FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ¬ April 2009
For more information, please contact
Lisa C. Fried at 312.419.9094 x28; mlapd2@mlahq.org

MLA to Induct MLA Past President M.J. Tooey, AHIP, as Fellow of the Association

The Medical Library Association (MLA) chooses its Fellows based on their commitment to furthering the association’s goals and for their contributions to the health sciences information profession. MLA is proud to honor one of its most dedicated and accomplished members, MLA Past President Mary Joan (M. J.) Tooey, AHIP, with MLA Fellow status. She will officially become an MLA Fellow at the MLA ‘09 Awards Ceremony and Luncheon in May in Honolulu, HI.

About Tooey, MLA member Sheldon Kotzin, FMLA, stated, ” I have known and respected M.J. for nearly twenty years. During that time, I have seen her excel at every challenge that she has chosen to pursue. Ever approachable, it appears that she has never declined an opportunity to get involved, take a leadership role, and make a difference.”

Many have benefited from Tooey’s accomplishments and commitment to the health sciences information profession. Director, Health Sciences and Human Services Library, University of Maryland-Baltimore, Tooey served as MLA president in 2005-2006 and on the MLA Board of Directors from 1998-2001 during which time she served as Chapter Council chair. During her presidency, Tooey established and chaired the Task Force on Vital Pathways for Hospital Librarians, which focused on the current state, future roles, and challenges of hospital libraries and librarians.

A proven leader in the association and profession, Tooey also chaired the 2007 MLA Nominating Committee, the MLA/Pew Credible Information Task Force, which resulted in the highly-referenced MLA’s User’s Guide to Finding and Evaluating Health Information on the Web, and the MLA 2004 National Program Committee, as well as MLA’s Public Services Section and Mid-Atlantic Chapter (MAC). She also lent her talent and expertise to MLA’s Scholarly Publishing Task Force and the Librarians Without Borders® Task Force. In addition, Tooey serves on the editorial board of Medical Reference Services Quarterly.

Because of her many contributions as a health sciences librarianship professional, Tooey has earned numerous honors throughout her career including Distinguished-level membership in the Academy of Health Information Professionals (AHIP), the 1997 MLA Estelle Brodman Award for the Academic Medical Librarian of the Year and the Mid-AtlanticChapter/MLA 1996 Librarian of the Year Awards.

She is known as a mentor and advocate for many health information science librarians and students, as well as many allied health professionals. Tooey helped to develop two popular MLA continuing education courses, “The Past and Future of the Medical Librarian” and “So, You Want to be a Library Director”. She has also built a strong scholarly record and has presented several posters and presentations at local and international meetings.

MLA Past President Jean P. Shipman, AHIP, to Become MLA Fellow

The Medical Library Association (MLA) is pleased to announce that MLA Past President Jean Pugh Shipman, AHIP, director, Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library, University of Utah-Salt Lake City, will be inducted as an MLA Fellow at the MLA ‘09 Awards Ceremony and Luncheon in Honolulu, HI, in May. A Distinguished Member of the Academy of Health Information Professionals (AHIP), Shipman has long served the association as one of its most revered and valued leaders and has had an impact on many key MLA initiatives, including health information literacy. She has made major contributions in this area, most recently as coprincipal investigator for the MLA Health Information Literacy Research Project, under a contract with the National Library of Medicine (NLM). The project researched hospital-based administrators’ and health care providers’ awareness and understanding of health literacy and its value in support of patient care. The project’s research resulted in the development of a health information literacy curriculum that will not only increase health care providers’ knowledge of health literacy issues, but also to increase patient and provider use of NLM resources and tools.

Prior to serving as MLA president (2006/07), Shipman was elected to the 1999-2002 Board of Directors, during which time she served as board secretary. She has also served as chair of numerous MLA committees and task forces, including MLA’s Informationist Conference Task Force, MLA’s 2001 National Program Committee, MLA’s Ida and George Eliot Prize Jury (1992/93) and most recently, the 2007/08 MLA Nominating Committee. She has also been an active member of MLA’s Mid-Atlantic Chapter having served as 1993 chair-elect and in 1991/92 as secretary.

