- Email: [email protected]
95TH annual meeting of the medical library association
Susan Davis, Column Editor
SerialsSpokenHere
SERIALS SPOKEN
HERE:
REPORTS ON CONFERENCES,
INSTITUTESAND SEMINARS Susan Davis, Column Editor with contributions by Lisa A. Eichholtz, Jennifer L. Reaves, Marifran Bustion, Jodi Williamschen, and Susan Davis
May and June are peak conference season for librarians. Annual conference reports from the Medical 1 ;h+-q.-.T A~ccw-;~t;~n ‘hT,v-th A~P,-;P-., IJ\rllUIJ CPAQ~C lntnmct LIUILI‘J rxx."~ILIcI"II, IY"IL11 rI111L1LLcu1 LIIIbLb.TC Group, and several American Library Association sessions form the contents of this column. While there were many similarities in focus across these meetings, there was also some variety. And yes, it also sounds like some conference goers found time to have some fun! Please alert the editor if you know of an interesting program that should be covered in this column or if you wish to volunteer your services as a reporter. See you next issue.
~~THANNUALMEETINGOFTHE MEDICAL LIBRARY ASSOCIATION Lisa A. Eichholtz Davis is Head, Periodicals, at the State University of New York at Buffalo, Lockwood Library Bldg., Buffalo, NY 14260-2200. E-mail:.
-SERIALSSPOKEN
HERE-
The 95th Annual Meeting of the Medical Library Association (in conjunction with the 7th International Congress on Medical Librarianship, May lo- 12) was held iviay 7_ 10, i 88; at ihe ‘~~s’nington iiiiton and T~-\iiers,
WINTER 1995
87
Washington, D.C. More than 3,000 health sciences information professionals from around the globe attended. The theme of the meeting was “Health Information for the Global Village.” Four plenary sessions and over 80 contributed papers highlighted that theme. In keeping with the informatics theme, a World Wide Web site was created for the 95th Annual Meeting (www.kumc.edu/MLA/MLA95). Visit the site for photos from the meeting and more detailed information. In addition to the spectacular spring weather, the local arrangements committee, headed by Michelle Chatfield, put together a wide array of activities to suit the varied interests of the largest group to ever attend an MLA Annual Meeting. An MLA Restaurant Guide was available to all attendees highlighting the culinary variety available in Washington. “Dine Arounds” were organized so that individuals could find dinner companions. The Friends of the National Library of Medicine sponsored a reception at the Mansion on “0” Street, a renovated art deco house. An opening reception held in the Exhibit Hall was styled after a political rally, complete with hot dogs and pretzels. Plenary Session I featured Daniel R. Masys, M.D. who presented the Joseph Leiter NLM/MLA Lecture ont;+lnrl LIICICIb”
“The Tmfn-o&no 111L IIII”IIIIclULJ
nf “I
Unr>lth IlLalL‘
P.>ra LLUL
Daft.1,L~“IIII.
