Date: Tue, 5 Dec 1995 09:16:15 +0100 (MET)
Message-Id: <199512050816.JAA07732@solair4b.eunet.be>
To: medibib-l@uni-muenster.de
From: maesv@pophost.eunet.be (Vincent Maes)
Subject: FYI: Med.Info articles
>Bulletin: Medical Library Assoc., Vol. 83, No. 03; 1995
>
>The health sciences librarian as Internet navigator and
>interpreter, Brian N. Warling and Christopher D. Stave
> 395-401
>Abstract. Over the past several years, thousands of
>networked information resources have become available to
>individuals and institutions with access to the Internet.
>Unfortunately, the dizzying array of computing and
>networking environments often frustrates end users
>attempts to navigate the Internet. Librarians have begun
>to take responsibility not only for instructing users in
>the use of basic network tools such as file transfer,
>remote log-in, and electronic mail, but also for
>answering questions concerning network access and even
>information system design. The authors show how, by
>continuing to adapt to this new and volatile environment,
>health sciences librarians find themselves playing
>increasingly important roles in shaping the information
>policies and practices of their institutions. To
>illustrate these new roles, the authors review the
>experiences of health sciences librarians at the
>University of California, Los Angeles, and the University
>of California, San Diego. These institutions have varying
>and complex networking environments, and their biomedical
>libraries have taken lead roles in clarifying and
>interpreting their particular Internet features.
>
>Delivering medical information to the desktop: the UIC
>GRATEFUL-MED-via-the-Internet experience, Elaine Russo
>Martin and Don Lanier 402-406
>Abstract. The University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC)
>provides the campus community, including the main campus
>and three regional sites, with a local MEDLINE option
>through a GRATEFUL MED fixed-fee licensing agreement with
>the National Library of Medicine. Searching is available
>via the Internet. A password server and customized
>GRATEFUL MED clients were built in order to adapt this
>off-the-shelf product to match the look and feel of other
>UIC campus-wide Internet resources. Installation,
>documentation, and training issues affecting the success
>of the project are discussed.
>
>Strengthening the links between health sciences
>information users and providers, Joanne Lavine
>Silverstein 407-417
>Abstract. In 1994, the Hospital Library Service Program
>of the Central New York Library Resources Council
>conducted a study to evaluate the usefulness, impacts,
>and potential services of eleven hospital libraries in a
>four-county area in New York State; determine the degree
>to which the libraries comply with Joint Commission on
>Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO)
>standard IM.9.2; and provide recommendations for improved
>services in the member libraries. Two research
>instruments were used: a survey for hospital-based health
>sciences professionals and a survey for hospital-based
>information providers. Results from the two surveys were
>compared to determine if users needs were being filled,
>and to develop plans for improved information services
>and products. Fourteen recommendations are made that, if
>implemented, will support the creation of user-defined
>information products. enhance the librarys profile
>within the hospital, and exploit resource sharing to
>reduce costs and enhance coordination.
>
>Educational services in health sciences libraries: a
>content analysis of the literature, 1984-`994, Alexandra
>Dimitroff 420-424
>Abstract. The recent literature (1987-1994) describing
>educational services of health sciences librarians was
>analyzed for content. Variables examined included
>publication journal, country, type of article
>(description, review, or advocacy), target audience of
>education services, and subject of article. Articles that
>report research results also were identified. Of 123
>articles studied, 82.1% were descriptive, 14.6% advocacy,
>and 3.3% reviews. Library users were the primary target
>audience (85.1%), an increase over the percentage
>reported in an earlier study of the 1975-1986 literature.
>Librarians were the target audience in 12.8% of the
>articles, a decrease from the previous studys findings.
>There was an increase in educational offerings by
>academic libraries, which sponsored 83.2% of programs,
>while hospital libraries sponsorship decreased to 5% of
>programs reported in the literature. The analysis
>identified a major need for research related to
>educational activities in health sciences libraries.
