Planning for the health and safety of those attending mass gatherings is an enormous challenge for local officials. Mass gatherings are defined as those attracting more than 1,000 participants and include events like the Olympics, Super Bowl, religious services conducted by the Pope, state funerals, and presidential inaugurations. Public health concerns range from ensuring adequate drinking water, food safety, first aid, and toilet facilities to planning for the extremes of possible major accidents, dangerous weather and even terrorist threats.

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) has compiled a Web page of links to information on the public health aspects of planning for all kinds of mass gatherings, http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/enviro/massgatherings.html. These resources include a search of PubMed for medical journal article citations as well as documents from government and other sources. Topics include preparedness for large numbers of casualties and management of disease outbreaks.

The upcoming 2009 Presidential Inauguration is an excellent example of a mass gathering requiring extensive planning. Washington DC-area TV, radio, newspapers and their Internet sites are the best sources for learning about local health services, emergency, and hospital planning for the inauguration.

Health tips for those attending inauguration weekend outdoor activities are available from the US Department of Health and Human Services at http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2009pres/01/20090112a.html.

For more information on the Disaster Information Management Research Center at NLM, please visit http://disasterinfo.nlm.nih.gov/.

On December 22, 2008, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Kingston Fossil Plant’s retention pond failed, creating a tidal wave of water and fly ash which destroyed several homes and ruptured a major gas line in a neighborhood located adjacent to the plant in Harriman, Tennessee. It is estimated that approximately 3.1 million cubic feet of fly ash and water were released on to land adjacent to the plant and into the nearby Clinch and Emory River. There’s concern about the potential effects of this spill on the quality of water, air and soil in the region.

From its extensive environmental health and toxicology resources, the National Library of Medicine (NLM) has compiled a Web page of links to chemical information on fly ash and medical journal articles on the ash’s possible human health effects, http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/enviro/coalashspill.html. These resources provide background information on fly ash, also known as coal ash, which is a by-product of burning coal in power plants to generate electricity.

Links to public health information from local and federal authorities responding to this incident are also included. Contact information for local community assistance is listed on the TVA Internet site, http://www.tva.gov/.

For more information on TOXNET and other NLM environmental health and toxicology resources, please visit http://tox.nlm.nih.gov.

The January issue of NIH News in Health, the monthly newsletter bringing you practical health news and tips based on the latest NIH research, is now online. In this edition:

When the Weather Gets Cold
Winter Health Problems
For many people, winter is a welcome time of year. But for people with certain diseases like arthritis, it can be a pain—literally. Here’s what you need to know to survive winter’s chill.
full story

Understanding Human Behavior
Using Computers to Improve Our Health

Can we use computers to understand generosity? The behavior of crowds? The root of prejudice? Researchers are developing computer models to improve our understanding of human behavior and the world we live in.
full story

Health Capsules:

• CAM Widely Used
• Supplements Fail to Prevent Prostate Cancer
• Featured Web Site: See All You Can See

Click here to download a PDF version for printing.

Please pass the word on to your colleagues about The NIH News in Health. We are happy to send a limited number of print copies free of charge for display in offices, libraries or clinics. Just email
us or call 301-435-7489 for more information.

Begin the new year with SE/A.

Join us on January 21, 2009 to hear a presentation on drug information from the National Library of Medicine.  Diane Howden is our invited guest. Since 2005, Diane has been a part of the ChemID team in NLM’s Specialized Information Services.   She graduated from Old Dominion University with Bachelors of Science degree and majored in chemistry.  She currently works on the Drug Information Portal.

Diane joined the NIH in June of 1996 as part of the ADD program (Antiepileptic Drug Development) at the National Institutes of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). This NIH program offers researchers the opportunity to have preclinical screening performed for drug candidates displaying anticonvulsive properties.  The recent FDA approval of Lacosamide, featured under the News and Features tab on the Drug Information Portal, attests to the success of this program.  The experience, training and knowledge of preclinical development, clinical trials and the FDA drug approval process gained at NINDS provided Diane with a solid foundation for working on the Drug Information Portal.

Presentation: Exploring the Drug Information Portal from the National Library of Medicine

Date: Wednesday, January 21st, 2009
Time: 12:00 Noon - 1:00 pm

For more information and how to connect, please use this link.

http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/advice2.html

The FDA website features materials and programs on food nutrition and safety campaigns for pregnant women, about food labeling and nutrition, for kids & teens, for fight(ing) bac(teria), for the Hispanic Community, and for educators.

