July/August 2001
volume 10, issue 4
  
In this issue:
NN/LM Pacific Southwest Region 1996-2001 Accomplishments
 
Electronic Document Delivery - EDD - via Email Made Easy
 
Electronic Document Delivery at AHSL
 
LinkOut for Libraries: A New Service Option for Health Sciences Libraries
 
The Scoop on PubMed Subsets
 
Travel Report: Health Sciences Information Meeting in Havana, Cuba
 
PSR Network Member Contributions at MLA
 
A Fond Farewell to Claire Hamasu!
 
Consumer Health Information: Bringing e-Content to the Consumer
 
Group Discounts for Internet Conferences
 
Public Health Grand Rounds
 
National Library of Medicine Classification, 5th edition, Revised 1999, Goes Online in Beta Version
 
nnlm.gov/psr/
 
NLM Technical Bulletin Highlights
 
In every issue:
Table of Contents for the NLM Technical Bulletin
 
Upcoming Events
 
Publication Information
 		   

NN/LM Pacific Southwest Region 1996-2001 Accomplishments

PSRML and the health sciences library members of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM) in the Pacific Southwest Region have worked together for over three decades to enhance health information access. May 1, 2001, marked the beginning of a new five-year contract with the National Library of Medicine, which will extend through April 30, 2006. As we look back over the last five-year contract period, we can be proud of many noteworthy accomplishments. In collaboration with Network members, we have:

  • Improved Internet connectivity levels at libraries and health-related institutions in the region;
  • Organized continuing education programs for regional librarians, including "Symposium on E-Resources: Electronic# Exasperating! Essential?";
  • Assessed regional information needs through focus groups, site visits, regional meetings, and Regional Advisory Committee feedback;
  • Promoted awareness and use of NLM's electronic health information resources, including PubMed, MEDLINEplus, ClinicalTrials.gov, the NLM Gateway, and TOXNET, through exhibits, training, and presentations;
  • Developed BioSites, a current listing of evaluated Internet resources in the biomedical sciences;
  • Coordinated regional Loansome Doc services for unaffiliated health professionals and members of the public, including creation of a web-based directory of providers;
  • Initiated consumer health information outreach services;
  • Collaborated with the California State Library on funding a pilot Consumer Health Information for California project;
  • Implemented regional outreach programs focusing on AIDS/HIV, public health, rural, inner city, and population-based information needs;
  • Extended regional outreach programs using subcontracts and purchase order agreements, including implementation of a successful streamlined web application for smaller awards;
  • Published an electronic newsletter—Latitudes has been published on the web starting with the January/February 2000 issue;
  • Contributed to design and testing of Web DOCLINE, offered regional training and user support, and upgraded all regional holdings in preparation for the Web DOCLINE release on July 17, 2000;
  • Implemented FreeShare for "back to basics" document delivery;
  • Delivered fact sheets and publications via PSRML's web site, in coordination with other NN/LM regions;
  • Coordinated resource sharing task forces that studied document delivery issues, including electronic funds transfer;
  • Experimented with new technologies for meetings and instruction (desktop and satellite videoconferencing);
  • Piloted a successful regional partner outreach program—PSRML partnered with a Network member to deliver training and demonstrations of electronic health information resources in a rural area; and
  • Developed MLA Brandon/Hill Journal Links to identify key clinical journals available in full-text on the web.

For an overview of regional activities from 1996-2001, click the table, National Network of Libraries of Medicine Pacific Southwest Region, 1996-2001 Summary Statistics.

In addition to working with the regional NN/LM membership, which currently numbers 622 libraries, PSRML has collaborated with the following organizations: state and regional health professional associations, state and county departments of health, community-based organizations, health policy research centers, schools of public health, state libraries, public libraries, schools, academic institutions, graduate schools of library science, Area Health Education Center (AHEC) programs, and Medical Library Association chapters.

On behalf of current and past PSRML staff, many thanks to our Network colleagues for your valuable contributions to the NN/LM mission over the last five years. We look forward to continuing our efforts together with you to advance the progress of medicine and improve the public health by 1) providing health professionals with equal access to biomedical information and 2) improving the public's access to information to enable them to make informed decisions about their health.   EG

National Network of Libraries of Medicine Pacific Southwest Region, 1996-2001 Summary Statistics
Exhibits   31 National
  8 Regional
  8 State
  2 Local
Subcontracts and Special Projects Funded   2 NLM awards for Partners in Information Access for Public Health Professionals
  6 NLM awards for Access to Electronic Health Information for the Public
  24 Internet connections projects
  9 Regional awards for outreach to health professionals and/or consumers
  1 Technology awareness fair
  4 Library improvement projects
PSRML Training
Number of sessions 60 for librarians
130 for health professionals
10 for consumers
Number of individuals trained, by category 1,054 librarians
2,106 health professionals
105 consumers
PSRML-Supported Training
(Subcontracts and purchase orders; through Dec. 2000)
Number of sessions 15 for librarians
61 for health professionals
19 for consumers
Number of individuals trained, by category 80 librarians
532 health professionals
253 consumers

Electronic Document Delivery - EDD - via Email Made Easy

By Judy Kraemer
Norris Medical Library, University of Southern California

It is easy! You do not need to purchase ARIEL or any other Electronic Document Delivery software.

