In 2008, the University of Minnesota Health Sciences Libraries, in partnership with MINITEX Library Information Network (MINITEX), explored the feasibility of providing online access to a core set of clinical knowledge resources to health professionals in Minnesota. As part of this research, an environmental scan was performed to 1) provide an external analysis of selected projects with similar scope and 2) compare the key findings and lessons learned from the external analysis
against the project’s vision and mission. An external analysis of nine area-wide libraries was completed by reviewing project websites and completing a literature review. Findings from the environmental scan focused on the following areas: population served/eligibility, available information resources, technology and access restrictions, and funding models.