A sought-after presenter, Shipman has taught many continuing education courses and has given more than fifty presentations locally as well as internationally, covering topics such as consumer health and the informationist role in document delivery. She has also authored fifteen peer-reviewed publications and over thirty refereed scientific posters.

About Shipman’s contributions to the profession, MLA member, Sherrilynne Fuller, FMLA, co-director, Center for Public Health Information, University of Washington-Seattle, stated, “As a member of the MLA Board of Directors and as president, Jean brought new life to the image of medical librarians and enhanced the visibility of the profession. She is a tireless advocate for the importance of health sciences librarians to improving the health of the public and has served as an enthusiastic mentor, role model, and advisor throughout her career.”

MLA, a nonprofit, educational organization, comprises health sciences information professionals with more than 4,000 members worldwide. Through its programs and services, MLA provides lifelong educational opportunities, supports a knowledgebase of health information research, and works with a global network of partners to promote the importance of quality information for improved health to the health care community and the public.

The deadline for submission of the pre-proposal is Monday, June 15, 2009, 11:59 pm Eastern time.

• Pre-proposals must be submitted by email to hiddencollectionssubmission@clir.org.
• In the subject line of the email, please include the name of the applicant institution and the words “Hidden Collections Pre-Proposal.”

Pre-proposals will be returned to applicants with comments by Tuesday, August 4, 2009. These will be sent by e-mail to the Principal Investigator listed in the pre-proposal form.

The online application system for final proposals will be opened to applicants who have submitted pre-proposals on July 1, 2009. Final proposals must be submitted via the program’s online application system by Friday, September 4, 2009, 11:59 pm Eastern time.

All applicants will be notified of their status by November 30, 2009.

The Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) has opened the second application period for its Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives grant program. Information about the program, deadlines, and links to the online application and guidelines are available at http://www.clir.org/hiddencollections/index.html.

CLIR expects to award about $4 million in grants that range from $75,000 to $500,000. A review panel will evaluate proposals and select award recipients. Recipients will be notified in November 2009, and applicants may begin their projects at any time between December 1, 2009, and March 1, 2010.

The program will award funds to institutions holding collections of high scholarly value that are difficult or impossible to locate through finding aids. Award recipients will create descriptive information for their hidden collections that will be linked to and interoperable with all other projects funded by this grant, to form a federated environment that can be built upon over time. Funding for the program comes from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Questions about the program may be directed to Amy Lucko (alucko@clir.org).

Wednesday, June 3, 2009
12:00 Noon - 1:00 pm (EST)

Join us for presentations and question/answer sessions from Janice Kelly, Executive Director of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine Southeastern Atlantic Region and Hua-Chun Sim, MD, Program Officer, Division of Extramural Programs at NLM. Ms. Kelly and Dr. Sim will discuss funding opportunities available to Network members from both NN/LM and NLM.

For more information and how to connect, please see http://nnlm.gov/sea/services/webconf/index.html.

The emergence of several new human Swine Flu cases reported in the media has generated a good deal of publicity. Here are some CDC and WHO information resources that are frequently updated with Swine Flu outbreak and mitigation developments:

CDC web page on Swine Flu. This site is kept updated with recent facts and status on Swine Flu. There is a link on the page to the facts and figures about the current investigation. http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/

Public health emergency declaration in response to recent human infections with a newly discovered swine influenza A (swine flu) virus. http://www.hhs.gov/secretary/phe_swh1n1.html.

