Beyond an Apple a Day: Providing Consumer Health Information at Your Library

Want to improve your consumer health collection and services? Interested in improving your reference skills for providing health information for the public? Then this class is for you. Starting with a discussion about the information seeking behaviors of consumers, the class focuses on the provision of consumer health information services for the public. We will also cover health literacy, planning the service, the reference interview, consumer health online, collection development, collaboration, community partnerships, outreach and marketing. Students will also learn about how to stay up to date on consumer health librarianship.

Course approved:
• 8 Medical Library Association contact hours
• May be applied towards the MLA Consumer Health Information Specialization.

Dates: January and February 2009
Format: A course shell you can access online 24/7 at your own pace as well as two interactive online sessions (dates to be announced)

Assignments:
• forum discussion of health information seeking of providers and consumers
• patient education rewrite exercise
• forum discussion on aspects of the reference interview including challenges, evaluating health information and usage of disclaimers
• needs assessment for program development
• collection development activity
• practice literature searches
• create a sample outreach project
• develop an elevator speech to promote your service

Instructor: Michelle Eberle Consumer Health Information Coordinator, NN/LM NER
Interactive sessions co-facilitated by: Terri Ottosen Consumer Health Coordinator, NN/LM SE/A

To register: Please contact Martha Pearson.

On Tuesday, September 23rd, I had the honor of providing a training session to the health staff at the Wampanoag Tribe in Mashpee, MA. I had the opportunity to learn about the tribe’s health information needs and discuss opportunities for partnering with the tribe to educate about online health information. The Tribal Health Center is very eager to incorporate NLM consumer health resource training into their health information outreach.

Caring for the Mind: Providing Reference Services for Mental Health Information

Responding to mental health reference questions is challenging for even the most experienced librarian. In “Caring for the Mind”, participants will learn how to effectively provide reference services for mental health information for the public. Participants will learn the best web sites, databases and collection development materials to respond to mental health related questions. Best approaches to handling challenging reference interviews will be explored. This class will increase your knowledge of consumer level mental health resources.

Course approved:

· 4 Medical Library Association contact hours

· May be applied towards the MLA Consumer Health Information Specialization.

· 2 additional credits pending for interactive sessions

Dates: November 10- Dec 5, 2008

Course is free!!!

Format: A course shell you can access online 24/7 at your own pace as well as two interactive online sessions (dates to be announced)

Assignments:

Readings
Reflections on readings
Resource review / literature searches
Mini quizzes – no grades! …for self assessment only.
Crossword fun!

Instructor: Michelle Eberle, Consumer Health Information Coordinator

Please contact instructor with any inquiries about course.

To register: Please contact Martha Pearson.

Hello everyone.

This note announces the availability of subcontract and awards funding from NER for 2008-2009. I’ve pasted information relevant to both subcontracts and awards below. Please contact Javier Crespo if you have any questions or want to talk about project possibilities you’ve been thinking about.

NER announces the availability of Health Information Outreach Subcontracts. Health Information Outreach Subcontracts assist Network members and other health-related agencies in their efforts to provide information services and training to audiences not normally reached. Target audiences can be health care workers, librarians and others who refer consumers to health information, and consumers.

Subcontracts fund extended health information projects that generally run from 12 to 18 months. The Health Information Outreach Subcontract’s primary aim is to broaden access to health information resources featuring National Library of Medicine resources.

Total amount to be funded for any or all approved projects is $40,000.
Proposals are due October 28, 2008.
Awardees will be contacted on or before November 30.
Funded projects can begin their performance period after January 1, 2009.

The complete Request for Proposal (RFP) is available at http://nnlm.gov/ner/funding/rfps/Health_Info_Outreach_Subcontract_y3.pdf

Proposals are accepted from Full or Affiliate members of the NN/LM NER. Partnerships with affiliate members, public health agencies, state, county and /or local public health agencies and community-based groups are strongly encouraged. Proposals are encouraged from community-based agencies and organizations working with providers and patients or other agencies seeking to conduct a health information project.

In addition funds are limited but available for the following awards:
Express Outreach and other awards
Community Engagement Awards support short-term outreach projects for advancing health information
Course Development Awards support the development of instructional programs
Exhibits Awards are for members’ participation at venues that promote health information resources.
Technology Awareness Program Awards fund learning programs for the application of technology in health information
Internet Connectivity Awards fund the expanded access to health information needed in libraries and other settings

There’s more information for both subcontracts and awards available at http://nnlm.gov/ner/funding/

As we are making plans to attend October’s NAHSL Conference (our 50 anniversary!) here are a couple of courses to be taught by NER and para-NNLM staff. Consider attending!

