The Maternal and Child Health Library has released three new resource briefs that provide information on electronic resources for public health professionals, health care providers, and families.

Genetics: Resource Brief is a guide to current resources on genetics and genomics, genetic testing, genetic counseling, genetic disorders, and newborn screening. This brief is available at http://www.mchlibrary.info/guides/genetics.html.

Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) and Families: Resource Brief focuses on psychological and social impacts of ART on children conceived via ART and on their families, as well as ethical and legal issues associated with ART.  It is available at http://www.mchlibrary.info/guides/ART.html.

Environmental Health: Resource Brief focuses on environmental issues that affect the health of pregnant women and children. This brief is available at http://www.mchlibrary.info/guides/environmentalhealth.html.

Maternal and Child Health Library resources on other maternal and child health topics are available at http://www.mchlibrary.info/guides.html.

The Refugee Health Information Network (RHIN - http://www.rhin.org) is a national collaborative partnership that has created a database of high quality multilingual, public health resources for those providing care to resettled refugees and asylees. RHIN is guided by refugee health professionals and health information specialists. All content available for downloading through RHIN is available at no charge.

RHIN resources include:

• Health education materials in various languages and formats (brochures, fact sheets, videos)

• Provider tools (including information on refugee populations and cultures)

• Links to related Web sites

RHIN also provides links to existing sites specializing in refugee health, access to medical information from the National Library of Medicine, and a variety of posted documents from health care providers throughout the country. In selecting materials RHIN places greatest emphasis on identifying, collecting, and making available materials that have been produced by U.S. Federal and state government agencies, major national organizations, academic institutions, international organizations, and non-governmental organizations. Web sites that are linked to by RHIN are constantly evaluated to ensure substantive information is provided and quality is maintained.

Join the Department of Health and Human Services for the online launch of the “Ask Medicare” Initiative for caregivers, partners and media.  The live webcast launch is Thursday, September 18, 2008 at 12pm to 1pm Eastern Time.  To learn more and to register for the webcast, visit http://www.hostingimagesemail.com/hhs/september2008/index.htm

In late October 2008, the National Library of Medicine (NLM) will discontinue using the American Hospital Association directory on MedlinePlus and MedlinePlus Go Local. NLM staff will develop a replacement page linking to selected resources for areas beyond the Go Local service area. The following alternative resources for hospital directory and service information are available: the American Hospital Directory, http://www.ahd.com/freesearch.php3; the US News Hospital Directory Search, http://health.usnews.com/directories/hospital-directory/; and UCompareHealthCare, http://www.ucomparehealthcare.com/hospital/.

According to a new study by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), there has been a dramatic increase in people looking for health care information.  While use of all information sources increased dramatically, use of the Internet for health information has doubled from 2001 to 2007.  Thirty-two percent of consumers—70 million adults—conducted online health searches in 2007, compared with 16 percent in 2001.  In addition, the greater an individual’s education level, the more likely he or she is to research a health condition.

To read the entire study:
“Striking Jump in Consumers Seeking Health Care Information”
Center for Studying Health System Change

In its recent article “Great .gov Web sites,” the Government Computer News (GCN) selected 10 great government websites. The National Library of Medicine’s MedlinePlus was the first website highlighted in this article.

GCN “Great .gov Web sites: These 10 sites show agencies putting the power of the Web to work”

The NN/LM SCR will present two classes at the University of Arkansas Medical School in Little Rock, AR on September 23, 2008.

Can You Hear Me Now? How to Make a Podcast
9:00 am to 11:00 am

This popular, hands-on class provides a fun and informative introduction to podcasting and how you can utilize this technology in your library. Students will make their own personal podcast! This course has been approved for 2 hours of Medical Library Association (MLA) Continuing Education credits.

ABCs of DNA: Unraveling the Mystery of Genetics Information for Consumers
12:30 pm to 4:30 pm

Librarians working with the public need to be aware of the issues surrounding genetics and resources to assist patrons in locating and evaluating sometimes complex and confusing information. This class explores basic concepts such as genes and chromosomes and offers an overview of genetic disorders, genetic testing, genetic counseling, and the Human Genome Project. Ethical and legal issues associated with genetic disorders will be covered with regard to privacy, discrimination, and potential legislative impact on medicine and society. A variety of reliable health information resources will be demonstrated. This 4-hour hands-on class is intended for consumers, public librarians, and health sciences librarians who work with the public.

For a detailed class schedule with times and locations see: http://nnlm.gov/scr/training/.

To register for a class: http://nnlm.gov/scr/training/register.html.

If you have any questions, please contact Karen Vargas at karen.vargas@exch.library.tmc.edu.

The National Network of Libraries of Medicine, South Central Region (NN/LM SCR) has scheduled two additional classes at the Houston Academy of Medicine-Texas Medical Center (HAM-TMC) Library this summer. Can You Hear Me Now? How to Make a Podcast, June 25, 2008, 9:00 am to 12:00 pm and ABCs of DNA: Unraveling the Mystery of Genetics Information for Consumers, August 12, 2008, 8:30 am to 12:30 pm.

To register for these classes, please go to: http://nnlm.gov/scr/training/.

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When a family member is sick, it can be difficult to keep friends updated on the latest news. Websites like CarePages and CaringBridge allow users to create free websites to update family and friends on a person’s changing health situation. Friends can respond to the posts online with messages of support. While both services provide different features, in both cases all that is needed to create a web page is an email address and an Internet connection.

Story from the Houston Chronicle: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/tech/news/5828320.html

The National Network of Libraries of Medicine, South Central Region (NN/LM SCR) announces a new web page for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Recovery: http://nnlm.gov/scr/services/prepare.html.

This web page highlights the NN/LM Emergency Preparedness & Response Toolkit, an emergency preparedness resource for libraries. Also included are links to emergency preparedness and recovery resources from the federal government; libraries, schools, and medical associations; community-based organizations; and animal health organizations.