As an ILL Borrower, specify four things on the Routing Instructions screen when making DOCLINE requests.

  1. Add a comment in the Comments field that reads "Please Email!"
  2. Select either E-mail (PDF) or E-mail (TIFF)* next to Network Delivery
  3. Select either E-mail (PDF) or E-mail (TIFF) next to NLM Delivery
  4. Add your email address in the Email field.

*The USC Norris Medical Library prefers that you choose E-mail (TIFF) for the following reasons.

  1. We use an ARIEL version that creates TIFF files, not PDF files. The next ARIEL version will allow us to create PDF files but until it is released, we must reject requests for E-mail PDF delivery even if we own the requested item.
  2. TIFF files are significantly more compact than PDF files and are received more easily over telephone lines.

What do you do now that you have requested delivery via email and have received an email message with an attached TIFF file? Begin by opening the email message and save the TIFF file (.tif) to your local computer's hard drive. Ignore other files that come with the email.

The saved TIFF file can be quickly viewed and printed with the National Library of Medicine's DocView software or the Imaging for Windows software.

  1. DocView (http://archive.nlm.nih.gov/proj/docview/project.htm) is free downloadable software that allows for viewing and printing of TIFF files. (See URL for downloading instructions.) Once DocView has been downloaded, any TIFF file received may be viewed simply by clicking on it.
  2. Imaging for Windows is graphics software available within Windows 95, 98, 2000 and NT operating systems. To use Imaging for Windows, click on Start, then Programs, then Accessories, and then Imaging. Once Imaging for Windows opens, click on File and Open to retrieve your saved TIFF file. Double-click on the TIFF file to view it.

To convert the TIFF file to a PDF file, use the National Library of Medicine's DocMorph server. DocMorph is a free Web server (http://DocMorph.nlm.nih.gov/docmorph/default.htm) where files are converted remotely. Once at the DocMorph site, scroll down the page and click on 3. Register to Use DocMorph and submit your registration. Once registered, click on 4. Log into DocMorph and enter your email address and the password chosen during registration. Choose File Conversion: 1. Create a PDF file and enter. Click on Browse to insert the path for each saved TIFF file and Submit. When the instructions state the document is ready, click to download the PDF file. Note: DocMorph will merge all TIFF files chosen at the same time into one PDF file. If you prefer to have separate PDF files, convert one Tiff file at a time.

I hope you find receiving ILL articles via email easy and fun. If you want a sample document sent to you, please send a request to me at kraemer@usc.edu. Call me at (323) 442-3313 if you have questions.

Electronic Document Delivery at AHSL

By Joan Schlimgen
Interlibrary Loan/Document Delivery Services
Arizona Health Sciences Library, University of Arizona

Remember how all our fears about Y2K turned out to be unfounded and we ended up feeling pretty silly with all that extra food and water? Well at the Arizona Health Sciences Library (AHSL), Y2K was pretty disruptive and forced our interlibrary loan operation to make some major changes in the way we do business. Though we're a long way from having everything nicely in place, we believe we will end up with an operation that provides even better interlibrary loan services than the one we had in the 20st century.

Knowing that our home-grown ILL management system would not survive into the 21st century, AHSL committed itself to upgrading and enhancing both its interlibrary loan and document delivery operation. We started off in December 1999 by purchasing the Pigasus WINGS ILL Management System, which was the only ILL management system that was interoperable with both DOCLINE and OCLC at that time and one of the first to utilize the ISO ILL protocol. (Other ILL systems are now adopting ISO and several have since added the ability to communicate with DOCLINE, including ILLIAD and Clio.)

In the Fall of 2000 we purchased Relais Express, which includes a workstation, scanner and software for delivering documents to the desktop by a variety of methods, including Ariel, email with pdf attachment, posting a pdf document to a URL, and fax.

As you might imagine in the 21st century, electronic document delivery was a major component in revamping ILL. While AHSL has used Ariel for many years, mail continued to be the major delivery method for most of the hospital libraries that we serve. It didn't make sense to offer a 24-hour turnaround on a journal article only to have the U.S. Postal Service deliver it several days later. Yet it wasn't clear if all libraries were ready to receive documents electronically or even how to go about finding out.

Now was the time to figure out the best way to utilize this technology for the libraries to which we provide ILL articles. An opportunity presented itself at NCNMLG-MLGSCA Joint Meeting in San Francisco where Elaine Graham led a roundtable discussion about electronic document delivery.

