• Observe National Public Health Week, April 6-12.
• Celebrate Earth Day on April 22 by visiting the Climate Change page.
• Visit the School and School Bus pages in honor of National Healthy Schools Day on April 27.
• Be Air Aware” in honor of Air Quality Awareness Week, April 27 - May 1, and click on the Outdoor Air and Homes pages.

For a copy of Your Health and the Environment: Earth Day Classroom Enrichment from the National Library of Medicine, click the link.

April Is Cancer Control Month

April is Cancer Control Month. Visit the MedlinePlus health topic page on cancer and read the latest cancer news. Also, check out Cancer: Questions and Answers from the National Cancer Institute.

April Is Donate Life Month

April is Donate Life Month. Learn more by visiting the organ donation topic page on MedlinePlus.

April Is Alcohol Awareness Month

http://ncadi.samhsa.gov/seasonal/aprilalcohol/

• Straight Facts About Alcohol
• How to Get Help
• How Can I Tell if a Friend or Loved One Has a Problem with Alcohol, or Other Illicit Drugs?

For libraries that are using My NCBI accounts and the “myncbishare=”parameter to activate their icons.

My NCBI has now a new page where libraries can select the services they wish to share with their users. The “Share Settings” page can be accessed by clicking “Preferences” on the My NCBI Table of Contents.
PubMed Filters, Document Delivery, Outside Tool and Highlighting settings can be selected on this page by clicking the check boxes. Only the selected settings will be shared.

The current institutions/shared My NCBI account settings have been preserved.

For you reference, information regarding this new page was published in the article “Shared Settings in My NCBI.” NLM Tech Bull. 2009
Jan-Feb;(366):e5

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/techbull/jf09/jf09_my_ncbi_shared_settings.html

Should you have any questions, please write to lib-linkout@ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

by Marci Merola, Director
Office for Library Advocacy, American Library Association

A new web-based resource has just been released that will help library advocates make the case for libraries during times of economic downturn. The “Advocating in a Tough Economy” toolkit is available at www.ala.org/tougheconomytoolkit.

“With city, county, state and federal budgets under increasing pressure, we need to be making the case for libraries more than ever. All too often, libraries are the first to receive budget cuts. Funders need to understand the essential role that libraries play in our society and economy, with usage up significantly, and increasing numbers of people coming to libraries for job-related services, for access to government assistance programs, and as a way of making their money go further.” says Keith Michael Fiels, ALA Executive Director. “The new toolkit will arm librarians and library supporters with the facts and strategies they need to speak out effectively for libraries in this tough economy.”

The toolkit contains information on how to work with decision-makers, ways to work with the media, and talking points to help libraries articulate the role of libraries in times of economic downturn. Talking points on the economic value of libraries, with return-on-investment examples; libraries and the economy; and upswings in library usage are included. Users are also invited to share their stories of how they have successfully advocated. Recent media coverage of libraries is also featured.

This resource is part of the “Advocacy U”, ALA’s new initiative geared to providing tools, training and resources to library advocates achieve real advocacy goals in real situations at the local level. Learn more at www.ala.org/advocacyuniversity.

Contents:

Introduction

I. Talking Points

II. Making the Case

III. Outreach to Patrons and the Public

IV. Talking to the Media

V. Working with Government Officials and Legislators

VI. Staging a Rally

VII. Library Checklist

Contacts

Resources

by Florene G Linnen, flolinnen@msn.com, founder, Georgetown Diabetes CORE Group

The Georgetown County Diabetes CORE Group accomplished numerous exciting goals for the year of the award funding. We introduced MedlinePlus and the National Network of Libraries of Medicine to several new outreach sites. We even recruited some community based organizations to become members of the NN/LM, themselves.

The CORE Group opened a fitness room along with a personal trainer who is available to assist clients. In the fitness center we use the internet to track the clients’ weight loss and use sites such as the American Heart Association and MedlinePlus for valuable consumer health information. With the help of MedlinePlus and the internet, we created a healthy cooking demo class that assists clients with healthy meal preparation and portion sizes.

The CORE Group conducted radio interviews and television commercials that reached Georgetown County and the surrounding area. The radio interviews and PSA’s reached about 9000 listeners. The two television commercials, created to advertise our program, reached approximately 40,000 people.

The CORE Group is currently assisting another church, located in the Sampit Area, with becoming a member of the National Network of Library of Medicine and assisting them with information and methods to apply for an NN/LM funding award.