Transcript of the April 26 CDC Briefing on Public Health Investigation of Human Cases of Swine Influenza: http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/download.asp?af=h&f=11270&s_cid=cs_000_sw

A transcript of the April 24 press briefing about the Swine Flu situation is located at: http://www.cdc.gov/media/transcripts/2009/t090424.htm?s_cid=tw_epr_53

A new Swine Flu topic page on MedlinePlus is now live at:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/swineflu.html

You can also add the following RSS feed on Swine Flu to your feed reader to get regular updates: http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/rss/?s_cid=tw_epr_54

Latest CDC Health Advisory
http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/pdf/HAN_042509.pdf

Information updates from World Health Organization http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/en/index.html

From NYC Health Dept - Chart: steps required to confirm suspected cases of swine flu
http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/pr2009/pr015-09.shtml

Recent articles in the MMWR on swine flu in California: Update: Swine Influena A (H1N1) Infections - - California and Texas, April 2009 MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2009 Apr 24; 58(Dispath);1-3.
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm58d0424a1.htm

Swine Influenza A (H1N1) infection in two children–Southern California, March-April 2009 MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2009 Apr 24;58(15):400-2.
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm58d0421a1.htm

Swine Flu guidance documents for clinicians and public health professionals: http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/guidance/

HHS Swine Flu widget: http://www.hhs.gov/web/library/index.html

Three ways to stay current on Swine Flu and Avian Influenza News events:

1. RSS Feed: http://twitter.com/statuses/user_timeline/32957440.rss
2. Website: http://aidailydigest.blogspot.com/
3. Twitter: Go http://twitter.com and sign up. Once logged in, open
   another tab go to http://search.twitter.com/ search for “AIDigest” and
   click follow.”

CDC also has a Twitter feed that contains updates on the Swine Flu: http://twitter.com/cdcemergency

Representatives from three popular vendors will be demonstrating changes and enhancements to their electronic resources for SE/A hospital librarians.

Tuesday April 28, 2009
12 noon to 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST)
Journals@Ovid
Speaker: Jenna Huson

Wednesday April 29, 2009
12 noon to 1 p.m. (EST)
Elsevier
Speaker: Garrett Meyer

Thursday April 30, 2009
12 noon to 1 p.m. (EST)
Cinahl on Ebscohost
Speaker: TBD

To join go to: https://webmeeting.nih.gov/bbb/
Enter as a Guest
Sign in with your first and last name

For more information on how to use Adobe Connect, please use this link - http://www.adobe.com/resources/acrobatconnect/

NLM has announced applied informatics grants for health-related and scientific organizations that aim to optimize the utility and use of clinical and research information. These grants are for organizations that wish to exploit the capabilities of information technology to bring usable, useful biomedical knowledge to end users by translating the findings of informatics and information science research into practice through novel or enhanced systems and services. NLM anticipates making 35 awards and spending approximately 800,000.00 to support this program. Awards are contingent upon the availability of funds and the submission of a sufficient number of meritorious applications. For the full opportunity, visit the (http://www.grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-LM-09-001.html) National Institutes of Health website.

The closing date for applications is July 1, 2009.

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) is the nation’s primary resource for biomedical information in all formats and is the world’s largest research library in a single scientific and professional field. The History of Medicine division (HMD) is a major component of NLM’s Library Operations program area. HMD is responsible for NLM’s historical collections of monographs and journals as well as manuscripts, archives, images, web sites, and historical audiovisuals. In addition, HMD staff provides technical and customer service to support research and scholarship in the history of medicine and conduct historical research. The Division develops and manages an interactive and innovative onsite and web exhibition program, travels exhibitions to libraries across America, and supports the use of K-12 curriculum materials associated with exhibitions.

The Deputy Chief, HMD shares responsibility for and participates fully with the Chief in directing and managing all activities of HMD, which has three Section Heads, several technical experts, and a total staff of 40 employees.

The complete vacancy announcement, along with mandatory qualifications, requirements, and application procedures, can be accessed via internet link: http://www.usajobs.gov (Announcement Numbers NLM-09-334228-DE {for candidates without prior Federal employment history} and NLM-09-334228-MP {for candidates with prior Federal employment history}). The salary range is $102,721.00 - 133,543.00 USD per year. Applicants must be US Citizens.

For questions, contact Susan Burns at burnss@mail.nih.gov or by calling 301-496-3661. Applications must be received before midnight Eastern Daylight Time, May 22, 2009.

