North Carolina is located in the southeast United States, with its state capital located in Raleigh. North Carolina has 100 counties and is bordered by Virginia, South Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia. Among the 50 states, North Carolina ranks 28th in size, covering 53,821 square miles. According to the 2000 Census, North Carolina ranks 11th in population size with 8,049,313 residents, and the state's population is projected to increase by 17.3 percent through 2010 . Several counties are projected to experience growth rates of 25 percent or more through 2010, including Brunswick, Cabarrus, Currituck, Dare, Franklin, Harnett, Hoke, Iredell, Johnston, Mecklenburg, Pender, Union and Wake counties. The three largest municipalities by population are Charlotte, Raleigh, and Greensboro, totaling over 1.3 million residents.

North Carolina's residents are predominantly white (71.2%), with a significant black population (21.6%). Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin make up 4.7 percent of the population, Native Americans 1.2 percent, and Asian Americans 1.4 percent. North Carolina has an abundance of prime workforce-age residents, with the bulk of the state's population between the ages of 25 and 59 (44.6 %).

Demographics

North Carolina Demographic and Statistical Data Sources on the Web - A collection of online resources compiled by the Reference Staff at the State Library providing information on statistical or demographic information about North Carolina.

North Carolina State and County QuickFacts - This resource from the U.S. Census Bureau provides summary profiles for frequently requested data items from various Census Bureau programs. Profiles are available at the national, state, and county level.

North Carolina State Data Center - The SDC is a consortium of state and local agencies established in cooperation with the US Bureau of the Census to provide the public with data about North Carolina and its component geographic areas.

North Carolina State Demographics - The state unit primarily responsible for producing population estimates and projections.

Statistics

Kaiser Family Foundation State Health Facts Online - North Carolina at a Glance - This resource provides the latest state-level data on demographics, health, and health policy, including health coverage, access, financing, and state legislation.

North Carolina State Center for Health Statistics - SCHS is responsible for data collection, health-related research, production of reports, and maintenance of a comprehensive collection of health statistics.

North Carolina Vital Statistics - This site is maintained as a public service by the Howard W. Odum Institute for Research in Social Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and contains documentation and downloadable data files of North Carolina Vital Statistics.

News Information

News Releases - This feature on the North Carolina Government Portal provides links to selected current press releases from state government departments and agencies.

North Carolina Newspapers - The U.S. Newspaper List provides links to North Carolina newspapers, radio stations, television stations, and magazines.

Index of N.C. Newspapers by County - A resource from the State Library of North Carolina and North Carolina State Archives North Carolina Newspaper Project.

Health Resources
(Information about Health Services Infrastructure)

N.C. Department of Health and Human Services

N.C. Government Portal - Health - This site provides links to resources on N.C. health services, including support services, disease research, health issues, children's health, public health, disabilities, environmental health, substance abuse, and individual health forms.

North Carolina 2010 Health Objectives - A statewide agenda that provides a direction for improving the health and well being of North Carolinians over the next decade.

NC Health Info - Offers access to web sites of local health services, provides and programs serving residents of North Carolina. Through its connection with MedlinePlus (http://medlineplus.org), a service of the National Library of Medicine (http://www.nlm.nih.gov) and the National Institutes of Health (http://www.nih.gov), users of the site can get information about conditions, diseases and wellness, and find web sites of local health services, programs and providers throughout North Carolina.

North Carolina Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) - The NC AHEC program strives to meet the state's health and health workforce needs by providing educational programs in partnership with academic institutions, healthcare agencies, and other organizations committed to improving the health of the people of North Carolina. This site provides links to regional NC AHECs: Mountain, Northwest, Charlotte, Greensboro, Wake, Southern Regional, Coastal, Eastern and Area L.

Library Information

Libraries

North Carolina Public Libraries on the Web - Links to all of North Carolina's public libraries' home pages.

State Library of North Carolina - Works to increase knowledge and education, promote economic development, and support sound public decision making by serving as an information resource for government, business and the public.

North Carolina State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped - Part of the national network of the Library of Congress's National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped.

Regional Medical Library: University of Maryland Baltimore, Health Sciences Human Services Library

North Carolina Resource Libraries:

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Health Sciences Library
S Columbia Street/Campus Box 7585
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7585
Phone:: 919-966-1855

Duke University
Medical Center Library
S G Mudd Bldg PO Box 3702 DUMC
Durham, NC 27710-3702
Phone: 919-660-1157
Fax: 919-660-1188

East Carolina University
Laupus Health Sciences Library
600 Moye Blvd.
Greenville, NC 27858-4354
Phone: 252-744-2212

Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center
Carpenter Library
Medical Center Boulevard
Winston-Salem, NC 27157-1069
Phone: 336-713-7100

There are many fine local libraries in the network that provide health information and other services. For help finding a participating library click here.

Associations

North Carolina Library Association - An affiliate of the American Library Association and the Southeastern Library Association promoting libraries, library and information services, librarianship, intellectual freedom and literacy.

Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the Medical Library Association - An organization of health sciences librarians and other information professionals serving the District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Association of North Carolina Health and Science Libraries - ANCHASL was organized to promote excellence in health and science information services. The organization fosters resource sharing, information exchange, education, and professional growth of its members. It provides a forum for cooperation, communication, and exchange of ideas. Membership is open to individuals from all levels of professional practice.

