HSL’s Former NLM Fellow, Emily Vardell, publishes book on Affordable Care Act

Emily Vardell, a former National Library of Medicine Associate Fellow at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Health Sciences Library and doctoral student at the UNC School of Information and Library Science (SILS), authored her first book, The Medical Library Association Guide to Answering Questions about the Affordable Care Act.

During her fellowship at the HSL, Vardell worked with Mellanye Lackey, the former Global Public Health Librarian on the library’s global health initiatives.

Vardell began her Ph.D. coursework in August 2012 and has focused on health insurance literacy. Her research is focused on health insurance literacy and health insurance decision-making.

“Because so many individuals are making health insurance decisions for the first time following the Affordable Care Act, health insurance literacy research is more imperative than ever,” Vardell said.

In June 2014, Vardell learned that the Medical Library Association needed an editor for a book on this topic. As soon as she saw it, she knew she wanted to be involved. By September, Vardell was working “quickly and intensely” to meet the editor’s tight deadline. Drafts from her co-authors were completed in January 2015 and the book was completed in March.

Although Vardell’s dissertation will focus on employer-sponsored insurance, she was very glad to have an opportunity to research and write about the Affordable Care Act.

“I feel passionately about the important role that librarians play in helping with Affordable Care Act implementation. As summarized by the Department of Health and Human Services (2008), “the success of health system reform will depend in large part on the capacity of individuals, families, and communities to make informed decisions about their health” (p. 7). I have this quote written on a note and displayed at my desk. It drives all of my research efforts and keeps me inspired to continue to advocate for the role librarians play in helping inform individuals, families, and communities.”

Vardell expects to complete her dissertation and graduate by May 2017 and hopes to teach in library and information science. She would like to continue her research in health information behavior and focus on health insurance literacy and other consumer health areas.

Brenda Linares, HSL Outreach Librarian and Coordinator of User Services Research Assistants, co-authored two chapters in the book, which provide authoritative Affordable Care Act information and resources for librarians working with both consumers and researchers.

References:

Department of Health and Human Services. (2008). America’s Health Literacy: Why We Need Accessible Health Information. An Issue Brief From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.