Most of the librarians in the discussion group agreed that they continued to request delivery by mail when they placed requests via DOCLINE. This was a safe procedure because it guaranteed that any library, which had the item in its collection, would be able supply it by mail whereas if Ariel delivery was requested, a library without Ariel would have to route it on. In some cases, mail could end up being faster than requesting it by Ariel or by other electronic methods that are not widely available to smaller libraries. How could we get over this obstacle and deliver the article quickly and in a way that was convenient to these libraries?

We contacted a few hospital librarians, including one who had attended the roundtable, and asked them to join our pilot project. We gave each of them a choice of several delivery methods that they could adopt as their "preferred delivery method." We then proceeded to deliver all articles requested by these librarians in the method that they had selected. We created a special field in WINGS to help us keep track of the "preferred delivery method" and this field now appears in each request. This is what the student who scans the article in Relais looks for. There were a few bugs that needed to be worked out, but all in all it went pretty smoothly and we decided we would open this service to everyone who was interested.

At the end of April we sent out a registration form with our monthly invoices. We asked each library to choose their document delivery preference and we pledged to deliver all their articles by this method even if the DOCLINE or OCLC request indicated that the request was to be mailed. Then we waited for the response.

Within a day or so dozens of libraries faxed and mailed their registration forms back to us with their preference for a delivery method. We also received many phone calls from grateful ILL staff congratulating us on this service. To date, about a month later, we have received 123 responses, which can be broken down as follows:

We're pleased with these results and hope we can encourage more libraries to receive their articles electronically. There's satisfaction in knowing that we're getting information into the hands of patrons more quickly. As we continue to revamp our interlibrary loan operations, we will be looking for more ways to improve our services.

For more information contact:
Joan Schlimgen or Kathy Tower
Interlibrary Loan/Document Delivery Services
Arizona Health Sciences Library
University of Arizona
P.O. Box 245079
Tucson, AZ 85724-5079
ahsill@ahsl.arizona.edu
phone: 520-626-6840
fax: 520-626-2831

LinkOut for Libraries: A New Service Option for Health Sciences Libraries

Health sciences libraries are now able to link their users to the full-text of electronic subscriptions through PubMed's LinkOut feature. This new capability was described in the March - April 2001 NLM Technical Bulletin article, "LinkOut for Libraries Now Available". This article includes links to background information and instructions.

But what's really involved in providing this service for users? How difficult is it to provide these links? Is it worth the effort? At the outset, it is important to recognize that this is a serials service; hence, it has the complexities of any project involving serials. The good news is that if you have a small serials collection, you will not have a lot of titles to deal with. If you have a large serials collection, you probably have experienced serials staff to prepare the electronic journals holdings information. You should discuss LinkOut with your serials staff before deciding to participate. If you are the serials staff, feel free to call Julie Kwan, your PSR LinkOut representative for advice.

Once you have decided to proceed, you will need the following:

1) An icon for your library
This is the image that creates the button your users will click to see the full text of an article. You can see an example in the Technical Bulletin article. Many libraries use their library's logo or other hospital or corporate graphic image. If you are located in a small hospital library, perhaps your hospital's information technology department can create the icon for you. The icon should be no more than 100 by 25 pixels, and it should look like a button (i.e., it should either have a border or have a colored background). If you do not have your own library icon, PubMed will generate a simple button that says "Library Holdings".

2) Store this icon on an accessible server
Your library icon will be stored on a server in your institution, and the icon must be accessible outside of an intranet. The PubMed programs will point to this icon for each article that your users will be able to access full-text. Because your library icon is on your local machine, you can change the icon any time you wish; you will not need to contact NLM to change the icon. Again, if you are in a small hospital library, your hospital information technology department should be able to help you.

3) Generate a list of your electronic journal holdings by provider
You will need to create a list of your electronic journal holdings by provider; the provider might be a publisher or an aggregator. You might be able to get this information from your serials vendor, or you might be able to easily pull it together from your serials invoices. You should know which years you have available electronically.

4) Set up an account with NLM
To get your LinkOut account, you will send a message to NLM (linkout@ncbi.nlm.nih.gov). Indicate that you wish to have your library's electronic journal holdings represented in LinkOut. Include the name, telephone number, and email address of your contact person. You will then receive a user name and password.

5) Enter your library information and your electronic journals holdings information
You will enter your data using simple web forms accessible through the LinkOut Files Submission Utility (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov:80/entrez/linkout/libHld/LK-submission.cgi). The Library Identity form includes: library name; library or institutional URL; the URL for your library icon; and the name and email address of your LinkOut representative. To enter library holdings, you will select a publisher or aggregator from the provider list and then use check boxes to indicate the titles and years for which you want your library icon to display. You do not need to enter all of your holdings information in one session. In fact, you may wish to enter only a partial list and then take a look at the results. You will need to wait until the next day before the icons will display. (Editor's Note: Ovid is currently not a LinkOut provider.)

