Creating MedlinePlus Microtutorials for Community Health Workers Through Community Collaboration

Background The Network of the National Library of Medicine Region 5 partnered with the community-based organization The Next Door, Inc (TDNI) to develop a series of microtutorial videos about using MedlinePlus.gov for community health workers. The objective of the video series was to provide community health workers with a foundational understanding of MedlinePlus.gov as a resource for locating reliable health information, which could be used in their own research or taught as a resource for their clients.Case presentation Region 5 leveraged a collaborative, iterative development process with TNDI to create the microtutorial videos. Microtutorial topics were mutually selected by Region 5 and TNDI staff, and scripts were reviewed by subject matter experts at the National Library of Medicine. A pilot video was reviewed by a focus group of community health workers, and their feedback was integrated into the development of the remainder of the microtutorial videos. The final series of seven microtutorial videos were posted to YouTube and promoted through a variety of communication channels.Conclusions Since being posted in November 2023, the MedlinePlus microtutorial video series has been viewed a total of 2,996 times. Collaborating with a community partner who had expertise working with the target audience of the video series was a key factor in developing learning resources that incorporated engaging elements, relevant examples, and plain language. Future work will include creating Spanish-language versions of the microtutorial video series.