”
Ua 1IL
illustrated the cost savings that could result from a managed care environment and pointed out that excessive cost-cutting could endanger the library. He believes that the Internet can be a tool to enhance the value of library services as well as the visibility of services provided. Masys stressed the role of librarians in promoting the use of the Internet within their institutions, and encouraged the librarians present to learn HTML and become World Wide Web information providers. Masys also pointed out some useful Internet sites for health services research information, particularly the Clinical Guidelines available from the -Apenrv -D _‘__,
fnr -_-
Hecalth Care ________ -__
po!icv ,
2nd I___
Reccwrh __ __I_____
thrmluh _____I b__
the NLM. The second Plenary Session brought journalist Cokie Roberts’ perspective on the politics of health care reform. Her lighthearted comments were peppered with personal anecdotes about reporting the activities of our elected officials, along with insights into the likelihood of various initiatives becoming law. She pointed out that with federal health care reform floundering, there are still initiatives in each state which will affect the business of health care. Roberts stated that the key issues in health care reform are portability of insurance, the need for coverage of preexisting conditions, the transition of Medicaid
88
SER~ALSREVZEW
patients into managed care plans and the availability of affordable insurance for the working poor. Cultural anthropologist Jennifer James presented the McGovern Lecture at the third Plenary Session. She described the rapid pace of change in our world in stark comparison to the slower changes of the past. This rapid change leads to a feeling of chaos and disorientation, requiring a new mind to deal with the new universe. James pointed out that librarians are the guides, or cyborgs, of the information age, responsible for leading the way through cyberspace. Librarians can provide the necessary balance between the technological and the human. The rapid change as the world evolves into the “Information Age” has left large numbers of disenfranchised people with too little time to adapt. James concluded by outlining steps to take to not merely survive, but to lead: understand cultural evolution; be conscious of the need to change; be organizing agents; look to your own mythology and understand history; have a sense of humor. In James’ view, civilization exists when three things are in place: open information, new contracts and nonviolence. The role of the information professional is clear in maintaining open, free flowing information channels. The final Plenary Session was the Janet Doe Lecture, entitled, “The Changing Face of Health Information,” given by Jana Bradley, incoming MLA President and Assistant Dean/Assistant Professor at the Indiana University School of Library and Information Cri,=nrp 111 in L”u’u”uy”“.3. Tnrli~n~nnlir Rrnrll~~r L&LO” alcn l”“UOUU fnr,,r,vl nn the “~IUIIUU Y’UU’UJ “11 LLlU rapidly changing information technology environment and its impact on the profession of health sciences librarianship. Over 100 exhibitors were available to answer questions and show off their new products and services. The theme for the exhibit area was clearly high-tech and almost all booths featured new electronic resources of one kind or another. Electronic serials were visible everywhere-from traditional print journals newly available in electronic format to new publications designed to take advantage of World Wide Web technology to improve upon the printed journal. The exhibits gave a glimpse into the library of the future. Attendees chose from over 80 contributed papers coordinated by the Chapters and Special Interest Groups. While space does not permit listing each presentation, the following papers are representative of what was presented. For a complete list of contributed papers, visit the MLA ‘95 Web page at www.kumc.edu/ MLA/MLA95 (case sensitive). Abstracts for many of
- SUSAN DAVIS -
the contributed papers are also available for viewing and printing from the Web site. “Budgeting for Access: Challenge and Opportunity,” Daniel T. Richards, Director of Biomedical Libraries, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH. “Building A Virtual Medical Library,” Patrick Newell, second-year student, UCLA Graduate School ,CT ;h,,,,, a,,u ,..A lll‘“lllkILl”ll T..E,-,t;,-., c,;,,,, T -0 rIllg;c;lGa, A..,,l,, PA. “I Ll”laly Lx,IGIIL,G, Id”> LA) Pamela Moffett-Padley, second-year student, UCLA Graduate School of Library and Information Science, Los Angeles, CA; Irene McDermott, second-year student, UCLA Graduate School of Library and Information Science, Los Angeles, CA; Lonny Brooks, second-year student, UCLA Graduate School of Library and Information Science, Los Angeles, CA. “Creating a World Wide Web Home Page for a Medical Library,” Marilyn Tinsley, Information Services Librarian, Lane Medical Library, Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, CA; Jane