There are also links to current awareness material and newsletters:

• Sign up for Consumer Updates by e-mail
• RSS feed for Consumer Updates

NIH MedlinePlus Magazine is a guide for patients and their families. It brings the latest and most authoritative medical and healthcare information from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as featured online on the MedlinePlus Web site. The magazine is published four times a year by the Friends of the National Library of Medicine.
Read the latest, fall 2008, issue of the NIHMedlinePlus Magazine.

This quarter’s highlights include:

• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Focus on Communication
• Understanding, Treating, and Preventing Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs)
• Skin Health and Skin Diseases

Diabetes is a leading cause of kidney failure, blindness and amputations, and a major cause of heart disease and stroke. Nearly 24 million Americans have diabetes, and about one quarter (or 5.7 million) of them don’t know that they have the disease. Millions more are at risk of developing diabetes. It is variously referred to by the public as “Sugar”, Adult onset diabetes, and Non-insulin dependent diabetes.

To raise awareness about diabetes in your locale, use the “State-Specific Incidence of Diabetes Among Adults — Participating States,1995–1997 and 2005–2007.” MMWR 008;57(43):1169–73 that can be found at: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5743a2.htm?s_cid=mm5743a2_e

About 25 percent of those with diabetes don’t know they have the disease. In the early stages of diabetes, there may be no symptoms or mild symptoms, such as excessive thirst and hunger, frequent urination, and fatigue. It’s important to know if you have diabetes so that you can take steps to prevent serious complications and premature death. Use the American Diabetes Association’s Risk Calculator from the to help determine your risk level.
http://www.diabetes.org/risk-test.jsp

Diabetes is a costly disease associated with serious complications and premature death. It is a major cause of heart disease and stroke and a leading cause of leg and foot amputations unrelated to injury, kidney failure, and new blindness in adults.

At http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/diabetes.html MedlinePlus suggests starting with the following three links for dependable, accurate introductory material:

• Diabetes - Introduction Interactive Tutorial (Patient Education Institute) - Requires Flash Player, Also available in Spanish
• Diabetes Overview NIH (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
• Your Guide to Diabetes: Type 1 and Type 2 Easy-to-Read NIH (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases), Also available in Spanish.

Are you looking for Consumer Health Classes to offer to your staff or patrons? Do you know community or faith-based organizations who are looking for free classes about Consumer Health? Do you serve consumers, veterans, teenagers, women, men, or the Spanish-speaking? If so, you have found the right place.

Please contact Terri Ottosen, Consumer Health Coordinator, at tottosen@hshsl.umaryland.edu or Mandy Meloy, Community Outreach Coordinator, at mbayerme@hshsl.umaryland.edu to schedule our classes.

The Canny Consumer: Resources for Consumer Health Decision-Making With the sharp rise in web-informed consumers and today’s fast paced communication technology and inclusive health care systems, information is readily available. Many health care systems now offer portable electronic records and electronic prescription services. The technologically savvy generation makes use of tools such as YouTube, blogs, and websites to share experiences in their health care. Yet, with the estimated 90 million Americans who do not understand how to read, comprehend, or use health information, health literacy will determine who is left behind in this techno cultural revolution. This class focuses on the interaction among technology, culture, and politics. An interactive session allows participants to explore new and upcoming technologies such as personal health records and e-health tools. The resources covered will assist consumers and those helping consumers to find quality health information and to navigate the health care system. Implications for those left behind, including the ethical, social, and privacy issues concerning these new technologies will also be discussed.
3 MLA CE Contact Hours

Combatting Information Fatigue: Health Information Resources for Veterans Veterans and their families need reliable health information resources and training to locate health information that is sensitive and pertinent to their needs. This course covers resources for finding information on general health conditions, mental health resources including those for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), family issues, substance abuse, amputations, support groups and more. Additionally, this class will prepare participants to find and assess additional veterans’ health resources.
3 MLA CE Contact Hours

“Let’s Talk about Sex”:Sexual Health Resources Adults and teenagers need quality health information that is sensitive and relevant to their needs. This course offers reliable resources on sexual and reproductive health including physical, emotional, mental health. Understanding that seniors, men, women, and teenagers have different needs in regards to sexual and reproductive health information, this class is modified for each audience. Each class, depending on the audience, will offer quality websites about body changes, sexually transmitted diseases, specific conditions, women’s and men’s health conditions, domestic violence, and gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered sexual health information sources.