6) Edit the link to PubMed in your library's web pages
By changing the link to PubMed on your library's web page, your library icon will automatically appear. You will edit the link as follows, where NameAbbr is the Name Abbreviation you will receive when you get your LinkOut account from NLM: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?holding=NameAbbr

7) Let your library users know that they can select your library as a provider through their Cubbies
Your users can select your library as a LinkOut provider using their own Cubbies. Then they will see your library icon even if they are not using a library machine or accessing PubMed through your library web page.

There is an excellent Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page that will answer many of your questions. This FAQ is specifically about the Library LinkOut Submission Utility, which is the set of web forms through which you submit your library information and electronic journal holdings information. More information about LinkOut is available at LinkOut and Library Holdings from PubMed's Help system and from the NN/LM page LinkOut for Libraries.  JK

The Scoop on PubMed Subsets

There are four types of PubMed subsets: Journal, Subject, Citation Status, and Free Full Text. PubMed's Limit screen has a Subset pull-down menu where some of these subsets can be selected to limit your retrieval; alternatively the subset can be incorporated into a search by entering a subset value.

Journal Subsets

The following Journal subsets are available from the pull-down menu:

A subset can also be incorporated into a search by entering a subset value. Journal subsets and their values are listed below. Several are closed subsets no longer being assigned to current data.

AIM - Abridged Index Medicus A list of indexed core clinical journals created 20 years ago
IM - Indexed Index Medicus journals
D - Indexed dentistry journals
N - Indexed nursing journals
X - Indexed AIDS/HIV journals, non-Index Medicus
B - Indexed biotechnology journals (assigned 1990 - 1998), non-Index Medicus
K - Indexed consumer health journals, non-Index Medicus
H - Indexed health administration journals, non-Index Medicus
R - Indexed reproduction journals (assigned 1972 - 1979), non-Index Medicus
C - Indexed communication disorders journals (assigned 1977 - 1997), non-Index Medicus
T - Indexed health technology assessment journals, non-Index Medicus

To search for a journal subset use jsubset? where ? stands for the journal subset value.

For example: neoplasms AND jsubsetaim

Note that the Journal subset does not use a search field tag.

Finding Subset Journal Titles

Search LOCATORplus, NLM's catalog of books, audiovisuals, and journals for subset journal titles. NLM's FAQ "Finding the Subset Journal Titles" tells you how to access lists of these titles. This FAQ is at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/speclist.html.

Subject Subsets

There are three Subject subsets available in the pull-down menu:

Subject subsets may be searched as aids, cam or tox - using the [SB] search tag.

For example: asthma AND cam [sb]

Citation Status Subsets

PubMed contains several types of Citation Status subsets in the pull-down menu:

Citation Status subsets can be searched directly with the [SB] search tag as medline, premedline, or publisher.

For example: pain AND publisher [sb]

Free Full Text

Select PubMed Central to limit to citations with a link to free full text in PMC. You can also search this new subset as AND medline pmc [sb].

Note that citations that are out-of-scope for MEDLINE journals are indicated by the tag [PubMed].  HS

Travel Report: Health Sciences Information Meeting in Havana, Cuba

By Dave Piper, Head, Information Technology Center
Arizona Health Sciences Library, University of Arizona

In late April I attended the 5th Biannual Regional Congress on Health Sciences Information (CRICS V) held in Havana, Cuba. The meeting was organized by the Latin American and Caribbean Center on Health Sciences Information formerly known as BIREME. BIREME (http://www.bireme.br/) is a Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Specialized Center that was established in Brazil in 1967 in collaboration with the Brazilian Ministries of Health and Education, the Secretary of Health of the State of São Paulo and the Federal University of São Paulo.

The theme of the CRICS V meeting (http://www.bireme.br/crics5/), attended by over 500 participants from more than thirty countries, centered on the role of information and access to information in achieving "health equity," i.e., the reduction in the great disparities of health status and health conditions among different countries. Among the meeting's speakers were George Alleyne, Director of PAHO; Abel Packer, BIREME Director; Xavier Bonfill, director of the Iberoamerican Cochrane Center; Becky Lyon, NLM's Deputy Associate Director; and Patricia Brennan, AMIA President. Presentations were given in Spanish or English or Portuguese with simultaneous translation available in the three languages.

I attended the meeting to learn more about BIREME's Virtual Health Library project which is an initiative to make scientific and technical knowledge available electronically to the countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. The Arizona Health Sciences Library is especially interested in the growing body of full-text Spanish language medical journals and other health-related resources that are becoming available through the Virtual Health Library. The Arizona Health Sciences Library has taken an active role in addressing the health information needs of Mexican, primarily Sonoran, health care professionals and students who come to the library. With the creation of Sonora's first medical school in Hermosillo and with the development of the University of Arizona's College of Public Health, we believe that the interest in and need for access to Latin American health information by the library's users will expand rapidly. At the meeting I also presented a poster on wireless network applications in libraries and spoke with several individuals whose institutions are interested in exploring wireless networking technology.

