Kelsey Cowles, Ann Glusker, Aimee Gogan, Alicia Lillich, Margie Sheppard, Elaina Vitale, Liz Waltman, Tess Wilson, and Amanda J. Wilson

“ The NNLM WWG is extremely appreciative of the work their academic library partners have done to bolster the success of #CiteNLM and hopes that these collaborations will grow even stronger for future editing campaigns. Partner feedback has consistently proved essential for shaping the future direction of #CiteNLM and academic libraries will continue to be a core audience for the WWG’s efforts to improve health information on Wikipedia, even as the WWG continues to think about ways to effectively tailor the campaigns for new audiences. ”

“ Wikipedia editing is a form of crowdsourcing and an avenue for public participation in the dissemination of high-quality research and health information. As of December 2020, over 400 individuals across the country have participated in #CiteNLM by editing over 600 health articles. Seven academic libraries have also contributed by hosting affiliated events. ”

“ Much of NNLM’s work aims to promote health equity and informed decision-making by increasing digital health literacy. Improving the reliability of Wikipedia’s health pages is one way to meet Internet users where they are already comfortable looking for health information online for themselves and their families. ”

“ UMB noted that holding an in-person #CiteNLM event simply allowed for a fun, collaborative library program to engage faculty and students from across campus without much staff time needed for development. Several institutions cited the high number of residents and medical students utilizing Wikipedia on a daily basis as a driving factor. Participating in a #CiteNLM event allows medical students to learn more about this information resource and have a hand in directly improving health information widely utilized by providers and patients. ”

“ At the live event, participants received a brief training and then joined breakout sessions to edit articles related to the campaign topic of maternal and child health, chat and ask questions about Wikipedia, and connect with the #CiteNLM community. Over thirty editors participated in this virtual event and many have expressed excitement about making their first Wikipedia edit during the session.
Leading up to the fall 2020 event, a new outreach campaign was launched aimed at reaching library and information science (LIS) students. ”

“ Following the now-repeated success of #CiteNLM, WWG members began to give presentations and poster sessions about the campaigns at a variety of conferences around the country. Presentations remain an important component of #CiteNLM outreach and have led to new professional connections and more detailed self-reflection. ”