Our peer education trained youth trained several teen organizations within the schools and communities. Using iPod technology, they conducted workshops to educate their peers about current and escalating health issues. We also collaborated with IMARA, a women’s magazine company, and Select Health to organize a conference focused on locating dependable information about women’s health issues.

Our community truly enjoyed working with us, especially the youth using modern technology to access health information. They were very engaging as they demonstrated on their cell phones, blackberries etc. how to search for accurate and reliable health information. Using our youth to work with the community bridged a generational gap between the youth and our senior members. It also gave the kids a feel for doing community work.

Collaborations/Partnerships:

The Georgetown County Diabetes CORE Group has developed new partnerships with several organizations that include the Council of Aging Bureau, St. James-Santee Health Clinic, and REACH US SEA-CEED/MUSC. We have also partnered with the YPD’ers (The Young People’s Division) of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. We also established a new partnership with Service Over Self a youth volunteer organization in which our teens trained their teens. We still have a strong relation with Carvers Bay Library that assisted in getting our youth program started and Ma Flo’s Health and Awareness Team.

Demand Is > the Supply of Trainers

Community requests for our presentations, especially with youth presenters, have increased. In the fall of 2008, with our youth back in school, it’s harder to get in as many presentations during the week days. We are currently searching for funding to sustain our program.

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.

by Bonnie DiGiallonardo, Reference Librarian
Nova Southeastern University
Health Professions Division Library
digibon@nova.edu

Just two months into my career as a health professions librarian, I had the opportunity to attend the Southern Chapter/Medical Library Association Annual Meeting, “Making the Magic Flow” October 26-30, 2008. Not only was this my first time at a librarian’s conference, it was my first time as an attendee at ANY conference.

In my previous life as a marketing professional, I had worked in exhibit hall booths of many conferences, but this was a completely different take on the experience. As some of you may attest, starting a new profession in your 40’s is no easy feat. Yet embarking on a journey that you have worked hard to begin makes you feel like a wide-eyed ingénue (anyone who knows me would fall on the floor laughing at this mental image). That is how I felt when I first arrived at the conference, but thanks to all the wonderful people I met at the chapter meeting, I left knowing that I had made the right choice, to become a medical librarian.

Without question, it was the people that made the conference most memorable for this first-timer. From my first contact with the people at the registration desk to my shuttle partners on the return trip to the airport (who happened to give me the idea to write this article), I found each and every person to be an absolute treasure. I felt right at home with this group – it was like the mother ship had called me home! No matter where I went or who I happened to sit down next to, everyone spoke to me and opened up about their experiences. I quickly learned that there is no such thing as a shy, retiring librarian…at least not at this event.

The conference’s content proved a valuable information resource for a newly ordained librarian. Many varied aspects of medical librarianship were covered, and while there were concurrent sessions that made me wish I could be in two places at once, my colleague (another newbie) and I were able to split up and compare notes later. An impressive lineup of plenary speakers, a CE session that gave me a ton of ideas, and poster sessions that gave a peek into what other library’s are doing all contributed to a fulfilling and rewarding conference experience.

Library school only marginally prepares one to actually work as a reference librarian so having access to the classes, speakers, presentations, posters, and most importantly, the librarians from all walks of the profession was so enriching that I would recommend conference attendance as a requirement in any master’s program. At Southern Chapter there was so much to absorb in just a few days, most of it new, but what we learned was useful and applicable to our jobs. So, we felt that this conference was a good solid foundation upon which to begin building our careers and professional networks.

I am already looking forward to next year!

What‘s New for 2009 MeSH

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/techbull/nd08/nd08_mesh.html

Start the New Year with new MeSH terms! You see, for 2009, 446 descriptors have been added to enhance your PubMed search results.

The National Library of Medicine’s NLM Technical Bulletin will keep you informed all year long with enhancements, updates and changes. Visit NLM Announces at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=nlm-announces&A=1 to join, leave or change your NLM listserv options.

Household Products Database (HPD) Now Contains over 8,000 Entries

http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov/

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) Household Products Database has been updated and now includes 8152 brand name products, 2876 ingredients, and 375 manufacturers. In addition, 1634 products are now linked to the complete Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS).