>
>The impact of medical libraries and literature on patient
>care in New Zealand, Judith Elizabeth Burton 425-430
>Abstract. This paper reports the results of a survey of
>372 physicians working in regional hospitals in New
>Zealand. The survey was undertaken to determine if these
>physicians used their local medical library and what
>impact the literature obtained had on patient care. The
>295 respondents (80.6% of the sample) expressed genuine
>interest in their library, with most visiting the library
>once a week or more. Patient care was ranked as the main
>reason for their visit; the second most important reason
>was keeping up-to-date on the latest research. Physicians
>indicated that information obtained at the library was
>used to confirm or change diagnoses, medications, or
>diagnostic tests, or to change advice given to patients.
>Information also was used to make decisions concerning
>early discharge, avoidance of hospital admission, or
>transfer of patients to another hospital. The survey also
>addressed the use of librarian services, sources of
>information used, and physicians purchase of textbooks
>and journals. All comments by respondents were supportive
>of the library. The significance of libraries to clinical
>decision making, especially in small hospitals, is
>discussed.
>
>>From task force to statute: establishing health sciences
>libraries in state law as a component of the health care
>system, Mary C. Holt 431-435
>Abstract. This paper describes how Montana librarians
>successfully incorporated health sciences libraries into
>the statewide health care resource management plan being
>developed under 1993 state law. First, a broad-based
>Montana Task Force for Biomedical Information was formed
>with funds from the National Network of Libraries of
>Medicine/Pacific Northwest Region and the Montana Area
>Health Education Center. The resulting report reviewed
>findings from national studies and trends to current
>state developments and deficiencies. The report was
>presented to the governor and state legislators in the
>context of cost-containment measures being considered in
>the states health care reform bill. Now Montana law
>provides that it is further the policy of the state of
>Montana that the health care system should ... facilitate
>universal access to current health sciences information,
>and The management plan must include ... identification
>of the current supply and distribution of ... health
>sciences library resources and services. This experience
>highlights the need for health sciences librarians to
>develop skills in advocacy, lobbying, and networking with
>other components of the health care industry.
>
>Multiple usage of the CD PLUS/UNIX system: performance in
>practice, Aloysius C.W. Volkers, Ingeborg A.S. Thjiam,
>Abraham van Laar, and Ans Bleeker 436-439
>Abstract. In August 1994, the CD PLUS/Ovid literature
>retrieval system based on UNIX was activated for the
>Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences of Erasmus
>University, Rotterdam, the Netherlands. There were up to
>1,200 potential users. Tests were carried out to
>determine the extent to which searching for literature
>was affected by other end users of the system. In the
>tests, search times and download times were measured in
>relation to a varying number of continuously active
>workstations. Results indicated a linear relationship
>between search times and the number of active
>workstations. In the worst case situation with sixteen
>active workstations, the time required for record
>retrieval increased by a factor of sixteen and
>downloading time by a factor of sixteen over the best
>case of no other active stations. However, because the
>worst case seldom, if ever, happens in real life, these
>results are considered acceptable.
>
>The anatomy of a World Wide Web library service: the
>BONES demonstration project, Eric H. Schnell 440-445
>Abstract. In 1994, the John A. Prior Health Services
>Library at Ohio State University began to develop a World
>Wide Web demonstration project, the Biomedically Oriented
>Navigator of Electronic Services (BONES). The initial
>intent of BONES was to facilitate the health
>professionals access to Internet resources by organizing
>them in a systematic manner. The project not only met
>this goal but also helped identify the resources needed
>to launch a full-scale Web library service. This paper
>discusses the tasks performed and resources used in the
>development of BONES and describes the creation and
>organization of documents on the BONES Web server. The
>paper also discusses the outcomes of the project and the
>impact on the librarys staff and services.
