The path to Health Science Librarianship is paved with… supportive Health Science Librarians!

Posted by Carolyn Martin on January 5th, 2026 Posted in: Guest Post, Medical Librarians
Tags: librarian roles, libraries, medical librarian

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Though National Medical Librarians Month has passed, we are continuing to celebrate the medical librarians in the NNLM Region 5. We thank Ekaterini Papadopoulou, Health Science Librarian at Seattle University, sharing her path in health science librarianship and encouraging others to consider the profession.

I didn’t set out to become a medical or health science librarian, and even if I had there may not have been many tangible options for me during my library education to pursue a specialty, as the noted in Alex Kushner and Anthony McKinnon’s presentation, Where are all the health librarianship classes? noted at the recent PNC/MLA conference.

When I secured my first temporary contract, I was assigned to work as the liaison librarian for psychology, and I also supported my colleague with some instruction for nursing students. I found that the information ecosystem and the real-world impact of the skills that I got to teach were really rewarding. When looking for my next role, I was now hoping to be able to find something that would allow me to grow as health science librarian. Luckily for me, Bastyr University was hiring and I got to step into an exemplary embedded library instruction program at a Natural Health and Health Science University.

My colleagues had worked with clinical and basic-science faculty to embed Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM) library skills across the curriculum, including multiple touch-points across the first two years of the Naturopathic Doctorate. The library also had strong relationships with any research courses in the Midwifery, Nutrition, Sports Science, Psychology, Counseling, and Public Health programs. My colleagues were fantastic mentors, and showed me how to build a curriculum-responsive collection, how to negotiate with vendors, and how to engage students in critical appraisal, and a nuanced understanding of the research ecosystem.

While I cannot overstate the value of this mentorship, and the privilege of stepping into a library where our skills and value were held in very high esteem by the faculty and administration, I also want to note the value of formal professional development. All librarians were funded to attend the multi-day training, Supporting Clinical Care: An Institute in Evidence-based Practice for Medical Librarians. This kind of investment in developing not only the infrastructure for new librarians to step into, but also investing in robust professional development helped me ramp up to being a true “health science librarian” not in job title alone, but in skill-set and experience too.

After moving to my current position at Seattle University, the skills and knowledge I gained through the immersive mentorship I had at Bastyr were recognized and appreciated by my new colleagues, but as the only health science librarian, I wonder how would I have built the skills if this had been my first position? My director had already thought of that and was preparing to connect whoever was hired with the NNLM Region 5 and with HealWA! For new librarians, or folks stepping into health science responsibilities without a formal specialization, opportunities for mentorship, training and a connection with others in the same field is critical. The trainings and network offered by NNLM, and the PNC/MLA chapter that I was introduced to during my time at Bastyr have helped me stay informed and excited about my work. With just over 10 years experience in health science librarianship, I am now working with my colleagues, with MLIS students, and with the professional organizations I belong to make sure the ladders I climbed to get here don’t get kicked out from under the folks coming into the profession now. So, if you’re interested in health science librarianship – reach out!