http://www.aamc.org/meded/tacct/tacct.pdf

Use the tool developed by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) to assess curriculum around issues of cultural competency knowledge, attitudes, and skills. The tool is called TACCT - Tool for Assessing Cultural Competency Training and it is available on the AAMC website.

TACCT could be used to assess how practices are creating and supporting a culture where these KAS are discussed, developed, and incorporated into practice.  The AAMC website also has the guidelines for using and the bibliography that supports the TACCT Tool.

There is a companion Resource Guide as well which includes valuable curricular and instructional techniques, and materials to assist with the implementation of TACCT. Find it at http://www.aamc.org/meded/tacct/tacctresourceguide.pdf.

Listen to the NLM Director’s Comments on Help to Quit Smoking. The transcript is also available. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/podcast/transcript063008.html

Physicians now have a variety of proven options to help persons stop smoking including counseling, medication, and targeted interventions, reports a recent commentary in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The commentary followed the release of new, updated U.S. Public Health Service clinical practice guidelines about tobacco use and dependence intended to help physicians assist smokers to quit.

MedlinePlus’ Smoking Cessation health topic page also reminds us that tobacco use remains the most preventable cause of death.  http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/smokingcessation.html.  The page also includes information  targeting senior smokers: Smoking: It’s Never Too Late to Stop(National Institute on Aging) found on the “age Page” at http://www.niapublications.org/agepages/smoking.asp.

During the week leading up to Father’s Day, the nation recognizes Men’s Health Week (June 9-15). This campaign raises awareness about health problems that can often be prevented through good nutrition, regular exercise, routine health exams, and other elements of healthy living.

Tips for a Healthy Life for Men: Check out some healthy lifestyle tips that could make all the difference in your life, or in the life of a loved one. (from http://www.cdc.gov/men/tips/index.htm)

Get Moving

Get Exams/ Screenings

Manage Stress

En español :

Día del padre en español : http://www.ftc.gov/padre

Salud de los hombres en español : http://www.cdc.gov/spanish/etapas/hombres.html

Adapted by Beth Wescott from information at: http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/pdf/NIHNiH%20June08.pdf

The June issue of NIH News in Health, the monthly newsletter bringing you practical health news and tips based on the latest NIH research, is now online at http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/. In this issue of NIH News in Health:

More than a Feeling: How the Arts Affect Your Health

For thousands of years, people have searched for the meaning and beauty of life in music, painting, poetry and other arts. Now scientists are finding that the arts can benefit both your mental and physical health.

What Makes Your Head Hurt? Tension is the Most Common Culprit

If you suffer from headaches, you’re not alone. Headaches are one of the most common health complaints. But only rarely do they warn of a serious illness.

Health Capsules:

• Fat Cell Numbers Stay Constant in Adults
• Blood Pressure Control and Kidney Disease
• Featured Web Site: Asian American Health http://asianamericanhealth.nlm.nih.gov/

http://www.womenshealth.gov/WHW/
http://www.womenshealth.gov/whw/about/checkupday.cfm

Mother’s Day is a good lead into National Women’s Health Week, which runs from May 11 through May 17 this year.

After celebrating Mother’s Day, encourage your mom to get healthy by increasing her activity level, making healthier food choices, getting regular check-ups and preventative screenings, and avoiding risky behaviors. Visit USA.gov’s link to WomensHealth.gov to find events in your area and get resources on staying healthy.

Join other women in the week’s National Women’s Check-Up Day, Monday, May 12^th. National Women’s Check-Up Day is a nationwide effort, coordinated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health, to:

1. Encourage women to visit health care professionals to receive or schedule a checkup.

2. Promote regular check-ups as vital to the early detection of heart disease,

It is important for women to get regular check-ups because:

• Screening tests, such as mammograms and Pap smears, can find diseases early, when they are easier to treat.
• Some women need certain screening tests earlier, or more often, than others.
• Many of the leading causes of death among women can be successfully prevented or treated if the warning signs are caught early enough.

En español : http://www.usa.gov/gobiernousa/Salud-Nutricion-seguridad/Salud/Grupos.shtml

During National Physical Fitness and Sports Month, this May, USA.gov News highlights the benefits of exercise and the value of participating in sports.

