiveness and richness of collected health information. Their information sources are extremely broad and authoritative, including national government statistical offices and health departments, the World Health Organization, public health incident records, and data on health workforce and infrastructure across countries. Information themes cover various health influencing factors. Information types extend beyond conventional academic literature to include patents, standards, unpublished manuscripts, experimental data, and other grey literature.

UK health think tank libraries emphasize autonomous information collection, employing two primary methods. First, under the coordination of the UK Department of Health and Social Care, they form intelligence collection teams to conduct systematic health surveys. The most typical example is the annual dental health survey conducted by the Nuffield Foundation Library. Similarly, the Nesta Library has conducted weekly food surveys since 2014, collecting over 100,000 food-related data entries weekly from six major UK retail websites regarding pricing, positioning, and origin details. This vast information volume has become an important data source for food safety research. Second, librarians independently conduct data collection based on information collection questionnaires compiled by their think tanks, utilizing established scales such as cardiovascular disease surveys and chronic bronchitis questionnaires.

Information Organization:
Given the wide-ranging sources of health information, UK health think tank libraries are committed to building meticulous cataloging and indexing systems for logical and refined classification and management. The information classification systems they construct not only cover thematic content but also support sorting by publication date, information quality, and frequency. UK health think tank libraries strictly adopt medical classification systems such as MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) and ICD (International Classification of Diseases). Some libraries also reference relevant standards or frameworks in medical research to classify health information. For instance, Nesta Library references evidence grading concepts from evidence-based medicine, categorizing health information into experimental evidence, systematic reviews, and analytical information.

Notably, UK health think tank libraries conduct specialized management of specific information by building thematic databases. These databases primarily fall into two categories: first, specialized datasets constructed based on unique information resources of each institution. For example, the Nuffield Foundation Library's "QualityWatch" platform integrates emergency care and overall quality data from health and social care systems, becoming an important tool for evaluating the quality of the UK health service system. Second, think tank achievement archives aimed at long-term preservation of research outcomes and demonstration of institutional strength. All surveyed libraries have established institutional repositories to preserve and showcase think tank research achievements. The King's Fund Library's digital archive, for instance, preserves over 4,000 digital documents published by the think tank since 1901, constituting an indispensable database resource for studying the history of medical research in London.

Information Analysis:
High-quality information analysis serves as the critical link connecting data to decision-making. UK health think tank libraries employ advanced information analysis tools to provide scientific foundations for public health decision-making. In 2024, librarians at Cambridge University Medical Library conducted large-scale cohort studies and statistical analysis on national cancer and genomic data and clinical treatment records submitted by think tank researchers, revealing pathogenic mechanisms and prognostic factors for multiple cancers and providing valuable insights for developing optimal treatment protocols.

In addition to collaborative analysis, UK health think tank libraries have independently conducted numerous high-quality information analysis projects. Nesta Library conducted in-depth analysis of nationwide hospital records, examining chronic disease incidence rates across different regions and providing valuable materials for local health departments to optimize resource allocation. To support real-time, intelligent data analysis, UK health think tank libraries have developed advanced information analysis tools beyond simple search engines. The Health Foundation Library's multifunctional analysis tool integrates multiple code repositories for processing specific health datasets and supports importing various open-source templates, including Google Maps and ranking charts, to provide powerful technical support for think tank personnel conducting health data analysis.

Outcome Compilation and Dissemination:
Outcome transformation represents the ultimate goal of information analysis and scientific research. To enhance their influence and visibility, UK health think tank libraries implement systematic strategies focused on outcome compilation and communication. In terms of outcome compilation, libraries systematically organize and integrate research reports and policy recommendations to form high-quality comprehensive research reports and knowledge products. These products, published regularly through rigorous processes and professional standards, serve as important decision-making references for policymakers and industry experts.

UK health think tank libraries attach great importance to public-oriented dissemination work, employing diverse communication channels and platforms to enhance public health literacy. The Bow Group Library, for example, has established broadcast media channels that invite different researchers and information analysts each issue to communicate the latest research findings and perspectives to the public. Notably, UK health think tanks generally adhere to the "Trustworthy Health Information Principles" proposed by the UK Patient Information Forum when conducting public-oriented communication. This ensures that medical expertise can be conveyed to the public in accurate, understandable, and reliable ways while emphasizing communication skills and information visualization in medical knowledge dissemination.

