Information and supportive literature in aid organizations the case of Israel

This paper discusses the use of information and supportive literature in aid organizations. The role of the aid organizations is to provide assistance to people in need. These establishments are the ideal place to receive information, support and encouragement. The basic assumption of this article is that getting the right information at the right time and reading books that are a source of encouragement and support, can reduce stress and help people in vulnerable situations. This assumption is proved by the science of psychoneuroim-munology and the science of bibliotherapy. In order to examine if the aid organizations indeed have information centers and libraries for their members arid the families of members, a survey was conducted among all the aid organizations in Israel in the year 1994. The results of this survey are both interesting and rather disappointing. The survey indicates that only 35.5% of the aid organizations have libraries. The people using the libraries are members, volunteers and medical rofessionals. In most of the cases, there is no professional librarian. Most of the aid organizations do not have information centers. The majority of libraries would like to expand their activities but only one third felt the need for information services. The author suggests a few solutions in order to improve the situation and overcome budget problems.