Información confiable de salud: recursos de Internet que puede utilizar
(Trustworthy health information: Internet resources you can use) The Region’s Spanish-speaking population is increasing by leaps and bounds, so this class, which is taught in Spanish, explores four consumer health websites:

• for the whole family: general health – MedlinePlus and Kidshealth
• for environmental health – Tox Town and ToxMystery.

The joint MLA-NLM Task Force was commissioned with the goal of assessing opportunities for integration of live and virtual information assistance into electronic personal health records products. The work of the Task Force has progressed on two fronts: identification and examination of PHR tools and development of ways to better integrate PHRs and the library community.

The Task Force defined the “personal health record” (PHR) and investigated PHRs meeting this definition. Approximately 90 PHRs were identified.

Electronic Personal Health Record (PHR) Definition: A PHR is a private, secure application through which an individual may access, manage and share his/her health information. The PHR can include information that is entered by the consumer and/or data from other sources such as pharmacies, labs, and care providers. The PHR might or might not include information
from the electronic health record (EHR) which is maintained by the health care provider and is not synonymous with the HER. PHR sponsors include vendors who may or may not charge a fee, health care organizations such as hospitals and health insurance companies, or employers.

In support of better integration of PHRs and the library community, the Task Force wrote an information assistance statement for inclusion in PHR products. The model statement instructs users to connect to MedlinePlus and two MLA consumer health Web sites for quality consumer health information. It also
tells users how to contact medical librarians through the National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM) 1-800-338-7657 toll-free number and what services to expect when they do so. Letters requesting inclusion of the assistance statement have been sent to seven vendors (Medem, Access Strategies, AHIMA,
CapMed, Microsoft, Google, Tolven Health Care Innovations) as part of a pilot project.

To increase librarian awareness of these potential new users, the Task Force will present posters at the South Central and Mid-Continental Chapter meetings during fall 2008. As a first effort, the Task Force chair presented information about the project during the March 2008 NN/LM Regional Medical Library All Staff Teleconference. Further, the task force is collaborating with the MLA Health Information Literacy Research Project, other MLA CE instructors and in the near future the NN/LM consumer health coordinators.

To better understand current librarian-PHR roles, the group conducted an informal survey using library discussion lists. Respondents reported several roles, including: 1) assisting patients in registering for an organization’s PHR (My HealtheVet, Kaiser Permanente), 2) training employees in the use of an organization’s PHR (My HealtheVet), and 3) providing staff with information and documents about how use of PHRs might reduce costs, inform consumers, and benefit the institution.

Please contact a member of the task force listed below if you have questions or comments.

Joint Task Force Members

Dixie A. Jones, Chair, VA
Michael Ackerman, NLM
Joan S. Ash, Oregon Health and Science University
Patti Corbett-Bregman, Wolters Kluwer
Taneya Koonce, Vanderbilt University
Daphne Plaut, Kaiser Permanente
Catherine R. Selden, NLM
David Sweet, AHIMA
Carla Funk, MLA Staff Liaison
Jean Shipman, MLA Board of Directors’ Liaison

The October issue of NIH News in Health, the monthly newsletter bringing you practical health news and tips based on the latest NIH research, is now online at http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/. In this issue of NIH News in Health:

Hey, Parents: It’s a Noisy Planet: Protect Kids’ Hearing
The tricky thing about hearing loss is that you may not notice it until the damage has already been done. Have a heart-to-heart talk with your kids now about protecting their hearing.

Keep Your Kidneys Clear: Kicking Kidney Stones
Some say that passing a kidney stone is like delivering a baby made of razor blades. The good news is that, although they can be excruciatingly painful, kidney stones rarely cause permanent damage, and you may be able to prevent them.

Health Capsules:

• Genetic Quirks Linked to Schizophrenia
• Understanding Vitamin D
• Featured Web Site: Body & Soul

Click here to download a PDF version for printing. http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/pdf/NIHNiH%20Oct2008.pdf