3. Principles Guiding Health Information Management in UK Health Think Tank Libraries

UK health think tank libraries follow four fundamental principles throughout their health information management processes: evidence grading, open access, privacy protection, and professional competence. These principles serve as quality assurance benchmarks throughout the entire lifecycle.

Evidence Grading:
The quality of health information is influenced by multiple factors, including author expertise, research design rigor, and data collection reliability. Since information selection directly affects research quality, UK health think tank libraries strictly adhere to evidence grading principles, conducting validity judgment and hierarchical classification of data sources. Librarians classify common health information from high to low quality based on information quality, providing structured comparison tables based on evidence grading principles to assist researchers in information retrieval.

For instance, Cambridge University Medical Library requires librarians to fully consider information quality levels when selecting sources, classifying health information sources into core resources, recommended resources, and additional resources. Core resources ensure comprehensive coverage of all published literature in target fields, while recommended resources provide access to more comprehensive information when public literature cannot meet information needs. This hierarchical approach provides guidance for librarians and researchers in selecting information progressively.

Open Access:
Open access serves as an important driver for the dynamic development of the entire health information management lifecycle. Since 2015, when the UK Research Council released the Concordat on Open Research Data, UK health think tank libraries have significantly increased support for open sharing of health research data. In 2022, the Foundation Library built a socially open data platform using semantic web, APIs, AI, and cloud computing, promoting circulation and sharing of research data and code within think tanks.

These facilities not only facilitate internal data circulation but also enable external researchers to conveniently access and utilize these resources. The Youth Foundation Library has introduced crowdsourcing models and created data sandbox environments to further promote open sharing of research data. The James Hutton Institute Library explicitly aims to create an open science environment, embedding open science principles into all aspects of health information management.

Privacy Protection:
Privacy protection remains a critical boundary for information use throughout the health information management lifecycle. In 2022, the UK Department of Health and Social Care issued a call to prioritize health and medical privacy data protection. Eight health think tanks jointly issued statements committing to strict compliance with legal regulations, including the Health and Social Care Act 2012 and the Data Protection Act 2018.

Most UK health think tank libraries have established strict principles for collecting personal privacy information, implementing stringent restrictions on access permissions to sensitive information while using technical means to monitor and record all personal data access activities. These measures not only optimize allocation and efficient utilization of health information but also enhance researchers' ability to obtain the most relevant and authoritative information, providing strong support for improving scientific research quality and strengthening the evidence base.

Professional Competence:
As highly specialized medical libraries, health think tank libraries require librarians to possess solid library and information skills, extensive medical and health knowledge, and strong health information literacy. UK health think tank libraries attach great importance to staff professional development, providing a series of information professional skills training programs.

Cambridge University Medical Library offers both group systematic literature review training and personalized literature retrieval training for think tank personnel. The library also launched a "Data Champions" program, initially designed to provide research data management services and later expanded to policy intelligence analysis, medical frontier technology tracking, and personalized information customization services. Through multi-level continuing education activities and training on cutting-edge technology applications, these libraries significantly enhance staff professional competence and technical levels, thereby improving the quality and efficiency of health information management.

4. Implications

Despite significant differences between the UK and China in health systems, institutional structures, and political-cultural contexts, the experience of UK health think tank libraries in health information management offers valuable references for China's health think tank library and information service departments.

Strengthening Full Lifecycle Management of Health Information:
Currently, most Chinese health think tank library and information service departments have not yet formulated specialized health information collection strategies, which greatly limits the comprehensiveness, systematicity, and frontier awareness of health information resources. It is recommended that Chinese health think tank library and information service departments learn from UK experience by systematically collecting and integrating authoritative medical databases such as PubMed and Embase, while real-time monitoring official information released by WHO and national health departments. They should also emphasize collecting grey literature such as clinical trial data, conference abstracts, and preprint materials to enhance the comprehensiveness and frontier nature of health information resources.

In information organization, most Chinese departments currently use general classification systems, which cannot meet the needs for fine-grained classification of medical information. They can learn from UK practices by establishing multi-angle indexing systems that reveal the internal connections of fragmented information and provide users with more convenient multi-logic retrieval pathways. In information analysis, Chinese departments generally provide limited professional bibliometric analysis services. They can借鉴 UK experience by employing advanced data science tools and knowledge graph technologies to reveal complex medical relationships and gradually achieve contextualized intelligence analysis and knowledge services.

