The library staff are working remotely. We are caught in the middle of this thing. We are in the in-between. Normal isn’t normal anymore, whether we are on the front lines or waiting in our houses for the virus to peak and then flatten the curve. Some of you may have friends and/or family who are ill; others may have first responders in their families. Several are homeschooling children and trying to work at the same time and many are alone in small living spaces and feeling lonely or in a shared working space with a partner or roommate. That means all of us will be touched by the impact of this disease, one way or another.

Unfortunately, it will get worse, and harder to stay the course. At the beginning of week 4, the Boston mayor declared a city curfew from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. and has advised that all should wear masks in public. This is in anticipation of a steep increase in cases in the next few weeks (April time frame). It’s natural to be scared, nervous, and anxious during this period. But there is hope. History tells us this too will pass.

We at Countway are working together to get through this and we are starting to plan how we will work strategically upon our return to the office, some examples are outlined below:

• The Countway Administrative Team (CAT) has begun to meet regularly to talk about recession planning.
• Managers have met and discussed with all units the impact of the new building on workflows and have a plan for when the renovation is complete.
• The staff has been helping our faculty, staff, and students within our community and affiliate hospitals in remarkable ways. I have been documenting the stories and they are heartwarming. This has truly been the bright light in all of this, please keep sharing these stories!
• We have learned new ways to work; some of which may continue upon our return.
• We are catching up on projects that may have been on hold that will improve access to information.
• We are experimenting with cross-unit, cross-functional project-based teams, by giving staff who may have not previously worked together with an opportunity to learn new work and share their expertise.

I have made it my personal goal during this time to communicate regularly with HMS administration regarding the important contributions staff are making around the following three themes:

• The library as second responder (we are contributing to the information needs of clinicians, researchers, and students). The building may be closed but the library is OPEN.
• We are practicing social honoring while we are social distancing (we are focused on our humanity, our getting to the “we”).
• Although our electronic resources are particularly important during this time, we also need the library building and the library renovation. What we have learned during this time, is that people miss human connection and want to be physically together. The Countway Library renovation addresses this need and must continue when the city opens construction again.

While we don’t know when this will end, looking at the list of what the staff are accomplishing during this difficult time gives me hope. Countway staff are a committed group of information experts. They are rising to the challenge and finding opportunities to help in times of isolation and despair. This will be Countway’s legacy. For that, I am most grateful.

Elaine