Your Library’s Value: Needs Assessment, Program Development, Program Evaluation-Cindy Olney
4 MLA CE Credits (pending)
Sunday Morning CE (8:00 am - 12:00 pm)

Course Description:
One goal of evaluation is to assess and improve the “value” of a program or unit. In this workshop, participants will first learn how to define “value” by assessing the needs of the many different stakeholders in their environment (users, administrators, library staff, etc.). They then will learn to map their programs and services against institutional goals using a logic model and develop an evaluation plan to investigate and document their libraries’ contributions to the institutional mission. The workshop will end with a presentation about online library-value calculators, which participants can use for cost-benefit analysis and return-on-investment.

Target Audience:
Health sciences librarians (although information will be applicable to other library settings) Difficulty Level:
Introductory
Class Objectives:
By the end of the class, participants will be able to translate larger institutional goals into library goals and outcomes, then develop a plan to provide and evaluate programs and services that will demonstrate their library’s value.

Instructor: Cindy Olney, PhD
Cynthia Olney is an evaluation specialist for the NN/LM Outreach Evaluation Resource Center, has provided consultation for numerous National Library of Medicine and other health information outreach projects, and will present this OERC workshop.

The Healthy Librarian - Michelle Eberle
2 MLA CE Credits
Tuesday CE (1:00 pm - 3:00 pm)

Course Description:
Learn simple strategies to cultivate wellness in the workplace at your library. Participants will learn skills to manage challenges of the job including emotional patrons and a sedentary job. This interactive session will explore practical solutions including stress management skills, ergonomics and how to incorporate more activity into your day.
Resources for improving one’s health literacy including health check tools and developing resiliency for changes in the profession will be explored. Participants will leave with enhanced knowledge and practical skills for incorporating healthy habits into their daily work.

Target Audience:
Anyone interested in managing stress, ergonomics and creating a healthier workplace Difficulty Level:
Beginning
Class Objectives:
Know why workplace wellness matters Learn the difference between workplace wellness and a health promoting work culture c. Gain valuable tools to enhance workplace wellness in the following areas: nutrition, ergonomics, stress management, exercise and fitness and beyond the workplace Leave feeling rejuvenated with creative ideas to make their library a health promoting workplace

Instructor:Michelle L. Eberle, MS LIS
Michelle Eberle, is the Consumer Health Information Coordinator (CHIC) for the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, New England Region. With a position with a really neat acronym, she travels around New England educating librarians, health professionals and consumers about National Library of Medicine resources and services.
Michelle earned a Masters in Library and Information Science from Simmons College in Boston, MA where she was blessed to meet her husband, Matt, also a medical librarian. Michelle graduated from Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut with a Bachelors of Arts in Social Work. After graduating from Simmons, Michelle worked at the Somerville Hospital as a solo Medical Librarian. At Somerville Hospital, she discovered her passion for consumer health librarianship by serving on the patient education committee.

See the other education offerings to be offered at NAHSL ‘08 at: http://nahsl.org/2008/ce.html

The September 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:

Good Health to Go
Eating Smart at School
Even in the chaotic world of the school cafeteria, children can make smart food choices. You can play a key role in helping children learn the fundamentals of healthy living—eating well and staying active—whatever pressures they face outside home.
full story

Back to School with Diabetes
Plan Ahead for a Smooth Start to School
Notebooks, erasers, pencil sets and backpacks are on most kids’ back-to-school lists. But if your child has diabetes, you should add a few extra tasks to the list. Planning ahead, and getting help from others, will help pave the way for a successful year.
full story

Health Capsules:

• Children’s Physical Activity Drops
• Diabetes and a Healthy Pregnancy
• Featured Web Site: NIDA Goes Back to School

Click here to download a PDF version for printing.

Subscribe to receive email alerts when new issues of NIH News in Health are posted by going to https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=nihnewsinhealth-l&A=1.

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 contact us for more information.

If you’re an editor who wishes to reprint our stories, please see http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/about.htm for information.

Sincerely,

Harrison Wein

Harrison Wein, Ph.D., Writer/Editor
National Institutes of Health
Office of the Director, Office of Communications and Public Liaison
Bldg. 31, Rm. 5B64A, MSC 2094
Bethesda, MD 20892-2094
Phone: 301-435-7489
Fax: 301-480-4026
E-mail: weinh@od.nih.gov

Apply Today!
HLS/MLA Professional Development Grant
for Hospital and Clinical Librarians

Applications Due February 1, 2008

Are you looking for financial support to, advance your professional education, attend a meeting or conduct research?

