Heather Edmonds, MLIS, AHIP-D, FAAO 
Director of Library Services 
New England College of Optometry 

Editor’s Note: This month, we are celebrating Heather Edmonds, who has served as a Librarian Selector for Doody’s Core Titles since 2020.  

Provide a brief description of your library and its services. 

I’m the director of the library at the New England College of Optometry (NECO) in Boston, where our role is to help the vision scientists, clinicians, faculty, and students who make up our community find, use, and evaluate information. We have two other terrific librarians on staff. We’re small, but mighty!  

How did you get started in health sciences librarianship? What brought you to the profession? 

I knew I wanted to be a librarian while doing research for my thesis in college. After finishing library school in 2005, I worked four or five different part-time positions in various library environments – technical services, public, elementary school, NECO – to figure out what I liked best. I left all of them to spend a year teaching English in France. While I was abroad, the then-director at NECO offered me a full-time technical services position for when I returned. I’ve had the privilege of being here ever since.  

Share two of the most important issues facing the profession today and why they’re important to address. 

We’d be remiss as health sciences librarians to ignore the significant changes that are happening at the federal level, and the impact that this is already having on our ability to do what we do. Our work has never been more difficult, but it has also never been more important. I’m incredibly grateful for the wonderful colleagues with whom I meet regularly to discuss how we can continue providing the highest level of service possible. Additionally, generative AI has and will continue to affect both the profession and health information in too many ways to list! It’s scary and exciting all at once, but what I can say for sure is that, much as we were when the internet first became widely available, we are absolutely ready to meet it head-on. 

What is one innovation, product, or service in your library that you’re excited about? 

It would be an understatement to say that the project management software Notion has completely transformed the way our library staff operates. We use it for project management, ERM, tracking interactions, budgeting, brainstorming, and even as a content management system for our recently updated website. The possibilities are endless with this software. I could talk about Notion all day! 

What aspects of your work keep you most professionally motivated? 

Working in a small library where you have to wear many hats and think outside the box is fantastic. There is no “typical day” – in the morning I might be working on a systematic review, by midday I’m troubleshooting an eResource, and in the afternoon my staff and I are planning our annual K-Pop Nite. Between the variety and the fact that I get to work and collaborate with incredible colleagues, I have the best job in the world. 

Why have you selected for the last six editions of Doody’s Core Titles? 

I’ve been a vision science librarian for 18 years. When a spot opened to select for the Optometry specialty, it seemed like a natural fit. I believe the work Doody’s does to identify high-quality health information is important. 

Anything else you’d like to share? 

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all the dedicated colleagues I’ve had the joy of working with over the years as part of the Association of Vision Science Librarians (AVSL). I’m a member of many wonderful professional groups, but AVSL is truly my “home.” I have learned so much from each of you. Let’s keep working hard to make our respective collections and services even better!