Big Cities Health Inventory (BCHI) - The Health of Urban USA
US National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) Metro Forum. 2007
Available online as PDF file [150p.] at: http://tinyurl.com/ytgw9g
“…a compendium of health status indicators produced in a comparative format for the 54 largest metropolitan areas in the United States.

Several key principles of public health practice depend on having reliable and current information regarding the health status of the community. The most obvious of these principles is evidence-based decision making and the core science of public health, epidemiology, is grounded in the collection and analysis of data.

Perhaps an even more fundamental principle is social justice and the recognition that eliminating health disparities is critical to improving the health of the overall population. For highly diverse urban populations, understanding the root causes of health disparities, including the synergistic interplay of social and environmental stressors that contribute to the erosion of resiliency in many of our nation’s urban communities, is necessary to accomplish this goal…” [posted by PAHO/WHO Equity Listserv]

In the NN/LM MCR region, cities covered include, Omaha, NE; St. Louis, MO; Denver, CO; Colorado Springs, CO; Kansas City, MO; and Witchita, KS [scb]

Come learn how to adopt this Web 2.0 tool and see how it can benefit your library during a one hour, online class to be held on Tuesday March 25, 2008 at 11 AM CT.

Contact Rebecca Brown (NN/LM Technology Liaison) at rbrown3@kumc.edu to sign up for the class. [rb]

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) is redesigning the NLM Gateway with a new user interface. The new look and features will be available March 10th. This web-based system lets users simultaneously search 23 NLM collections. For more information on the enhancements visit the NLM Technical Bulletin. [da]

ToxMystery, the National Library of Medicine’s interactive learning site for kids ages 7 to 10, now has a free printable brochure. Visitors to ToxMystery learn about everyday environmental hazards. Tour the ToxMystery house with Toxie the cat today! In English and Spanish. [da]

The Office of Civil Rights has put together an online guide for hospitals to refer to regarding “Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 which prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability by recipients of financial assistance from HHS… Under these laws, hospitals must communicate effectively with patients, family members, and visitors who are deaf or hard-of-hearing and must take reasonable steps to provide meaningful access to their programs for persons who have limited English proficiency.

Complementing these obligations are the new accreditation provisions promulgated by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, including the recently adopted requirement that hospitals collect information about the language and communications needs of patients.” This online guide will assist hospitals in meeting these responsibilities and to help ensure access to quality health care. http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hospitalcommunication.html scb

Wink is a freely available tutorial and presentation creation software program, aimed at creating tutorials on how to use software. With Wink, you can capture screenshots, add explanation boxes, buttons, titles and record your voice.

http://www.debugmode.com/wink/

[rb]

To address the need for leaders with expertise in addressing racial/ethnic disparities in health care, The Disparities Solutions Center is accepting applications for The Disparities Leadership Program for 2008-2009. The Disparities Leadership Program (DLP) is a yearlong executive education program designed for leaders from hospitals, health plans and other health care organizations - such as executive leaders, medical directors, directors of quality and directors of community benefits or multicultural affairs offices - who want to a. develop a strategic plan or b. advance a project to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in health care, particularly through quality improvement. This program is jointly sponsored by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and supported by Joint Commission Resources, Inc., an affiliate of the Joint Commission. CME/CNE credits will be provided through NCQA.

To learn more about the Disparities Leadership Program sponsored by the DSC, please read the DLP Request for Applications. http://www.massgeneral.org/disparitiessolutions/dlprogram.html

Free in Nebraska, see Nebraska Library Commission at: http://www.nlc.state.ne.us/scripts/training/eventreg.asp?ProgID=8390
Free in Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah, see: Biographical Center for Research
http://www.bcr.org/training/teleconferences/index.html
College of DuPage http://www.dupagepress.com/library-learning-network/library-challenges-2008/

March 7, 2008: Library Spaces: Future Needs
April 11, 2008: Trends, Fads or Folly: Spotting the Library Trends That Really Matter
May 9, 2008: Tools of Engagement: Attracting and Engaging Library Users

(All teleconferences are from 11:00-12:30 CT, 10:00-11:30 MT)

View the February Breezing Along with the RML recording.

Siobhan Champ-Blackwell, Community Outreach Liaison, Dana Abbey, Consumer Health Liaison, and Mary Helms, Associate Professor and Associate Director, University of Nebraska Medical Center presented two topics: “Sharing What Works” and “Academy of Health Information Professionals - Just Do It!” Learn more about ways you can share the work you are doing, and earn AHIP points while you are doing it!

Customer Relationship Management. That’s what it means.

And we have a book for you - available online at no charge from the NNLM MidContinental Region NetLibrary collection. No user name or password required if you enter through the NNLM MCR portal at: http://nnlm.gov/mcr/education/netlibrary.html.
Now how’s that for building for nice customer relationship?