>
>Information-seeking practices of dental hygienists,
>Sharon L. Gravois, William Fisher, Silvia Cantaluppi
>Patrick, and Denise M. Bowen 446-452
>Abstract. This paper reports on a survey of the
>information-seeking, critical-analysis and computer-
>application practices of dental hygienists.
>Questionnaires were mailed to a convenience sample of
>seventy-one dental hygiene practitioners. A 62% response
>rate was achieved. Results indicated that discussions
>with colleagues, continuing education courses, journals,
>and newsletters were the sources used most frequently for
>professional development and information retrieval. To
>evaluate professional information, these hygienists
>tended to rely on personal experience, credibility of the
>journal, and discussions with colleagues. Word processing
>was the most frequently used computer application; online
>database searching was rare in this group. Computer use
>within the employment setting was primarily for business
>rather than clinical applications. Many hygienists were
>interested in attending continuing education courses on
>the use of computers to acquire professional information.
>
>Symposium: Applying knowledge and skills: new directions,
>Carolyn E. Lipscombe, editor 453-489
>Introduction, Carolyn E. Lipscombe 454
>
>The impact of IAIMS on the work of information experts,
>Joan Ash 455-460
>Abstract. Integrated Advanced Information Management
>Systems (IAIMS) programs differ but have certain
>characteristics in common. Technological and
>organizational integration are universal goals. As
>integration takes place, what happens to those
>implementing the vision? A survey of 125 staff members,
>or information experts, involved in information or
>informatics at an IAIMS-funded institution was conducted
>during the last year of the implementation phase. The
>purpose was to measure the impact of IAIMS on the jobs of
>those in the library and related service units, and the
>computing, telecommunications, and health informatics
>divisions. The researchers used newly developed scales
>measuring levels of integration (knowledge of and
>involvement with other departments), customer orientation
>(focus on the user), and informatedness (changes in the
>nature of work beyond automation of former routines).
>Ninety-four percent of respondents indicated that their
>jobs had changed a great deal; the changes were similar
>regardless of division. To further investigate the impact
>of IAIMS on librarians in particular, a separate skills
>survey was conducted. The IAIMS librarians indicated that
>technology and training skills are especially needed in
>the new, integrated environment.
>
>Librarian participation in meta-analysis projects, Thomas
>L. Mead and Daniel T. Richards 461-464
>Abstract. Meta-analysis is an epidemiological and
>statistical tool used to combine the results of
>independent studies and synthesize their conclusions for
>the purpose of evaluating therapeutic effectiveness,
>determining procedural efficacy, or providing a basis for
>development of treatment protocols. Meta-analysis also
>may be described as studying the studies. The process,
>however defined, requires access to a large quantity of
>medical literature and presents new opportunities for
>medical librarians to use their data gathering skills.
>At Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, a librarian
>assists with the identification, location, and review of
>literature in support of meta-analysis projects done by
>the Technology Assessment Program. Comprehensive
>literature searches are performed and references with
>abstracts, indexing terms, and other elements of the unit
>record are downloaded, converted, and presented as
>records in a database program. References are then
>analyzed, decisions are made about their relevance, and
>article copies are acquired for further analysis.
>
>Library faculty role in problem-based learning:
>facilitating small groups, Rebecca K. Satterthwaite, Mary
>E. Helms, Rosita Nouravarsani, Mary Van Antwerp, and
>Nancy N. Woelfl 465-468
>Abstract. Since 1986, the library faculty of the McGoogan
>Library of Medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical
>Center (UNMC) has participated in small group activities
>during the week-long orientation for first-year medical
>students. This involvement paved the way for library
>faculty members to act as facilitators for small groups
>of medical students within the new problem-based learning
>(PBL) curriculum introduced in 1992 by the College of
>Medicine. The UNMC curriculum consists of traditional PBL
>groups as well as Integrated Clinical Experience (ICE)
>small groups. The ICE groups provide opportunities for
>discussion of the social and behavioral issues that arise
>in medicine, with the majority of the sessions designed
>to give students interviewing practice with simulated
>patients. The ICE small groups meet once a week with
>either on or two facilitators. Several library faculty
>members act as facilitators for ICE groups. As a result
>of this involvement, librarian contacts with College of
>Medicine faculty have grown in number and depth, there
>has been a corresponding increase in related activities
>with the first- and second-year medical students.
