The term Whole Person Librarianship dates back to 2012 when a library student began considering the human service gaps in traditional library service (Zettervall, 2017). The traditional library service model seeks to connect users with resources and services related to those resources. Over time, librarians began noticing increased reference questions related to the user's life outside the library (Westbrook, 2015). Questions such as how to access tax forms and where to find information about doctors and medicine became more common. But, in some urban areas, librarians often had questions from patrons needing much more focused help. These patrons were increasingly asking for help with housing, food insecurity, employment issues, and how to access other community resources such as social workers and lawyers.
Using service models borrowed from the social work environment, Whole Person Librarianship finds ways to attend to the needs of its community that extend far beyond traditional reference and resource applications. Libraries sought to reach far beyond borrowing methodology and soft skills from social work (Soska, 2020). Since social workers and libraries seemed to share common purposes and are valued community resources and comfortable spaces, collaborating with social workers to demonstrate library value to its community made sense.
The interactive map below shows where collaborations between libraries and social workers are happening worldwide. Simply navigate to the part of the world you are interested in and click the data point to find out more.
You can click to find:
adapted from:https://wholepersonlibrarianship.com/map/