By Deb Werner
Biomedical Reference Librarian
The John Crerar Library
The University of Chicago

The videos for all recorded presentations from the 2011 Kathleen A. Zar Symposium, “We’re Teaching, But How Do We Know If They’re Learning?” Assessment of Library Instruction Activities, are now available. Links on the main symposium webpage http://www.lib.uchicago.edu/e/crerar/zar/ lead to YouTube, iTunes, and the UChicago News site. Slides and handouts from the Symposium are also available on the Program page. See the Program Schedule for links to slides.

Feel free to pass this information on to colleagues who may have an interest in the topic of assessment of library instruction activities. You should also feel free to post this on any appropriate discussion lists.

If you have any questions or comments about the symposium or the recordings, please contact Andrea Twiss-Brooks at atbrooks@uchicago.edu. If you have suggestions on topics for future symposia, we’re always looking for good ideas! Thanks, and enjoy.

By Kacy Allgood
Reference
Medical Library
Indiana University
Indianapolis IN

You are invited to the 2011 Midwest Chapter / Medical Library Association Annual Meeting, to be held in Indianapolis, October 8th-11th. The meeting will be held at the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown. The conference hotel is located near the Circle Center Mall, Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the Colts, the Indiana State Museum, Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, Indianapolis Zoo, NCAA Hall of Champions, an IMAX 3D Theater, outdoor art and canal. Nearby dining includes the Oceanaire, Shula’s Steak House, St. Elmo’s Steakhouse, and much more.

Online Registration for 2011 Midwest Chapter MLA/Indiana Health Sciences Librarians Association Annual Meeting is available now. Early bird discount registration ends September 8, 2011. More pricing information can be found on our website. (more…)

HHS has announced winners of an awards program “that highlights innovative health promotion projects that have demostrated a significant impact on the health of the community within the past three years…”

Nominated organizations had to have an innovative project in at least one of three health promotion areas: healthy weight, physical activity, and nutrition. Awards were granted based on the criteria of creativity and innovation, leadership, sustainability, replicability, and results/outcomes. Some of the winners are in our region:

• Public Sector: Exercise Your Right to Feel Better Minnesota—St. Paul-Ramsey County Public Health (St. Paul, Minn.)
• Healthy Workplace (Large employer): Shape up and Go!—Cleveland Clinic (Cleveland, Ohio)
• Faith-Based and/or Community Initiatives: Taking the YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program to Scale—YMCA of the USA, (Chicago, Ill.)

The press release can be found here: http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2011pres/07/20110715a.html and more information including a video by Secretary Sebelius, http://healthylivinginnovation.challenge.gov/

Congratulations to the winners!

By Emily Schearer
Outreach Librarian
Medical College of Wisconsin Libraries

The Medical College of Wisconsin Libraries recently wrapped up its Health-E Public project with the Citizens and Organizations Active in Disaster and Medical Reserve Corps of Southeastern Wisconsin. The project was funded by a Public Health award from the NN/LM Greater Midwest Region.

The award allowed us to provide hands-on workshops and both formal and informal presentations for audiences working and volunteering in public health related fields. In addition to providing training on the use of PubMed, MedlinePlus, Toxnet and other resources, we were also able to advertise the availability of LoansomeDoc services to a number of people that had limited or no access to full-text articles.

Throughout the project, we found that many people who wished to attend workshops or presentations were often called out of the office for last-minute flu vaccine clinics or other duties in the community. For this reason, it became necessary to provide a great deal of information via email and electronic formats. Overall, the project allowed us to connect and solidify relationships with community organizations that we had little contact wither previously. We gained a better understanding of the information needs of public health professionals and volunteers, and are better equipped to serve them as they continue their work in Milwaukee and surrounding counties.

By Mandy Meloy
Student Programs Coordinator
Wisconsin AHEC
Madison, WI

The National Network of Libraries of Medicine Greater Midwest Region (NN/LM GMR) funded Wisconsin AHEC to promote InformedCaring.org, portal for Wisconsin health professionals. This site was designed to serve those working in local health departments, federally qualified community health centers, and others providing health services in rural and underserved communities in Wisconsin — particularly those without access to academic or hospital libraries.