The Household Products Database is a consumer guide that provides information on the potential health effects of chemicals contained in more than 6,000 common household products used inside and around the home. It covers what’s under your kitchen sink, in your garage, in your bathroom, and on the shelves in your laundry room, providing what’s in these products, potential health effects, and safe handling.

Keep current with further changes and new developments in the HPD database, regularly visit the Division of Specialized Information Services site.

Join a demonstration of the Valuing Library Services and Cost Benefit/ROI Calculators on Monday, December 8, 2008 at 2pm Eastern Time, 1pm Central. Barb Jones and Betsy Kelly from the MidContinental Region, NN/LM will reprise their MLA presentation on these tools to enable health science librarians to determine the return on investment and cost benefit of their libraries and services. Come with some numbers and let’s discuss how you can use the online calculators to show the value your library brings to your institution. To participate, come to this url: https://webmeeting.nih.gov/libraryvalue/.

This demonstration will be held via Adobe Connect. If you have not used Adobe Connect before, feel free to log into the site in advance. The system might want to install an Adobe Connect plugin, and if it does, you should allow it. When the meeting begins, the system will normally ask you for your phone number and then call it so that you can hear the audio and participate in the discussion. If the system does not call your phone, join us using this toll-free number:1-866-548-4716
Participant Code: 243436

For an advance peek at these great calculator tools, go to http://nnlm.gov/mcr/evaluation/calculator.html and http://nnlm.gov/mcr/evaluation/roi.html and see how you might be able to express your value in monetary terms!

This session is hosted by the NN/LM Outreach Evaluation Resource Center. For questions, contact Susan Barnes at sjbarnes@u.washington.edu or Cindy Olney at olneyc@coevalmail.com.

While the students relax by the sun and sand, brush up on your health literature search skills.

The National Network of Libraries of Medicine/Southeastern Atlantic Region is hosting a free webinar series titled “Summer Searching Sessions”.  Four experienced medical librarians will be demonstrating tips, techniques, new features and functions of four MEDLINE® interfaces.

MEDLINE® is the premier bibliographic database from the National Library of Medicine.  It is used by health care professionals and students worldwide.  Over 70 million searches are conducted every month.

Four one-hour sessions (description below) will be held over a two week period. The topics include new features on familiar interfaces, using the controlled vocabulary, MeSH®, review of the basics, finding full text and are you looking in the right place.

The sessions are open to all librarians in the Southeastern Atlantic Region but registration is required. To register, please contact Toni Yancey by email at tyancey@hshsl.umaryland.edu, or by telephone at 410.706.2855.

Session #1 - August 5, 2008 at 2:00 pm (EST) - Introductions

Search Scenario: The new and improved PubMed, Medline at Ovid, Ebscohost, and MDConsult Journals/Medline. Interactive questions and answers. What would you like to talk about searching.

Session #2 - August 7, 2008 at 2:00 pm (EST) - Quick and Dirty?

Search Scenario: A facility supervisor, is meeting with the administration next week to discuss ways for the hospital to go green. He needs to learn about reducing the amount of garage the hospital produces. He asks if you can help him. Between your regular work and preparing for a nursing symposium, you don’t have that much time to devote to Bill’s request.

Session #3 - August 12, 2008 at 2:00 pm (EST) - Not enough hours in the day

A famous athlete has been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease. The local ABC affiliate has asked the head of the oncology department to appear on the morning show tomorrow to discuss it. It’s already 4:30 and you have to leave at 5:00 for an appointment. You promise to have information to him (via email) by 8:00 so he can review it.

Session #4 - August 14, 2008 at 2:00 pm (EST) -The elephant in the room: Google Scholar and other challenges

Michaela, a second year student, tells you that she always uses Google to find articles and nothing you say can convince her that MEDLINE is better. You run a couple of searches in both MEDLINE and Google Scholar to see what all the fuss is about. What have you learned that you can use to teach students?

New NLM Fact Sheet about Errata, Retraction, Partial Retraction, Corrected and Republished Articles, Duplicate Publication, Comment, Update, Patient Summary, and Republished (Reprinted) Article Policy for MEDLINE®

Selected and reprinted from: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/factsheets/errata.html and http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/mms/medlineelements.html#cc

Users who search MEDLINE will be informed if they retrieve a citation for an article that has been corrected by an erratum notice, retracted or partially retracted, corrected and republished, been found to duplicate another article, generated a separately published commenting article, been updated by a subsequent article, if a summary for patients has been published, or has been republished (reprinted) in another journal.