It is important for all Americans to participate in activities that help maintain a healthy lifestyle. Outdoor activities such as walking, running, swimming, and biking are good for the mind, body, and soul. Regular physical activity and healthy eating habits can help reduce stress and lower the risk for many chronic health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and depression.

National Physical Fitness and Sports Month is the perfect time to rise to the National Challenge of getting more fit. For those just starting an exercise program, the challenge is to be active for five days a week.

Visit the President’s Challenge for help getting started, logging your activity, and earning awards. You’ll find guidance for kids, teens, adults, and seniors, and can see how your state is measuring up in the fitness challenge.

Plastics and their possible health effects are in the news. Check out Questions and Answers from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. Also, learn more by reading the latest news.

The National Toxicology Program (NTP) Draft Brief On Bisphenol A (BPA)

Federal Report Looks at Risks from Plastics Chemical(04/18/2008, American Cancer Society News Center) http://www.cancer.org/docroot/NWS/content/NWS_1_1x_Federal_Report_Looks_at_Risks_from_Plastics_Chemical.asp

NHLBI Health Information Network
hin@mail.nhlbi-nih.info

High blood pressure (HBP) affects more than 65 million-or 1 in 3-American adults. HBP often has no warning signs or symptoms. Once it occurs, it usually lasts a lifetime. Uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to heart and kidney disease, stroke, and blindness.

Take the opportunity in May to get your blood pressure checked and learn more about HBP, how it affects the body, and how to control high blood pressure. Here are some resources from the NHLBI that can help you get started.

Educate Patients, Diagnose, and Treat HBP - Materials for Health Professionals

• Check out the Mission Possible Web site’s Activity Ideas page http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/mission/partner/ideas.htm
• Utilize the Pocket Guide to Blood Pressure Management in Children. Available at http://emall.nhlbihin.net/product2.asp?sku=07-5268 for $1.50 each
• Download The Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure - Complete Report at http://emall.nhlbihin.net/product2.asp?sku=04-5230
  See the section on Questions To Ask Your Doctor If You Have High Blood Pressure

Take a Look at Materials for Patients and the Public

• Visit HBP Internet sites:
  • Your Guide to Lowering Blood Pressure Web site http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/hbp
  • NHLBI’s Diseases and Conditions Index article on HBP http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/
    Hbp/HBP_WhatIs.html
• Order Your Guide to Lowering Your Blood Pressure with DASH for $3.50 each at http://emall.nhlbihin.net/product2.asp?sku=06-4082
• Don’t Miss the Recipes for Heart Health starting on page 45. Try vegetarian spaghetti sauce tonight!

Order My Blood Pressure Wallet Card for free for a single copy* at http://emall.nhlbihin.net/product2.asp?sku=03-5068 Additional copies are 25¢ each
See the section on Questions To Ask Your Doctor If You Have High Blood Pressure

Against the Odds: Making a Difference in Global Health

Against the Odds focuses on how individuals and communities, in collaboration with scientists, advocates, governments and international organizations, have made and are making a difference in the health of people around the globe.

The exhibit presents a look at the public health problems posed by Hurricane Katrina. It showcases the barefoot doctors program, which trained over one million young people to treat the common ailments of residents of rural China in the 1960s and 1970s. The exhibition also profiles a campaign for oral rehydration in Bangladesh that was so successful that it has been adopted in Afghanistan as well. In another example of nation-to-nation collaboration, “Against the Odds” shows how the Pholela Health Center in South Africa inspired the community health center movement in the U.S.

Videocast of the opening:
http://videocast.nih.gov/Summary.asp?File=14435

The exhibition web site:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/againsttheodds/introduction.html

The 2008 National Library of Medicine Classification is now available in online and PDF versions.  The 2008 Classification incorporates all additions and changes to the schedules and index from April 2007 through March 2008. The WA (Public Health) and WB (Practice of Medicine) schedules were the major area of focus along with Table G.

For more information on specific changes, see the NLM Technical Bulletin.  For more general information on NLM Classification see the Fact Sheet on that topic. The Fact Sheet also tells how to order the NLM Classification Poster.