This position brings me back from the Midwest to my favorite part of the country. I am a native Oregonian, going back six generations to Thomas Simpson Lebow who trekked on the Oregon Trail from Tennessee to Lane County, settling in 1850.  I’m excited to again be sandwiched between the Pacific and the Cascades. I enjoy both camping and surfing, so my recreational activities will be much improved upon from my time in a landlocked state.

Prior to obtaining my Masters of Library and Information Science from the University of British Columbia, I had a wide range of experiences from providing technology support to clinical work (including phlebotomy!) at Oregon Health and Science University. I am coming most recently from the University of Iowa where I was acting as a Data Manager.

For those of you I had the opportunity to meet before, hello again.  For everyone else, I hope I have a chance to meet you in person sometime soon.  In the meanwhile, please feel free to contact me via e-mail (mahria@uw.edu), skype (mahriatalksonhermac) or call me (206-221-3489).  I am here to support you and your endeavors as they relate to technologies (old and new) and improving health information access, so please feel free to introduce yourself!

The Homer Public Library, in collaboation with the Friends of the Homer Public Library and local emergency responders, held a month of activities aimed at increasing the community’s emergency preparedness thanks to a $5000 NN/LM Community Preparedness Day Award.  Events, which were timed to coincide with national Disaster Preparedness Month, kicked off on September 21st with a special Story Time about safety and natural phenomena that occur locally, such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

On September 24th the library hosted a Community Preparedness Day. Area emergency responders gave 15-minutes presentations throughout the day on emergency preparedness issues.  In addition, the public was invited to visit information booths operated by various agencies, including the Alaska Division of Forestry, the Homer Volunteer Fire Department, the Kenai Peninsula Borough Office of Emergency Management and the Homer Senior Citizens.

One of the biggest draws of the day was the bright orange buckets, used to distribute 75 emergency preparedness kits funded by the award.  These buckets included a first aid kit, an emergency radio, and pamphlets from FEMA and the local veterinary clinic on how to prepare for an emergency.  The bucket itself was a useful water-storage device.  Community members, including the Homer City mayor, flocked to the library to pick up their buckets and then stopped by the booths to fill those bucket with more safety information.

Additionally, on September 28th the library hosted a forum for survivors of the 1964 Good Friday earthquake to tell their stories.  More than a dozen survivors shared compelling stories to an audience of over 30 people, imparting wisdom and perspective about the very real risks faced by Alaskans living on the “ring of fire.”

The Homer Public Library is also purchasing materials on emergency preparedness, survival, self-sufficiency and related topics to better serve this end-of-the-road community.  The activities and material funded by the NN/LM award have improved community awareness about emergency preparedness and placed helpful tools into the hands of Southern Kenai Peninsula residents.

Note: If you organization is interested in holding a Community Preparedness Day event, we are currently offering funding.  Please see the funding announcement – applications are due December 16, 2011.

Hope Leman, MLIS, research information technologist with the Center, accepted the award and a $1,000 check in Chicago at the Interlending and Document Supply (ILDS) Conference, “Resource Sharing in the Digital Age.”

The award monies will be used to advance scholarly research by Samaritan employees. Congratulations to librarian Hope Leman and the rest of the team!

The goals of Community Preparedness Day are to:

• Encourage, strengthen and/or expand library partnerships with first responders and community emergency management personnel
• Provide access to emergency management information tools and resources for families or other target populations
• Integrate and involve libraries in emergency preparedness, response, and recovery planning
• Promote and publicize the roles libraries, faith, or community organizations can play in emergency preparedness
• Strengthen and expand medical and public library partnerships

Applications from libraries and other organizations are welcome.

Consideration of requests for funding will begin on December 16, 2011. Proposals should be submitted using the Community Preparedness Day Award Application.

For additional information, see the full funding announcement or contact Gail Kouame, NN/LM PNR Consumer Health Outreach Coordinator at gmarie@uw.edu, 1-800-338-7657.

Highlighting the fact that medical librarians are the best resource when searching for health information, the theme for this year’s Medical Librarians Month (sponsored by the Medical Library Association) is “Medical Librarians: Your Ultimate Search Engine.”

Librarians have long demonstrated their benefit to their institutions, educating about their services, performing vital roles, and advocating for themselves and their libraries. This increases awareness of the value of libraries to hospital administrators and health care professionals.

What have you done to advocate for your library and increase your visibility in your organization? Share your story for a chance to win a $500 scholarship for MLA 2012 in Seattle. Stories will be published during the Month of October in the Dragonfly, and winners will be announced after October 31.

Tell us how you’ve shown your worth, added a new service, talked to patients or providers about medical libraries, reached out to a new user population, or provided information. Submit your entries by October 31 to Patricia Devine.

