GREENWICH, Conn. (AP) - The day Andrea Anthony was scheduled for a knee replacement, she told her surgeon her knee wasn’t the only problem. On that November day at Stamford Hospital, she was experiencing stomach pain “like somebody had punched me.”

Sometimes, it lasted for eight hours; other times it was eight minutes. Out of precaution, her doctor decided to do an ultrasound.

“They discovered gallstones,” said Anthony, a Greenwich resident who is a member of the Representative Town Meeting. “They (took) it out because it can cause complications.”

But after that June surgery, she was still experiencing pain and had trouble playing her usual game of golf. Even bending over proved challenging. Doctors didn’t have time to answer her long list of questions, so Anthony took matters into her own hands.

And she discovered a new resource at a consumer health event at First Presbyterian Church about a month ago. She attended a talk with Veronica Bilenkin, a consumer health librarian at Greenwich Hospital who helps community members find reliable health-related information, free of charge.

“I wanted to understand what was hurting and why,” said Anthony. But “I couldn’t go into a regular library and spend all day looking at books. I wanted, ‘What to look for, what could go wrong, how to fix it.’”

She paid a visit to Bilenkin’s office, leaving the librarian a note with a list of her health concerns.

“She called back the next day,” Anthony said.

The Medical Library got its start when two anonymous donors approached Dr. Steven Mickley about their desire to fund a new community health program.

Named after Mickley by the donors, the library opened at Greenwich Hospital in March 2015. He used part of the funding to hire a consumer health librarian to work with the public.

“The idea was that the public is inundated with health care and health information, all over the internet, a lot of which is totally inaccurate,” said Mickley. “So what we wanted to do was give the public a way to find trustworthy evidence-based information that they could use to make appropriate health-care decisions.”

Bilenkin describes herself as a “professional web surfer,” who also raises awareness about her services while out in the community. When she’s not offering patrons assistance with finding health care information, she manages an online resource.

In a digital environment where misinformation is rampant, Bilenkin said her role is especially important.

“We think the internet has all the answers at our feet,” she said. “More information does not mean it’s good information. I feel like librarians are advocates for being able to find the right information out of all of that mess.”

One thing she tells clients is to be wary of Google search results.

“If you type anything health-related into Google the chances are, the first thing that’s gonna come up is WebMD, and it’s not a coincidence. (They pay) Google a lot to be placed as a first result for anything health-related,” Bilenkin said.

But just because it shows up first, that doesn’t mean it’s the most reliable information, she tells her clients.

So far, most of Bilenkin’s requests have come from seniors, who are concerned about Alzheimer’s, opioid overdoses, health scams and dieting. She speaks in the community about prevalent health issues such as hypertension and high blood pressure.

She also wants to make sure her clients understand the sometimes complicated information related to health care, insurance and medical conditions. According to her research, only 12 percent of U.S. adults are proficient in health literacy. More than a third of U.S. adults - or 77 million people - have difficulty comprehending instructions.

“These skills include anything from measuring medication, understanding a nutrition label, calculating premiums, copays and deductibles,” said Bilenkin. “These are all very important skills that … a large majority of Americans are lacking.”

One person she has helped is Greenwich resident John Chew, who shifted to a plant-based diet after being diagnosed with amyloidosis, a rare disease that causes a buildup of amyloid proteins in the heart, kidneys, liver or other organs.

Since the dietary switch, Chew has had some questions about nutrition. Like Anthony, he also decided to visit Bilenkin after hearing her speak at First Presbyterian Church.

“She was very helpful and kind and patient,” he said. “She is a good resource, so if I get stuck on something, I will call or email her.”

In the future, Bilenkin hopes to partner with nonprofits, schools and other community-based organizations to encourage and improve health literacy. But she also reminds her patrons that while she offers them resources, ultimately, their health care provider has the “final say.”

“For those who are aware of my service and who have that (health care-related) anxiety, I say, ‘Please come to me and I’ll try to help you as best as I can,’” she said. “These days, especially, doctors do not have the time to answer every single question that you have. I’d like to be just a safe haven for people to come and feel less alone in their anxiety or suffering.”

Online: https://bit.ly/2KWQ0GH

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