While in Havana, I visited Cuba's National Medical Library with two other U.S. health sciences librarians, Gale Hannigan (University of Texas and Texas A&M University) and Jonathan Eldredge (University of New Mexico). We spoke with library personnel, toured the library and learned about Cuba's national health information network which in some ways (such as their document delivery system) functions similarly to the U.S. National Network of Libraries of Medicine.

As interesting and informative as the CRICS V meeting was, I feel I learned even more away from the conference venue. Numerous Cubans were interested in talking to me and sharing their thoughts and feelings about how their lives are and what they like and dislike about their country. The warmth, exuberance and humor of the Cubans I met and the beauty of historic Old Havana will be enduring impressions.

The next CRICS meeting will take place in Mexico City.

(Editor's note: Dave can be contacted at dpiper@ahsl.arizona.edu)

PSR Network Member Contributions at MLA

We are proud to recognize the NN/LM Pacific Southwest Region network members who made presentations at the Medical Library Association annual meeting in Orlando, Florida. Included here are contributions from paper and poster presenters as well as session moderators. As you look over this list, you will see the breadth of contribution and expertise within our region. PSRML is pleased to note that some of these contributions are the result of outreach programs funded through the National Network of Libraries of Medicine. We are proud of you all!  JK

(Editor's Note: Please let us know of any corrections to this list! Once again, PSRML has purchased MLA tapes.)

Papers

"Bringing public health information and Internet training to underserved professional populations via the Internet and a portable LAN."
Virginia M. Tanji. John A. Burns School of Medicine. University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu. Sharon L. Berglund. California State University, San Marcos
 
"A collaborative approach to developing a clinical trials Website."
Janis F. Brown, John T. Casagrade, Scott Catherall, Joan Mircheff, Frank Salinas, and Darcy Spicer. University of Southern California
 
"Combining online instruction with traditional classroom training in the hospital setting: a case study."
Melissa L. Just. Childrens Hospital Los Angeles
 
"Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM): where do health professionals get their information?"
David J. Owen, Min-Lin Fang, and Gail Persily. University of California, San Francisco
 
"Consumer Health Information Links for Éveryone (CHILÉ): collaborating with community partners to provide health information to consumers."
Jeanette C. McCray, Rachael K. Anderson, Gerald J. Perry, Patricia A. Auflick, Joan B. Schlimgen, and P. Zoë Stavri, University of Arizona, Tucson (with Joan Biggar and Karen Greaber. Tucson-Pima Public Library)
 
"Digital reference services: current and future directions."
Peggy Tahir. University of California, San Francisco
 
"eReference: growing pains of a growing service."
Roumiana Katzarkov and Stephen L. Clancy. University of California, Irvine
 
"Hispanic health informatics: cross-cultural encounters of an outreach kind."
Gerald J. Perry, Mary L. Riordan, and Hannah M. Fisher, University of Arizona, Tucson (with Marlo Maldonado Young, National Library of Medicine)
 
"Humpty Dumpty and the language of alternative medicine: some implications for information professionals."
David J. Owen. University of California, San Francisco
 
"IAIMS: what we got right and what we didn't."
Rachael Anderson, University of Arizona, Tucson (with Wayne J. Peay, University of Utah)
 
"An informatics course for first-year pharmacy students."
Gail Persily, David J. Owen, and Patricia Babbitt. University of California, San Francisco
 
"A library by any other name: from virtual to integral."
Terry Henner, University of Nevada School of Medicine, Reno
 
"Library support of personal digital assistants."
Mari J. Stoddard. University of Arizona, Tucson
 
"Medlane project/XMLMARC update: from MARC to an XML database."
Dick R. Miller, Kevin Clarke, Mary Buttner, and Rebecca Wesley. Stanford University Medical Center
 
"PDAs: potential applications in academic health sciences libraries."
Gail Persily, Peggy Tahir, Clair Kuykendall, and Keir Reavie. University of California, San Francisco
 
"Providing high-quality, knowledge-based information to health care providers in rural areas: the library as a partner in delivering a full complement of telemedicine services."
Jeanette C. McCray, Rachael K. Anderson, Gerald J. Perry, and Joan B. Schlimgen. University of Arizona, Tucson
 
"Stanford Mobile Med: is there a geek in the house?"
Todd Grappone and Rikke Greenwald. Stanford University Medical Center
 
"Tracking the user's odyssey: library Website statistics."
Candice M. Benjes, Janis F. Brown, and David Morse. University of Southern California
 
"Work/life models and the twenty-first century reference librarian."
Elisa Cortez and Carlene Bogle. Loma Linda University

Posters

"A 2001 space odyssey: where to house the consumer health information in an academic library?"
Hannah M. Fisher, Fred L. Heidenreich, Nga Nguyen, Gerald J. Perry, Mary L. Riordan, Jose Solorzano, Catherine L. Wolfson, and David Howse. University of Arizona, Tucson.
 