Flickr Commons Image - No known copyright

NN/LM PNR has learned of several upcoming free webinars that may be of interest:

• Tuesday, August 23rd: 11am – 12pm Pacific

Incorporating Ethics into Emergency Planning and Response to Ensure Health Equity

From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

This seminar will focus on the incorporation of ethics into emergency planning and response to promote health equity. A local jurisdiction’s approach to the development of an ethics framework will be highlighted, and an example of equitable distribution of vaccine with hospitals and culturally-specific communities will be described.  For more information and to register, visit this link: http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07e4e3j1ok8114fea7&llr=pf7m85dab&source=govdelivery

• Wednesday, August 31st and Wednesday, September 7th: 10am – 11am Pacific

Health Technology Assessment: 101 and Comparative Effectiveness Research – A 2-part Webinar Series

From the National Library of Medicine’s National Information Center on Health Services Research and Health Care Technology (NICHSR)

We live in an age of abundant choice, especially mystifying in the choice of health care options and technologies. Too often, patients, providers, administrators, insurers, and policy makers are faced with an increasing array of decisions with few tools to help them make informed decisions. Health technology assessment (HTA) and comparative effectiveness research (CER) are two related approaches for helping to make better informed decisions. This two-part webinar series will provide a brief introductory overview of HTA and CER respectively, the methods used in each form of policy analysis, some of the major organizations involved in HTA and CER, how HTA and CER differ, and the role of HTA and CER in the individual as well as the collective healthcare decision-making process.

No registration required.  For more information about the series and how to access the webinars, visit this link: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/nichsr/htawebinars/index.html

• Wednesday, September 14th: 10am – 11:30am Pacific
  

New Strategies for Engaging Consumers in Development and Use of Evidence

From Academy Health

As health care evolves to become more patient-centered, the role of patients and consumers in the evidence generation process is expanding.  This expansion has given rise to a growing set of questions for comparative effectiveness research (CER) projects around how, when, and to what extent to engage patients and consumers in figuring out what works best for whom, and under what conditions. The research community will increasingly be called upon to take into account new perspectives and priorities according to the needs and interest of patients and consumers, but how?

Registration for this session is free, but space is limited.  For more information and to register, visit this link: http://www.academyhealth.org/Training/ResourceDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=7377

All timely and relevant topics – pick one, or two, or all three!

If you would like to participate in a one-hour online focus group, please answer this brief survey  to let us know a time that works for you. Focus groups will be August 3 at noon, August 10 at noon, or August 10 at 2:00 p.m.

Thank you for your interest! Please contact Pat Devine, 206-543-8275 or devine@uw.edu if you have any questions.

photo by erix! on flickr

Here at NN/LM PNR, our mission is to improve access to quality information for health professionals and health consumers in the Pacific Northwest. We need your help! If you work in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, or Washington and have a great idea for health information outreach or improving library services, we would love to provide the funds to set your project in motion. We’ve announced five new funding opportunities over the past few weeks, bringing our total number of available awards types to nine. To help you (and us!) keep it all straight, we are summarizing the possibilities for you here in one handy blog post. Here are our currently available awards listed in order of application deadline. Our funding page will be continuously updated with the latest information about available awards and descriptions of projects we’ve funded.

Outreach to Under-Connected Health Organizations
Amount:  up to $25,000,  2 awards available
Proposals due: Wednesday, August 10
PNR Contact: Cathy Burroughs, Associate Director

Technology Improvement Awards
Amount: up to $5000, 3 awards available
Proposals due: Friday, August 12
PNR Contact:  Cathy Burroughs, Associate Director

Community Preparedness Day Awards
Amount:  up to $5000, 2 awards available
Proposals due: Friday, August 12
PNR Contact: Gail Kouame, Consumer Health Outreach Coordinator

Express Outreach Awards
Amount: up to $15,000, 4 awards available
Proposals due: Friday, August 26
PNR Contacts: Gail Kouame, Consumer Health Outreach Coordinator or Alison Aldrich, Public Health Outreach Coordinator

Professional Development Awards
Amount: up to $1000, multiple awards available
Proposals are accepted on an ongoing basis
PNR Contact: Patricia Devine, Network Outreach Coordinator

Electronic Fund Transfer System Awards
Amount: up to $200, multiple awards available
Proposals are accepted on an ongoing basis
PNR Contact: Patricia Devine, Network Outreach Coordinator

Exhibit Awards
Amount: up to $500, multiple awards available
Proposals are accepted on an ongoing basis
PNR Contact: Patricia Devine, Network Outreach Coordinator

Training Awards
Amount: up to $500, multiple awards available
Proposals are accepted on an ongoing basis
PNR Contact: Patricia Devine, Network Outreach Coordinator

Assessment and Planning Awards
Amount: up to $2000, multiple awards available
Proposals are accepted on an ongoing basis
PNR Contact: Patricia Devine, Network Outreach Coordinator

Awards will be available until funds are expended.  Proposals should be submitted using the Professional Development Award Application.

For additional information, see the full funding announcement, or contact:

Patricia Devine, NN/LM PNR Network Outreach Coordinator, devine@uw.edu, 1-800-338-7657.

• To improve use of quality online health information resources by priority populations
• To promote health information literacy in health education and health care
• To build or strengthen partnerships between network members and other community organizations
• To foster local health information expertise in community organizations
• To promote awareness and use of the products and services of the National Library of Medicine and the National Network of Libraries of Medicine

Applications from libraries and other organizations are welcome.

Consideration of requests for funding will begin on August 26, 2011. Proposals should be submitted using the Application for 2011 Express Outreach Awards.

For additional information, see the full funding announcement, or contact:

Gail Kouame, NN/LM PNR Consumer Health Outreach Coordinator at gmarie@uw.edu, 1-800-338-7657
Alison Aldrich, NN/LM PNR Public Health Outreach Coordinator at aldrich3@uw.edu, 1-800-338-7657