Adhering to Professional Knowledge Systems and Standard Norms:
When addressing specific information analysis challenges, the experience accumulated by UK health think tank libraries can provide references for Chinese counterparts. UK libraries strictly adhere to knowledge systems and standards in medicine and library/information science. In the information organization phase, they adopt medical classification methods like MeSH and ICD for fine-grained classification. In the information dissemination phase, they follow trustworthy health information principles to ensure accurate, understandable, and reliable communication of medical expertise.

Given that medical literature and evidence resources are diverse yet require individual precision, China could introduce medical library and information science standards to standardize health information management. When constructing medical big data platforms, departments must strictly comply with the "Guiding Opinions of the General Office of the State Council on Promoting and Regulating the Development of Health Medical Big Data Applications" to ensure health medical big data serves as a key national strategic resource. In conducting medical technology novelty searches, references can be made to standards formulated by the China Academic Library & Information System to ensure quality.

Enhancing Orderly Guidance at the Macro Level:
In addition to health think tank library and information service departments improving themselves, orderly guidance at the policy level is equally essential. Currently, only a small number of Chinese health think tanks have established dedicated library and information departments, with most relying on affiliated university libraries, resulting in fragmented management. It is recommended to encourage medical librarians to gradually integrate into health think tank research processes, providing personalized information and knowledge services to help health researchers save time and effort in obtaining medical literature.

This approach can not only stimulate the service potential of domestic medical libraries and create new pathways for their participation in new-type think tank construction but also help gradually build a multi-party coordinated health information service system. By drawing on experiences from institutions like the National Library of China and Tsinghua University Library in decision support and disciplinary frontier analysis, health think tank libraries can actively explore providing in-depth knowledge services such as industry trend analysis and policy interpretation, thereby enhancing information service quality and strengthening the application effects and social benefits of research outcomes.

5. Conclusion

The health information management practices of UK health think tank libraries have gradually matured, forming a progressive four-stage process encompassing information collection, organization, analysis, and compilation/dissemination. Data sources are extensive and authoritative, ensuring health information is both comprehensive and systematic through systematic health surveys and autonomous data collection. By constructing thematic databases for specialized management of specific information and employing advanced information analysis tools, they provide scientific data support for medical and health decision-making. The compilation and dissemination of outcomes not only enhance think tanks' social influence but also improve public understanding of public policies and research findings.

UK health think tank libraries adhere to four principles—evidence grading, open access, privacy protection, and professional competence—throughout their health information management processes, ensuring quality and sustainability of information management from data collection to outcome dissemination. For Chinese health think tank library and information service departments, improvements can be made in three aspects: strengthening full lifecycle management of health information, adhering to professional knowledge systems and standard norms, and enhancing orderly macro-level guidance. While leveraging their relatively high knowledge service levels to provide certain intelligence analysis and data mining services, these departments still need to improve their specificity in medical and health domain services. Encouraging health think tank libraries and libraries affiliated with medical universities to learn from UK and domestic experiences in decision support and disciplinary frontier analysis will enable them to actively explore providing in-depth knowledge services, thereby playing greater roles in health information service system construction.

Notes:
① This information was obtained from an interview with Ruth Nitkiewic, a member of the Information and Knowledge Services team at the King's Fund Library, regarding details of the library's health information collection work.
② The Open Think Tank Network (OTT) is currently the world's largest think tank research institution, having begun compiling an open directory of global think tanks in 2016.
③ The Global Go To Think Tank Index Report is the most authoritative global think tank ranking report, compiled by the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) at the University of Pennsylvania.
④ This think tank is a university-affiliated think tank under the Cambridge University School of Clinical Medicine, served by the Cambridge University Medical Library.
⑤ This information was obtained from an interview with Lizzie Ingram, Data Management Specialist at Nesta Library, regarding details of the library's health information collection work.
⑥ This information was obtained from an interview with Martha Roberts, Digital Communications and Content Manager at the Cambridge Centre for Health Services Research, regarding the latest developments in information analysis work conducted on data collected and submitted by think tank personnel in 2024.
⑦ This information was obtained from an interview with Daniel, librarian at the Bow Group Library, regarding the library's latest developments in information analysis work in 2024.
⑧ This information was obtained from an interview with Leonie Kawczynski, External Liaison Officer at the Youth Foundation, regarding the think tank library's main initiatives in supporting open access in 2024.