The HLS/MLA Professional Development Grant helps librarians in hospitals and other clinical care settings to acquire knowledge and skills through educational or research activities.

Further information and an application are located at http://www.mlanet.org/pdf/grants/hls_app_20080611.pdf For any additional questions, please contact Jury Chair, Karen Roth, at Karen.Roth@bayacare.org or via phone at 727-462-7889.

The new NIH Public Access Policy became effective April 7, 2008 and calls for mandatory deposit in PubMed Central of peer-reviewed electronic manuscripts stemming from NIH funding. There are a number of resources available to help librarians respond to questions from researchers. One of the challenges is understanding the policies for specific publications. I hope these resources help.

NIH Resources

Office of Extramural Research’s Public Access Policy Web site
http://publicaccess.nih.gov/

Journals That Submit All NIH-Funded Final Published Articles to PubMed Central

http://publicaccess.nih.gov/submit_process_journals.htm

Other Resources

Publisher policies on NIH-funded Authors (Open Access Directory Wiki)
http://oad.simmons.edu/oadwiki/Publisher_policies_on_NIH-funded_authors,

Publishers’ Policies on the NIH Public Access Policy (From the Edward G. Miner Library, University of Rochester Medical Center)
http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/HSLT/Miner/research_and_publishing/PublishersPoliciesonPubMedCentralMinerLibrary.cfm

Submitted by Hathy Simpson

The Partners in Information Access for the Public Health Workforce has released two new topic pages on http://PHPartners.org on Nutrition and Workforce Development. PHPartners is a collaboration of U.S. government agencies, public health organizations and health science libraries which provides timely, convenient access to selected resources on the Internet.

The topic page on Nutrition, http://phpartners.org/nutrition.html, includes links to government, professional and research organizations that focus nutrition issues; grants and funding opportunities; legislation and health policy issues related to nutrition; published literature and research reports; and nutrition promotion, education and information resources.

The topic page on Workforce Development, http://phpartners.org/workforcedevelopment.html, provides links on public health workforce development activities and resources including education and training opportunities; legislative action; professional meetings, summits, councils, and conferences; new workers development programs; tools and resources on public health workforce issues; and workforce projects and research reports.

PHPartners.org welcomes suggestions of public health resources to post on the site. Links can be suggested at http://phpartners.org/suggestlink.html.

To keep up-to-date with public health news and new content posted to PHPartners.org, you can subscribe to the PHPartners weekly email announcement list or RSS feeds, linked from the home page of http://PHPartners.org.

Hathy Simpson, MPH
PHPartners.org Content Developer
National Network of Libraries of Medicine
New England Region (NN/LM NER)
University of Massachusetts Medical School
hathy.simpson@umassmed.edu
http://PHPartners.org (Partners in Information Access for the Public Health Workforce)

Do you work with public health professionals? Are you interested in public health? Are you interested in attending the American Public Health Association Annual Meeting?

This year’s APHA meeting will take place in San Diego, CA from October 25 - 29, 2008. Its theme is Public Health Without Borders.

The Grace and Harold Sewell Memorial Fund, Inc. is offering stipends to librarians and other information professionals to help cover the costs of their attending and/or participating in this meeting. Successful applicants from the greater San Diego area will receive a stipend of at least $650. Successful applicants from outside greater San Diego will receive at least $1,000. This amount covers most of the APHA Membership at $195 and Early Bird (pre-August 15, 2008) Member Registration at $380. Though significant, these amounts will NOT cover all costs, so stipend recipients will need to find additional monies to cover remaining costs.

Completed applications are due July 25, 2008–just over 3 weeks from today. To apply, read and complete the application form attached or download the Word application form at http://phha.mlanet.org/activities.html. Add all required application materials to the completed form and send as a SINGLE email attachment to Joey Nicholson at jnicholson@nyam.org.

For more information, contact Joey Nicholson at jnicholson@nyam.org .

Please forward this message to others who may be interested.

Hope you’ll join us at this colorful and fascinating meeting!

Joey Nicholson
Chair, Client Relations Committee
PH/HA Section, MLA

Hathy Simpson, MPH
Public Health Coordinator
National Network of Libraries of Medicine New England Region (NN/LM NER) University of Massachusetts Medical School
222 Maple Avenue
Shrewsbury, MA 01545-2732
508-856-2085
hathy.simpson@umassmed.edu

http://nnlm.gov/ner (National Network of Libraries of Medicine, New England Region)
http://phpartners.org (Partners in Information Access for the Public Health Workforce)
http://library.umassmed.edu/ebpph (Evidence-Based Practice for Public Health)