"Consumer health information for California: collaborating for access."
Elisa Cortez, Carlene Bogle, and Marissa Smith. Loma Linda University. Heidi Thiessen Sandstrom. Pacific Southwest Regional Medical Library, University of California, Los Angeles.
 
"The Cunningham fellows of MLA."
John Breinich, Hawaii Medical Library and Jacqueline Donaldson Doyle, Banner health Arizona-Phoenix (with Donna B. Flake, Coastal Area Health Education Center; Elizabeth Connor, Medical University of South Carolina; Elizabeth Eaton, Tufts University; Ruth Fenske, John Carroll University; Anne Greenspan, Medical Library Association; Frieda O. Weise, University of Maryland.
 
"Improving access to consumer health information in our community: developing tools and training to support public librarians and increasing public awareness of the role of the public library and the academic health sciences library."
Rachael K. Anderson, Jeanette C. McCray, Gerald J. Perry, Patricia A. Auflick, Joan B. Schlimgen, University of Arizona, Tucson (with Joan Biggar and Karen Greaber, Tucson-Pima Public Library).
 
"MEDLIB-L and the Doctor's Names List."
Mari Stoddard and Jeff Middleton, University of Arizona, Tucson (with Kathy Tacke, Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County).
 
"Reaching across the border: outreach to Spanish-speaking health care providers using a bilingual Website of information resources."
Mary L. Riordan and Jose Solorzano. University of Arizona, Tucson.
 
"Repetitive strain injuries: a survey of medical libraries in Southern California and Arizona."
Terri J. Ottosen. University of Southern California.
 
"Responding to the needs of researchers with health sciences data set resources."
Peggy Tahir, Min-Lin Fang, and Jacqueline Wilson. University of California, San Francisco.
 
"Search templates versus filters: comparative experiences in identifying information on."
Mary W. Wood, University of California, Davis (with Stuart J. Nelson, National Library of Medicine).
 
"Transforming interlibrary loans for the digital library."
Karen A. Butter. University of California, San Francisco.
 
"Using dynamic Web technologies to collaboratively develop an inter-institutional consumer health Website."
Gerald Perry and Kristin Antelman. University of Arizona, Tucson.
 
"Using EndNote for electronic journal management in a hospital library."
Melissa L. Just. Childrens Hospital Los Angeles.
 
"Why try L.J.I.? Issues in subject heading specificity for facilitating retrieval of Web resources at the Arizona Health Sciences Library."
Fred L. Heidenreich, Mary L. Holcomb, and Gerald J. Perry. University of Arizona, Tucson.

Moderators

"The 2001 EMBASE Lecture."
Penny Coppernoll-Blach, CP Kelco.
 
"DVD 'Bookbag of the Future': Implications for Libraries."
John P. Glueckert, University of Southern California.
 
"Education Outside the Classroom 1: Libraries' Roles in Distance Learning."
Gail Persily, University of California, San Francisco.
 
"IAIMS Then and Now: An Informatics Odyssey."
Karen A. Butter, University of California, San Francisco.
 
"Opening the Doors to HAL-Programs for Developing the Health Librarian of the Future."
Keir Reavie, University of California, San Francisco.
 
"Profiles in Leadership: Time Travel with Some of Our Most Memorable Mentors."
Heidi Heilemann, Stanford University Medical Center.
 
"Supporting Palmtops in the Curriculum."
Mari Stoddard, University of Ariznoa, Tucson (with Roxanne Nelson, Mercer University School of Medicine).

A Fond Farewell to Claire Hamasu!

Claire Hamasu has accepted the position of Associate Director for the Midcontinental Region of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine. Her last day of work in the PSRML office was June 29, 2001. She will be based at the Eccles Health Sciences Library in Salt Lake City, UT, which is the new home for the Midcontinental Region. One of Claire's last requests to us at PSRML was: "If you are passing through Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Missouri, Kansas or Nebraska, please call the NN/LM 800 number, ask for me, and say hello!"  JK  
 
(Editor's Note: The NN/LM number, 800-338-7657, will connect you to the appropriate NN/LM regional headquarters wherever you are in the U.S.)

Announcing a forward-thinking symposium...

Consumer Health Information: Bringing e-Content to the Consumer

If you have an eye towards the future...

If you are wondering what you can do NOW to improve client services...

If you are looking for ways to integrate digital tools, electronic communication, and market trends into your thinking...

...Register today for what promises to be a lively and stimulating symposium!

The Health Library at Stanford and the Pacific Southwest Regional Medical Library are presenting this symposium on consumer health information services on Friday, AUGUST 17, 2001. It will be held at the Fairchild Auditorium, Stanford University Medical Center, Palo Alto. Speakers are nationally and internationally renowned experts in their fields. The $30.00 fee includes a box lunch and morning/afternoon refreshments. Also, funding is available to attend this conference through the PSRML library professional development award (for information and an application for this award go to nnlm.gov/psr/libproa.html).

