The Geeks Bearing Gifts: Unwrapping New Technology Trends class will be offered at the Houston Academy of Medicine-Texas Medical Center Library in Houston, TX on April 25, 2008 from 8:30 am - 12:30 pm.

This class is intended to provide a fun, fast-paced, and informative introduction to and update on today’s hottest technology trends. Program participants will be able to identify technology trends and they will understand how these trends will impact or can be integrated into traditional library services. Content will be presented with a “can-do” focus intended to encourage participants to investigate at least one technology for implementation in their institution. Course structure will include brief vignettes and demonstrations of a wide variety of technologies. Some of the topics to be covered include instant messaging, podcasting, blogs and wikis, social networking sites, collaboration software, and more.

A full description is available at: http://nnlm.gov/training/geekgifts/

To register for the class:

http://resource.library.tmc.edu/classes/register/form.cfm?libID=2&
className=32&classTime=Apr%2025%208:30AM%20-%2012:30PM&
title=Unwrapping%20New%20Technology%20Trends&subtitle=Geeks%20Bearing%20Gifts:%20
Unwrapping%20New%20Technology%20Trends%20(Taught%20by%20the%20NN/LM%20SCR)

The registration deadline is April 21, 2008. Please contact Shikun (”KK”) Jiang if you have any questions.

Want to know more about Web 2.0? Want to earn 8 hours of free Continuing Education (CE) credit from the Medical Library Association (MLA)?

The MLA Social Networking Task Force is offering an 8 week free continuing education class to its members on second generation web tools from March 10 to May 4, 2008. Class content will include:

• Blogging and RSS
• Wikis
• Social networking
• Social bookmarking and tagging
• Web office tools
• Photo sharing
• Online hosted video
• Mashups

This will be a good opportunity for you to learn about and to get hands-on experience on the Web 2.0 technologies. No prior knowledge is required. The instructional level is for beginner to intermediate users of Web 2.0 applications.

Visit the MLANET members-only area for more information and to register: http://www.mlanet.org/members/snstf_ce.html?focus_20080221

This class is for MLA members only. Registration deadline is March 9, 2008.

Trainers are invited to download ready-made educational materials for training responders on the usage of WISER. In addition to a module that provides an introduction to WISER, scenario-based presentations are available so a training unit can be built which meets the needs, interests, and time constraints of your department or organization.

For more details, please see the http://wiser.nlm.nih.gov/training.html

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) has developed an online guide for Research Universities on the new NIH Public Access Policy. The webpage provides an overview of the policy, links to instructions on depositing articles into PubMed Central, and institutional responses to the policy. The guide also lists several roles that librarians can play in implementing the policy in their institutions including offering workshops on depositing articles, supplying the research office with information on the policy, and work with investigators to facilitate compliance with the policy.

For more information:

Association of Research Libraries: Guide for Research Universities

Reuters Health, February 14, 2008: Many of the government-supplied trailers housing thousands of people displaced by Hurricane Katrina contain potentially dangerous levels of the chemical formaldehyde, U.S. federal health officials said on Thursday.

“In some of these situations, the formaldehyde levels are high enough where there could be a health hazard to the people who are living there,” U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Julie Gerberding said.

Gerberding told reporters in New Orleans, which was devastated by the 2005 storm, and by telephone link that the CDC is urging the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency to get people out of the trailers “as quickly as possible and certainly before the warm summer months arrive.”

For more information: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_61146.html

The National Library of Medicine has released the NLM Drug Information Portal http://druginfo.nlm.nih.gov. This resource provides the public, healthcare professionals, and researchers with a gateway to current and accurate drug information from the National Library of Medicine and to other key government agencies.

The Drug Information Portal offers a varied selection of resources and focused topics in medicine and drug-related information, with links to individual resources with drug information and summaries tailored to various audiences. General drug categories from MeSH are also included in the Drug Portal records.

More than 15,000 drugs are available for searching. The search interface requires only a drug name; a spellchecker is provided. Information buttons and balloon pop-ups guide the user by providing helpful hints or a description of the resource and links to the source website.

Search results include links to related drug information in MedlinePlus®, AIDSinfo®, Medline/PubMed®, LactMed, HSDB®, Dietary Supplements Labels Database, TOXLINE®, DailyMed®, ClinicalTrials.gov, PubChem, NIAID Anti-HIV/OI Database, ChemIDplus®, Drugs@FDA, DEA, and USA.gov.

The National Network of Libraries of Medicine, South Central Region is now offering the class ABCs of DNA: Unraveling the Mystery of Genetics Information for Consumers. This 4-hour hand-on 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, including, but not limited to: Genetics Home Reference, ClinicalTrials.gov, NORD (National Organization for Rare Disorders), and MedlinePlus.

Upon successful completion of this class, each participant will receive 4 hours of continuing education credit awarded by the Medical Library Association. This class is approved by the Medical Library Association for the Consumer Health Information Specialization Program (http://mlanet.org/education/chc/). For more information about the class, please go to: http://nnlm.gov/training/genetics/index.html.