Donald A.B. Lindberg, M.D.
Director
National Library of Medicine

I am very pleased to announce the appointment of Milton Corn, M.D., as NLM Deputy Director for Research and Education.

Prior to joining the NLM, Dr. Corn served with distinction in numerous top leadership positions at Georgetown University including Dean of the School of Medicine. Since 1990, as NLM Associate Director for Extramural Programs, Dr. Corn has led the Library’s Division of Extramural Programs in an exemplary manner, establishing numerous collaborations with other agencies and organizations that have expanded informatics research and training opportunities. Dr. Corn creatively modified NLM’s Training Program in Biomedical Informatics to keep pace with developments in biomedical computing. At present the 18 NLM training grants (involving 27 academic medical centers)offer tracks in clinical care informatics, bioinformatics, public health and health services research informatics and the informatics of clinical and translational research and supports over 250 pre- and post-doctoral trainees. As administrator of the largest Federal programs for training in informatics and for a significant share of the research grants available to informatics scientists, Dr. Corn has become nationally and internationally known as an expert in research directions in biomedical informatics.

As you know, Dr. Corn brings rich experience, leadership, and talent - as well as a world class sense of humor - to the position of Deputy Director for Research and Education, where he will serve as principal medical advisor on research and development and medical education priorities for the NLM. Dr. Corn will provide direction and advice on the full range of NLM’s intramural and extramural research portfolio.

Click here to register for the conference.

Individual Registration - $195 (late registration May 1 at $295);
Government employees complimentary

Friends of the National Library of Medicine
2009 Annual Conference

Personal Electronic Health Records:
From Biomedical Research to People’s Health
May 20 - 21, 2009

National Institutes of Health, Natcher Conference Center
9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, Maryland

Reflecting the NIH mission, the National Library of Medicine and the non-profit Friends of the NLM have organized this conference to develop and promote new information and knowledge regarding the critical and recent developments in health information technology. The conference is structured to offer cross-cutting perspectives from government, industry, health centers and research, and to align closely with the priorities of the current Administration around the development and widespread implementation of personal electronic health records. Please visit www.fnlm.org for additional information on the conference.

Please find a selection of sessions and speakers listed below:

• Electronic Health Record and Economic Recovery David Cutler, PhD, Harvard University
• Biomedical Research and Electronic Health Record George Hripcsak, MD, MS, Columbia University
• Our Search for the Best Personal Health Electronic Health Record Alfred Spector, PhD, Google
• Health Records and Systems Interoperability Daniel S. Pelino, IBM and Dan Drawbaugh, UPMC
• Microsoft Experience with Electronic Health Records James Mault, MD, FACS, Microsoft Health Solutions Group
• Patient Access to Electronic Health Records Rich Umbdenstock, FACHE, American Hospital Association
• New Initiatives in Personalized Health Information Clement McDonald, MD, National Library of Medicine
• Ethical and Legal Issues of Personal Health Records Arthur Caplan, PhD, University of Pennsylvania
• If We Were Starting Now: What is Needed for the Electronic Health Record of the Future? Donald Lindberg, MD, National Library of Medicine

Conference Co-Chairs:

Andrew Balas, MD, PhD- Dean, College of Health Sciences, Old Dominion University

Jonathan Perlin, MD, PhD, MSHA, FACP, FACMI - Chief Medical Officer and President, Clinical Services, HCA, Inc.

For more information, please contact Sarah Pease at 202.719.8060 or spease@oai-usa.com.

Friday, April 17 is the deadline for applying for an outreach project in the May, 2009-April 2010 contract year.  If you are interested, please see http://nnlm.gov/sea/funding/outreach.html.  If all approved budget funding is not used, we will have another call sometime during the contract year but don’t delay, all money could be obligated by the end of May.  Full proposals will not due unless your project application is accepted.

Express awards will be open for applications sometime in May. These awards fund smaller outreach projects and various technology, training, exhibit, digitization projects.

If you have questions, please call one of the outreach coordinators in the SE/A Office - 1-800-338-7657.