Visit http://nnlm.gov/psr/stansymp.html for the symposium brochure and registration information.

Be there...and ask a colleague to join you!  HS

Group Discounts for Internet Conferences

PSRML will coordinate the submission of registrations from Network members who wish to attend the Information Today Internet Librarian 2001 and the Internet @ Schools conferences held November 5-8th at the Pasadena Conference and Exhibition Center in southern California. By submitting registrations as a "group", PSRML will make it possible for attendees to realize considerable savings on the conference(s) registration fees. Please visit the Information Today web site at http://www.infotoday.com/il2001/default.htm for conference details. Network members may download registration forms from this site.

If you are interested in submitting your registration as part of the Network group, please send PSRML a copy of the completed form, and a check made payable to Information Today, Inc. for any of the following meeting rates:

  1. Internet @ Schools conference: $169.00
    (November 5-6, 2001)
  2. Internet Librarian general conference:$199.00
    (Nov. 6-8)
  3. Internet Librarian and Internet @ Schools
    combined conference package: $245.00
    (Nov. 5-8)

Please note that these special rates do not apply to any pre- or post-conference satellite events or workshops. If you wish to register for additional events, please include this information on your form and enclose the applicable fees.

Forms and checks should be sent to:

Internet Librarian 2001 Conference
UCLA Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library
PSRML
12-077 CHS
Box 951798
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1798

PSRML must receive all registration forms and checks by Friday, October 26, 2001. Funding is available to attend these conferences through the PSRML library professional development award. For more information and an application please visit: nnlm.gov/psr/libproa.html. Please note that PSRML's coordination of registration for these conferences does not imply any type of support, recommendation or sponsorship of the Information Today Internet Librarian and Internet @ Schools conferences.  KR

Public Health Grand Rounds

By Brian Brown, UCLA Department of Information Studies
Intern at PSRML

The goal of Public Health Grand Rounds is to promote a leadership-level national dialog on public health issues of strategic significance. In Public Health Grand Rounds, the "patient" is defined as the community and the "presenting problem" is defined as a public health issue challenging the community and requiring its informed response. As in medical grand rounds, a panel of specialists will be assembled to provide the most current information related to the case and to assess the problem from their professional perspective, knowledge and experience.

The next Public Health Grand Rounds Program, "Stand Up and Be Counted: Improving Health in Your Community Through Performance Standards" will take place on September 28, 2001. Previous topics included: West Nile Virus, Food Safety, Asthma, Breast Cancer Screening, and Genetics and Public Health.

Continuing education credit for various health professions will be offered based on one hour of instruction. Registration and program information is available at: http://www.PublicHealthGrandRounds.unc.edu. The broadcasts may be viewed via satellite downlink or through a webcast at the Public Health Grand Rounds website; Real Player is needed for the webcast.

Public Health Grand Rounds is sponsored by the University of North Carolina, School of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

National Library of Medicine Classification, 5th Edition, Revised 1999, Goes Online in Beta Version

The National Library of Medicine has announced the online beta version of the National Library of Medicine Classification, 5th edition, revised 1999; its URL is: http://wwwcf.nlm.nih.gov/class. Web-based access to the Classification provides the user with greater maneuverability through the schedules and index. The new searching tools enhance access to the Classification and present the data in new ways, relating concepts and class numbers to one another. Class numbers in the schedules are directly searchable. The schedules are browsable and references to class numbers are linked throughout the schedules. The index is also browsable and term/word searching retrieves all occurrences of a word or MeSH descriptor in the index. Links from MeSH descriptors in the index to the MeSH browser provide direct access to definitions and applications.

NLM expects to have an updated version of the Classification available sometime in 2002. The update will include appropriate additions and changes to MeSH through MeSH 2002, updated references to Library of Congress class numbers, and revisions to the schedules as appropriate. Future plans are to keep the Classification up-to-date on an annual basis following the MeSH pattern. Since the online beta version of the NLM Classification is under development, NLM welcomes comments and suggestions. Please submit them through the NLM Customer Service e-mail: custserv@nlm.nih.gov.

nnlm.gov/psr

PSRML has a new, shorter web address:

nnlm.gov/psr/

The "old" address will continue to work if you have it bookmarked.

Visit us soon!

Also, here are other NLM web addresses that have been shortened:

clinicaltrials.gov
docline.gov
locatorplus.gov
medlineplus.gov
nnlm.gov
pubmed.gov

NLM Technical Bulletin Highlights

The following are highlights from the May - June 2001 NLM Technical Bulletin.