If you are interested in hosting this class at your institution free of charge, please contact Karen Vargas at karen.vargas@exch.library.tmc.edu.

Do you want to know more about your own genetic traits and conditions? Are you curious about genetic issues that you hear about in the news? Are you uncomfortable when customers ask you questions about genetics?

The National Network of Libraries of Medicine, South Central Region will present the class ABCs of DNA: Unraveling the Mystery of Genetics Information for Consumers at the Oklahoma Department of Libraries (ODL) in Oklahoma City on March 12, 2008. This free, 4-hour hand-on 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, including, but not limited to: Genetics Home Reference, ClinicalTrials.gov, NORD (National Organization for Rare Disorders), and MedlinePlus.

Upon successful completion of this class, each participant will receive 4 hours of continuing education credit awarded by the Medical Library Association. This class is approved by the Medical Library Association for the Consumer Health Information Specialization Program (http://mlanet.org/education/chc/). If you have any questions, feel free to contact Karen Vargas at karen.vargas@exch.library.tmc.edu.

ABCs of DNA: Unraveling the Mystery of Genetics Information for Consumers
March 12, 2008, 9:30 am to 3:00 pm
Instructor: Karen Vargas, Consumer Health Outreach Coordinator, NN/LM SCR
Oklahoma Department of Libraries, Computer Lab
To register for this class, contact Steve Beleu at sbeleu@oltn.odl.state.ok.us
For more information about the class: http://nnlm.gov/training/genetics/index.html

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Dear Network Members,

Today, February 8, is my last day as NN/LM SCR Associate Director: a position I have found to be one of the most rewarding, challenging, and unique opportunities in medical librarianship. I am grateful to have had this opportunity to work with my colleagues, both in the South Central Region and throughout the US. Working in the RML was never a goal. Honestly, I wasn’t sure what an RML was or did until I joined the NN/LM SCR as the Network Coordinator in 1992! And almost every week during these near 16 years, someone has heard me say, “They don’t teach this to you in library school.” Perhaps that has been the attraction of this environment for me–and the unique position an NN/LM SCR staff member has to give to the profession and those we serve.

When I returned to the NN/LM SCR in 1998 as the Associate Director, I had 4 goals: 1. expand outreach opportunities for Network members and NN/LM SCR staff to meet the health information needs of a broad spectrum of health professionals and consumers, 2. strengthen the education program, 3. cross-train the staff at all levels to ensure quality service for Network members, and 4. keep the NN/LM SCR Staff employed. The NN/LM SCR today reflects these accomplishments. I did not accomplish these goals alone.

A heartfelt thanks goes to current and former NN/LM SCR Staff for working with me to move the SCR forward; our Network members for your support of the NN/LM SCR; NN/LM colleagues for their collegiality, and to the NLM for support of our program, Network members, and NN/LM SCR staff. All of you helped me accomplish what I returned to do.

The time has come for a colleague to have an opportunity to lead the South Central Region; I encourage you to consider it. The position will challenge you; it will provide you with numerous and diverse opportunities to work with the greatest group of regional and national colleagues, and with health professionals and consumers. It is rewarding.

I am looking forward to the challenges, opportunities, and continued work with the NN/LM, on a broader level, in my new position as Outreach Librarian in the National Network Office at the NLM. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with my SCR friends and colleagues and will miss seeing you on a regular basis. I hope to see you at meetings where we can catch up!

Renée

The National Library of Medicine is pleased to announce that Ms. Renee Bougard will join the NN/LM National Network Office (NNO) as the Outreach Librarian, effective March 31.

Ms. Bougard has more than 22 years of experience in health sciences libraries, with 16 of those years in positions at the NN/LM South Central Regional Medical Library at the Houston Academy of Medicine - Texas Medical Center Library. Ms. Bougard served as the Network Coordinator for the South Central Region (SCR) from 1992-1998 and as the Associate Director of the Regional Medical Library (RML) since 1998. In her role as Associate Director, she was responsible for the day to day operation of the RML and its highly productive network and outreach programs. Prior to these positions, she was the director of the Lake Charles Memorial Hospital Library in Lake Charles, Louisiana, worked in several other hospital libraries, was the manager of user support services at Texas A & M University Medical Sciences Library, and worked at the Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine Library.

In 2006, Ms. Bougard received the Medical Library Association’s President’s Award in recognition of her valuable contributions to the Hurricane Katrina disaster relief efforts. She brings with her an extensive knowledge of the NN/LM and its programs as well as strong project management experience. We look forward to having Renee join the NNO staff and continue her contributions to the NN/LM in a different capacity.

Angela B. Ruffin, Ph.D.
Head
NN/LM National Network Office
National Library of Medicine
http://nnlm.gov
The National Library of Medicine is part of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services