>Participation in ICE groups has caused some difficulties
>with respect to library work schedules, but it has been
>immensely rewarding and enriching in terms of
>professional growth. This paper describes the UNMC
>curriculum, the evolution and extent of the librarians
>involvement, and the future involvement, ramifications,
>and challenges envisioned for McGoogan faculty and their
>medical library colleagues.
>
>Librarian for hire: contracting a librarians services
>to external departments, Cindy A. Schatz and Susan E.
>Whitehead 469-472
>Abstract. In a time of financial constraints, Harvard
>Medical Schools Countway Library has found a way to
>acquire additional funding to expand its services while
>integrating librarians further into the medical school
>organization. This paper describes the contractual
>arrangement between the library and a medical school
>department and shows how a professional librarian can be
>integrated into the institutional environment and take on
>new roles that are both meaningful and satisfying. As
>liaison to the curriculum development department of the
>medical school, the librarian was involved in curriculum
>planning, software support, and computing facility
>support. Increased understanding and cooperation has
>evolved between the contracting departments, and the
>problems encountered by the liaison have been minor. The
>contractual arrangement was not only successful but also
>provided a model for future outreach projects.
>
>The application of health sciences library skills in
>other settings, Margaret F. Snape 473-477
>Abstract. Medical librarians have been urged to assume
>personal responsibility for seeking lifelong education
>and professional development opportunities, but it is not
>always clear which opportunities should be sought or
>which skills will be needed in the rapidly changing
>health sciences environment. To shed some light on these
>issues, the author interviewed former medical librarians
>from southern California and Arizona who are now employed
>in other settings, to determine the skills that aided
>their transition from the medical library arena to new
>jobs. In interviews, respondents highlighted the
>importance of presentation, training, management,
>reference, computer, and interpersonal skills. Although
>both technical and interpersonal skills aided successful
>transitions, strong interpersonal skills augmented
>technical abilities and may be essential to successful
>career change. In sum, medical librarians possess skills
>that transfer well to other settings. Individuals with
>clear career goals who are able to present themselves and
>their skills well can take advantage of career
>opportunities, in both new settings and in medical
>libraries.
>
>Scientific writing and editing: a new role for the
>library, Patricia A. Stephens and Jayne M. Campbell
> 478-482
>Abstract. Traditional library instruction programs teach
>scientists how to find and manage information, but not
>how to report their research findings effectively. Since
>1990, the William H. Welch Medical Library has sponsored
>classes on scientific writing and, since 1991, has
>offered a fee-based editing service for affiliates of the
>Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. These programs were
>designed to fill an educational gap. Although formal
>instruction was offered to support other phases of the
>scientific communication process, the medical
>institutions had no central resource designed to help
>scientists develop and improve their writings skills. The
>establishment of such a resource at Welch has been well
>received by the community. Attendance at classes has
>grown steadily, and in 1993 a credit course on biomedical
>writing was added to the curriculum. The editing service,
>introduced in late 1991, has generated more requests for
>assistance than can be handled by the librarys editor.
>This service not only extends the librarys educational
>outreach but also generates a revenue stream. The Welch
>program in scientific writing and editing, or elements of
>it, could provide a model for other academic medical
>libraries interested in moving in this new direction.
