The National Library of Medicine (NLM) has a new online tutorial, Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) Basics, now available at: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/research/umls/online%20learning/index.htm.

The course offers an online introduction to the UMLS and should take users approximately two hours to complete. It is designed for novice UMLS users who have some knowledge of controlled vocabularies and related topics.  It covers some of the material presented in the UMLS Basics one day course taught at the NLM.

To register for the eight hour instructor lead course, go to: http://nnlm.gov/ntcc/classes/register.html.

The 2009 MeSH is now available for searching on the MeSH Browser.  It is also available for download in XML and ASCII at: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/filelist.html.

For more information, see: 2009 MeSH® Now Available. NLM Tech Bull. 2008 Sep-Oct; (364):e16.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) now requires basic results data for certain clinical trials to be submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov. Information about the “Basic Results” Database and the submission process is available at: http://prsinfo.clinicaltrials.gov/fdaaa.html.

See: Tse T, Williams RJ. ClinicalTrials.gov to Include Basic Results Data. NLM Tech Bull. 2008 Sep-Oct; (364):e15 for additional information.

Beginning in November, the NN/LM SCR will be offering a monthly web conference entitled “SCR CONNECTions.”    The conference will take place the third Wednesday of each month from 10:30 am - 11:30 am Central Time.   Each month we will cover a different topic. Topics will include: National Library of Medicine database training, NN/LM SCR updates, proposal writing and new technology trends.

The web conferences are conducted via the Adobe Connect web meeting system, and no special software needs to be installed on your computer.

Our first session will take place on November 19, 2008.

Date: November 19, 2008
Time: 10:30 - 11:30 AM Central Time
Topic: My NCBI Update

More information is available at: http://nnlm.gov/scr/training/webmeeting.html

The South Central Regional Medical Library is extending an invitation for all network members to provide feedback about the strengths of its program and future directions it should take.  This project will help us prepare for an upcoming site visit from the National Library of Medicine (NLM) on November 18, 2008.  The goal of the site visit is to help SCR and NLM understand how the RML is serving its network membership, learn how SCR can strengthen its program to meet current and emerging needs in the region, and gather ideas for how NLM can support the national network. (more…)

The PubMed Special Queries link provides access to a directory of topic-specific PubMed queries, including the following queries related to public health:

Health Literacy - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/health_literacy.html

Health Disparities - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/health_disparities.html

Health Services Research - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/nichsr/hedges/search.html

Healthy People 2010 - http://phpartners.org/hp/

Can You Hear Me Now? How to Make a Podcast class will be offered November 12, 2008 in Austin, TX. This hands-on class is designed to provide a fun yet informative introduction to what is podcasting and how you can utilize this technology in your library services, to enable your users to access the information whenever they want, wherever they want and however they want it. Basic steps and suggestions on how to make a podcast will be covered and students will be able to enjoy hands-on practice on popular audio recording and editing software and make their first personal podcast! This course has been approved for 3 hours of Medical Library Association (MLA) Continuing Education credits.

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 Shikun “KK” Jiang at: shikun.jiang@exch.library.tmc.edu.

The National Information Center on Health Services Research and Health Care Technology (NICHSR) at the National Library of Medicine was created to improve the collection, storage, analysis, retrieval, and dissemination of health services research. Designed for health practitioners, health policy makers, payers and information professionals, the NICHSR website (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/nichsr) provides access to a variety of databases and retrieval services including:

Pilot Health Services Research Filters Project

Researchers, clinicians, health policy analysts and planners can use these specialized PubMed Health Services Research (HSR) searches to find information on healthcare quality and costs.

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The ALA Office for Literacy and Outreach Services (OLOS), the American Indian Library Association (AILA), and the National Institutes of Tribal Archives, Libraries, and Museums are seeking information on multicultural services offered by all types of libraries.

Please respond to the 2008 Culturally Responsive Library Services Survey by the deadline date, October 17, 2008.

The National Institutes of Health’s Director, Dr. Elias A. Zerhouni, will step down from the agency at the end of October 2008.  Dr. Zerhouni has served as the NIH Director since May 2002.  New NIH initiatives established during his tenure include:

• NIH Roadmap
• Pathway to Independence Awards
• NIH Public Access Policy

In his departure memo, Dr. Zerhouni stated that he would pursue other opportunities including writing.  To read the full memo: http://www.nih.gov/about/director/zerhouni_departure.htm