North Carolina Chapter of SLA

Cape Fear Health Sciences Information Consortium (CFHSIC) - Web site provides directory information for consortium contacts

North Carolina Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) - The NC AHEC program strives to meet the state's health and health workforce needs by providing educational programs in partnership with academic institutions, healthcare agencies, and other organizations committed to improving the health of the people of North Carolina. This site provides links to regional NC AHECs: Mountain, Northwest, Charlotte, Greensboro, Wake, Southern Regional, Coastal, Eastern and Area L.

Library School

University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
School of Information and Library Science
100 Manning Hall
CB #3360
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3360
Phone: 919-962-8366
Fax: 919-962-8071
Email: info@ils.unc.edu

University of North Carolina at Greensboro
School of Education
Department of Library and Information Studies
349 Curry Building
Greensboro, NC 27401-6170
Phone: 336-334-3477
Fax: 336-334-5060
Email: lis@uncg.edu

North Carolina Central University
School of Library and Information Sciences
1800 Fayetteville Street
Durham, NC 27707
Phone: 919-530-6485
Fax: 919-530-6402
Email: lsis@nccu.edu

Specific Populations

(General Resources, North Carolina Resources, African American, Hispanic, Asian American, Native American)

General Resources:

Office of Minority Health - A division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services whose mission is to improve and protect the health of racial and ethnic minority populations through the development of health policies and programs that will eliminate health disparities.

Minority Health - Sponsored by the Kaiser Family Foundation, this resource provides links to Foundation reports as well as state-by-state statistical information.

Population Group Topics - This resource from the National Library of Medicine's MedlinePlus provides links to topic sheets for a number of population groups.

Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Status - A fact sheet on health disparities from the Centers for Disease Control.

Health Professional Shortage Areas - This resource from the HRSA Bureau of Health Professions defines the health professional shortage area designation criteria and offers database searching by state and county.

Minority Health Resources - A subject guide from the Health Sciences and Human Services Library with links to general and population-specific health information resources.

North Carolina Resources

NC Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities

UNC Program on Ethnicity, Culture and Health Outcomes - The mission of this program is to eliminate health status and health outcomes disparities through translatable, evidence-based research, multidisciplinary training and education, and culturally sensitive service to North Carolina communities.

North Carolina AHEC Digital Library - Minority Health Special Collection - An Internet portal providing links to online minority health resources in such specific areas as cultural competency and training, health in minority communities, and professional development.

African American

NC Health Info: African-American Health - A MedlinePlus Go Local feature providing links to African-American Health Web sites serving North Carolina.

African American Health - This MedlinePlus topic sheet provides links to a variety of health information resources for and about African Americans.

The Black Population in the United States - Detailed demographic information on the African American population from the U.S. Census Bureau.

African-American Health Resources - Links to national African-American health resources compiled by the Maryland DHMH Health Disparities Initiative

Hispanic

NC Health Info: Hispanic-American Health - A MedlinePlus Go Local feature providing links to Hispanic-American Health Web sites serving North Carolina.

Hispanic Population in the United States - Detailed demographic information on the U.S. Hispanic population from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Hispanic-American Health - This MedlinePlus topic sheet provides links to a variety of health information resources for and about Hispanic-Americans.

National Alliance for Hispanic Health - This site includes information about the Alliance , health news, and other topics of interest. Resources on the site include Health Fact Sheets, Hispanic Health Needs Assessment, and Funding Leads.

Hispanic/Latino Health Resources - Links to national Hispanic/Latino health resources compiled by the Maryland DHMH Health Disparities Initiative.

El Pueblo, Inc. - North Carolina's largest hispanic policy/advocacy group.

North Carolina AHEC Latino Resource Center - Links to Spanish language training courses, interpreter information and other resources. Part of the NC AHEC's Spanish Language and Cultural Training Initiative, a statewide collaborate effort to promote increased Spanish fluency and related cultural competencies among North Carolina health professionals.

Asian American

NC Health Info: Asian-American Health - A MedlinePlus Go Local feature providing links to Asian-American Health Web sites serving North Carolina.

Asian and Pacific Islander Populations - Detailed demographic information on U.S. Asian and Pacific Islander populations from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Asian-American Health - This MedlinePlus topic sheet provides links to a variety of health information resources for and about people of Asian and Pacific Island descent.

Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum Links and Resources - This site provides links to health organizations and programs for Asian and Pacific Islanders.

Asian-American Health Resources - Links to national Asian-American health resources compiled by the Maryland DHMH Health Disparities Initiative.

Native American

Native-American Health - This MedlinePlus topic sheet provides links to a variety of health information resources for and about people of Native American descent.

American Indian Health - From the National Library of Medicine, and information portal to issues affecting the health and well-being of American Indians.

American Indian and Alaska Native Populations - Detailed demographic information on U.S. American Indian and Alaska Native populations from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Additional Resources

The National Library of Medicine - The following NLM products may be useful to you and are available on the web at no cost: ClinicalTrials.gov, NLM Gateway, MedlinePlus, PubMedand TOXNET. A full listing of NLM's online resources is available on their Health Information page.

FedStats provides access to statistics prepared by over 100 federal agencies. Statistics are available on a state and community level.

FirstGov provides a search engine and topical indexes for US state and federal information. To search for information on a particular state, use the form in the upper left corner.

State and Local Government on the Net provides links to government information on a state and local level for the fifty states, as well as selected US-associated areas such as Guam.

RML State Contact

Toni Yancey, Outreach Exhibits Coordinator, tyancey@hshsl.umaryland.edu

Miss Yancey exhibits, teaches PubMed classes, and supports subcontracts and library improvement projects in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. She also manages the state and national exhibits for the region.

Do you have further questions? Call us at 1-800-338-7657 and Choose 1 for Regional Network Office .