>
>Medical education and faculty development: a new role for
>the health sciences librarian, Diane G. Schwartz 483-489
>Abstract. This paper describes the roles and
>responsibilities of the associate director for medical
>education at the Primary Care Resource Center (PCRC),
>School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State
>University of New York at Buffalo (UB). The PCRC was
>established to increase the number of UB medical school
>graduates who selected graduate medical education in the
>generalist disciplines. the associate director, who is a
>health sciences librarian, has established collaborative
>working relationships with primary care physicians in the
>clinical departments of family medicine, pediatrics, and
>internal medicine with the goal of improving the teaching
>effectiveness of faculty and residents. Another goal is
>to incorporate the use of computerized information
>technologies into clinical practice by training
>physicians and residents, at specially equipped
>ambulatory training sites, in how to access and manage
>information for the purpose of providing quality medical
>care. This has been accomplished in part through the
>provision of highly personalized instruction to
>participants. In addition to describing these activities,
>this paper examines how the duties of the associate
>director reflect the potential for long-term change in
>the roles and responsibilities of health sciences
>librarians, whether they work in a traditional or
>nontraditional setting.
>
>Highlighting emerging roles and enduring values:
>information management in nursing education
>Introduction, Ellen Hall 490-491
>
>Multilevel library instruction for emerging nursing
>roles, Barbara W. Francis and Clarissa C. Fisher 492-498
>Abstract. As new nursing roles emerge that involve
>greater decision making than in the past, added
>responsibility for outcomes and cost control, and
>increased emphasis on primary care, the information-
>seeking skills needed by nurses change. A search of
>library and nursing literature indicates that there is
>little comprehensive library instruction covering all
>levels of nursing programs: undergraduate, returning
>registered nurses, and graduate students. The University
>of Florida is one of the few places that has such a
>multilevel, course-integrated curriculum in place for all
>entrants into the nursing program. Objectives have been
>developed for each stage of learning. The courses include
>instruction in the use of the online public access
>catalog, printed resources, and electronic databases. A
>library classroom equipped with the latest technology
>enables student interaction with electronic databases.
>This paper discusses the program and several methods used
>to evaluate it.
>
>The librarian as a partner in nursing education, Beth
>Layton and Karla Hahn 499-502
>Abstract. Welch Medical Library has explored new roles
>for librarians in knowledge management instruction
>programs throughout the Johns Hopkins University School
>of Nursing curricula. These programs have created roles
>for library staff as both instructors and knowledge
>management experts. By fostering strong communication and
>attention to quality instruction, librarians achieved
>their vision of a program in knowledge management
>integrated into the curriculum, where they are partners
>working with nursing faculty to define the students
>knowledge management needs and decide how these needs can
>be met.
>
>Citation analysis of faculty publication: beyond Science
>Citation Index and Social Sciences Citation Index,
>Kathlyn L. Reed 503-508
>Abstract. When evaluated for promotion or tenure, faculty
>members are increasingly judged more on the quality than
>on the quantity of their scholarly publications. As a
>result, they want help from librarians in locating all
>citations to their published works for documentation in
>their curriculum vitae. Citation analysis using Science
>Citation Index and Social Science Citation Index provides
>a logical starting point in measuring quality, but the
>limitations of these sources leave a void in coverage of
>citations to an authors work. This article discusses
>alternative and additional methods of locating citations
>to published works.
>
>Brief communications
>Reference librarians perceptions and use of Internet
>resources: results of a survey of academic health
>sciences librarians, Katherine Schilling and Charles B.
>Wessel 509-512
>
>Online SERHOLD updating for the Pacific Northwest, Nancy
>Ottman Press 512-514
>
>Comment and opinion
>Editorial: Ruling handed down on Texaco appeal, Sarah K.
>Wiant 517-518
>
>Book reviews, Connie Poole, Editor 521-525
>Books and serials received, Connie Poole, Editor 526
>Software review, Janis Brown, Editor 529-530
>Articles in forthcoming issues 419
>
>
Vincent Maes
Pfizer
(Belgian Institute for Health Economics)
102, rue Leon Theodor
B-1090 Bruxelles (Belgium)
Tel : +32 2 423.07.12 / 423.07.68
Fax : +32 2 423.07.93
e-mail : maesv@pophost.eunet.be