NLM Contracts Awarded

PubMed

LOCATORplus

NLM Gateway

Conversion from Wade-Giles to Pinyin Romanization Scheme

Table of Contents for the NLM Technical Bulletin

Table of Contents for the May-June 2001 issue:

In this issue:

Future of the MEDLINE Unique Identifier - e2
NLM Announces the National Training Center and Clearinghouse Contract and the May-December 2001 Class Schedule - e3
New Version of LOCATORplus - e4
Title Word Search Added to Single Citation Matcher - e5
AIDS-related Citations Added to PubMed® and the NLM Gateway - e6
How to Search OLDMEDLINE Using the NLM Gateway - e7
Hands On: Adding Your Library's Icon using the PubMed® Cubby - e8
Changes to the PubMed® Journal Browser - e9

Technical Notes - e1:

NN/LM Contracts Awarded
NLM Preservation Practices
New Version of NLM Gateway Released - May 23, 2001
New Alias URL for PubMed: pubmed.gov
MEDLINE Citation Maintenance
Papers of Nobel Scientists Christian Anfinsen and Marshall Nirenberg added to Profiles in Science
New NLM Factsheet: What's the Difference Between MEDLINE and PubMed?
Conversion from Wade-Giles to Pinyin Romanization Scheme
NLM Classification Online
Beta Test Version of the Redesigned PubMed Central Pages
EPA's TRI99 Joins TOXNET

Upcoming Events - 2001*

August
17
Consumer Health Information: Bringing e-Content to the Consumer, Palo Alto, CA
27
Keeping Up (1-day), National Training Center and Clearinghouse (NTCC), Los Angeles, CA
28
TOXNET on the Web (1-day), NTCC, Los Angeles, CA
September
3
Happy Labor Day!
October
4 - 6
Nevada Library Association, 2001 Annual Conference, Las Vegas, NV
6 - 7
Los Angeles Times, Festival of Health & Fitness, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA (PSRML exhibit)
21 - 25
American Osteopathic Association, San Diego, CA (PSRML exhibit)
31 - Nov. 2
California School Libraries Association (CSLA), Annual Conference, Long Beach, CA (PSRML exhibit)
November
2 - 5
California Library Association, 2001 Annual Conference, Long Beach, CA (PSRML exhibit)
2 - 3
Hawaii Library Association, 2001 Annual Conference, Maui, HI
5 - 6
Internet @ Schools, Pasadena, CA
6 - 8
Internet Librarian, Pasadena, CA
6 - 9
Pacific Islands Association of Libraries and Archives (PIALA), 2001 Annual Conference, Tinian, MP (Northern Mariana Islands)
11 - 14
American Heart Association, Scientific Sessions 2001, Anaheim, CA (PSRML exhibit)
28
Keeping Up (1-day), NTCC, San Diego, CA
29
TOXNET on the Web (1-day), NTCC, San Diego, CA
December
5 - 7
Arizona Library Association, 2001 Annual Conference, Phoenix, AZ (PSRML exhibit)

*Please visit the PSRML Library Professional Development Award web page to apply for an award to attend educational events. PSRML will make available awards up to $1,000 to individuals in Primary Access Libraries in Region 7. Applications may be made at any time.

Publication Information

Please send items and contributed articles for Latitudes to Julie Kwan, Editor, at jkkwan@library.ucla.edu.

Pacific Southwest Regional Medical Library (PSRML), Headquarters for Region 7, NN/LM

UCLA Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library/PSRML
12-077 CHS
Box 951798
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1798
Phone: (310)825-1200 or (800)338-7657
Fax: (310)825-5389
URL: http://www.nnlm.nlm.nih.gov/psr

PSRML Staff


Alison Bunting, MLS, Director, abunting@library.ucla.edu
 
Elaine Graham, MLS, Associate Director, elgraham@library.ucla.edu
 
VACANT, Health Information Services Coordinator
 
Kay Deeney, MLS, AHIP, Education & Exhibit Coordinator, kdeeney@library.ucla.edu
 
Heidi Sandstrom, RN, MLIS, Consumer Health Information Services Coordinator, heidits@library.ucla.edu
 
Julie Kwan, MLS, AHIP, Library Network Coordinator, jkkwan@library.ucla.edu
 
Andrea Lynch, Network Assistant, andlynch@library.ucla.edu
 
Michael Miller, Computer Resource Specialist, mmiller@library.ucla.edu
 
Karen Ricard, Administrative Assistant, kricard@library.ucla.edu

Network members may subscribe to the Regional Listserv by clicking here. If you do not want to subscribe to the Regional Listserv, but would like to receive Latitudes click here.

Latitudes: Newsletter of the Pacific Southwest Region, National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM) is published bi-monthly by PSRML.

Funded by the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, under a contract (#N01-LM-1-3517) with the UCLA Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library.

NLM | NN/LM | PSRML Site Map | Latitudes
NN/LM PSR | psr-nnlm@library.ucla.edu | Revised: July 5, 2001
URL: http://nnlm.gov/psr/lat/v10n4/print_version.html