With GMR funds, we coordinated with 12 public health departments, Community Health Centers, and partners to train staff, share ideas, gain useful feedback, and spread the word about InformedCaring.org. Trudging through harsh weather conditions, we reached 145 in-person staff. In the west, we reached Monroe County Health Department, Western Region Public Health Nurses and Health Directors Meeting in Eau Claire, and Scenic Bluffs Community Health Center. In central Wisconsin, we traveled to Wood County Health Department, Bridge Community Health Center, University of Wisconsin’s ICTR (Institute for Clinical and Translational Research) Community-Academic Partnership Steering Committee, LEAP (Linking Education and Practice for Excellence in Public Health Nursing Project), and the Wisconsin Department of Public Health. In the east, we ventured to Manitowoc County Health Department and Ozaukee County Health Department. In snow, we finally reached the north woods to present to the Oneida County Health Department. (more…)

By Fran E. Kovach MLIS
Reference & Education Librarian
Southern Illinois University School of MedicineSpringfield, IL

On June 3-5, 2011, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine Library participated in the 6th Annual Taylorville Intertribal Black Horse Pow Wow in Taylorville, Illinois, at the Christian County Fairgrounds. This is our third year participating in the event.

Special guests this year were the Alaskan runners, North American Indian athletes from McMasters University who stopped by on their run to the World Peace and Prayer conference in Minneapolis, MN. Others attending were from the Christian and Sangamon county areas and the states of Iowa and Arkansas. Nations represented were from Alaskan, Apache, Blackfeet, Cherokee, Cheyenne, Kiowa, Mohawk, Meskwaki, Navajo, and Sioux tribal affiliations. Dancing, drumming, singing, and returning to a traditional diet of Native American foods such as corn, squash, beans, berries, and melons can improve physical, mental, and spiritual health. American Indian Health Information, MedlinePlus consumer health information and NIH Senior Health pamphlets, bookmarks, and pens were distributed from our exhibit booth.

See http://noteslibrary.blogspot.com/ for photos from the event.

By Kacy Allgood, MLS
Reference Informationist
Indiana University
School of Medicine Library
Indianapolis, IN

Save the date!

You are invited to the 2011 Midwest Chapter Annual Meeting, to be held in Indianapolis, October 8th-11th. The meeting will be held at the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown. The conference hotel is located near the Circle Center Mall, Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the Colts, the Indiana State Museum, Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, Indianapolis Zoo, NCAA Hall of Champions, an IMAX 3D Theater, outdoor art and canal. Nearby dining includes the Oceanaire, Shula’s Steak House, St. Elmo’s Steakhouse, and much more. (more…)

Carol Gordon, MS, AHIP
Fran Kovach, MLIS, AHIP
Reference and Education
Department of Information and Communication Sciences
Southern Illinois University School of Medicine Library
Springfield, IL

The Illinois Rural Health Association’s 22^nd Annual Educational Conference took place in Effingham, Illinois, April 12-14, 2011. In the sixteen years of our exhibit history at the conference, we have presented a variety of technologies to healthcare professionals, ranging from Grateful Med dial-up to 21^st century mobile technology.

This year the mobile version of PubMed (http://www.ncbi.nlm.gov/m/pubmed/) and the mobile version of MedlinePlus (http://m.medlineplus.gov/) were showcased at the conference. iTouch and iPhones with free Quick Response (QR) apps, such as i-nigma and RedLaser, decoded mobile barcodes to connect with PubMed and MedlinePlus mobile websites. The QR codes were distributed as bookmarks. Conveniently, the conference coincided with Illinois Snapshot Day during National Library Week. (more…)

The John Crerar Library of the University of Chicago is pleased to announce that online registration for the 2nd biennial Kathleen A. Zar Symposium We’re Teaching, But How Do We Know If They’re Learning? is now open. The program is tentatively scheduled to from 9:00 am – 4:30 pm on Friday, June 3, 2011. Registration cost is $70 and includes continental breakfast, lunch buffet and conference materials.

We are thrilled to announce the keynote speaker for the symposium will be Megan Oakleaf. Megan is an Assistant Professor in the iSchool at Syracuse University where she teaches “Reference and Information Literacy Services” and “Planning, Marketing, and Assessing Library Services.” Her research interests include outcomes assessment, evidence-based decision making, information literacy instruction, information services, and digital librarianship. She is on the faculty of the ACRL Institute for Information Literacy Immersion Program. (more…)

By Ann Pederson
Altru Medical Library
Altru Health System
Grand Forks, ND

Use of social media in the face of disasters has added another facet to disaster assistance and information. The staff at the national Red Cross is reviewing their recent survey and finds that Facebook is the fourth most frequent site uses as a means of obtaining emergency information after traditional broadcast sites. Three out of four individuals expect assistance to arrive within the hour after they have posted a message for help in a disaster.

Surprised? The recent symposium conducted by the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health (more…)