Goh, Information Services Librarian, Lane Medical Library, Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, CA. “Developing Health Sciences Library Collections in a Networked Environment,” Brian Warling, Personal Information Management Specialist-Clinical Proand Center for Knowledge grams, Library Management, University of California, San Francisco, CA; Glennda Vandegrift, Collection Development Librarian, Library and Center for Knnwl~dcw IS.1” II ‘VUbU Management, University of California, San Francisco, CA. “Digital Full Text Journals to Enhance Patient Naomi Broering, Director, Biomedical Care,” Information Resources Center and Medical Center Librarian, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC; Jeffrey S. Hylton, Assistant Director for Medical Technology, Dahlgren Memorial Library, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC; Jane L. Banks, Assistant Director for Databases, Dahlgren Memorial Library , Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC; Ronald Shaloup, D,,,,,,-,.. ,4,,l..,r ~,L,,,,, 1~,.-,,:,1 T :k.-,-. rl”g;lallllllr;l, Allalysk, va,ug,lr;,, I”Ie;III”IILLI L,“laly, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC. “Do Library Journal Collections Contribute to the Productive Use of the Journal Literature?,” Gary D. Byrd, Director, Health Sciences Library, SUNY at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY. “Electronic “Library Without Walls” in a Hospital Library,” Michael Kronenfeld, Director, Health Sciences Library, Maricopa Health Systems, Phoenix,
-SERIALSSPOKENHERE-
AZ; Femande Hebert, Health Sciences Library, Maricopa Health Systems, Phoenix, AZ. “Identifying Library User Journal Needs: A Comparison of Traditional and Information-based Techniques,” Cheryl Chisnell, Head, Information Systems, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN; Deborah Broadwater, Acquisitions/Serials Librarian, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN; Kathel Dunn, Information and Education Librarian, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN; of Medical Dean F. Sittig, Assistant Professor Informatics, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN. “A . uursourcing Your Cataloging: Expanding Your Services as the Library Vision Changes,” Timothy C. Judkins, Assistant Library Director and Manager, Database Development and Control, UT Southwestern Medical Center Library, Dallas, TX. “Re-Engineering Technical Services for the 2 1st Karen Graves, Head, Access Services, Century,” Library of the Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL; Elaine Russo Martin, Assistant University Librarian for the Health Sciences, Library of the Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL. “A Validation of the Brandon-Hill List,” Kathel lnfnrmatinn ancl Frlllrntinn 1 .ihmrian F&&d -Dllnn ..*..., ~....,...II..V.. . . .._ -I..I....V.. I-v-..---_--, Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN; Cheryl Chisnell, Head, Information Systems, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN; Dean F. Sittig, Assistant Professor of Medical Informatics, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN. Plans are well underway for the 96th Annual Meeting, to be held in Kansas City, MO, June l-5, 1996. Next year’s theme is “The Information Frontier.” To keep up to date as plans are finalized, visit the MLA ‘96 web page: www.kumc.edulMLAlMLA96. Eichholtz is Document Delivery Librarian Medical University of South Carolina Library.
WINTER
at the
1995 89
SerialsSpokenHere
SERIALS SPOKEN
HERE:
REPORTS ON CONFERENCES,
INSTITUTESAND SEMINARS Susan Davis, Column Editor with contributions by Lisa A. Eichholtz, Jennifer L. Reaves, Marifran Bustion, Jodi Williamschen, and Susan Davis
May and June are peak conference season for librarians. Annual conference reports from the Medical 1 ;h+-q.-.T A~ccw-;~t;~n ‘hT,v-th A~P,-;P-., IJ\rllUIJ CPAQ~C lntnmct LIUILI‘J rxx."~ILIcI"II, IY"IL11 rI111L1LLcu1 LIIIbLb.TC Group, and several American Library Association sessions form the contents of this column. While there were many similarities in focus across these meetings, there was also some variety. And yes, it also sounds like some conference goers found time to have some fun! Please alert the editor if you know of an interesting program that should be covered in this column or if you wish to volunteer your services as a reporter. See you next issue.
~~THANNUALMEETINGOFTHE MEDICAL LIBRARY ASSOCIATION Lisa A. Eichholtz Davis is Head, Periodicals, at the State University of New York at Buffalo, Lockwood Library Bldg., Buffalo, NY 14260-2200. E-mail:
-SERIALSSPOKEN
HERE-
The 95th Annual Meeting of the Medical Library Association (in conjunction with the 7th International Congress on Medical Librarianship, May lo- 12) was held iviay 7_ 10, i 88; at ihe ‘~~s’nington iiiiton and T~-\iiers,
WINTER 1995
87
Washington, D.C. More than 3,000 health sciences information professionals from around the globe attended. The theme of the meeting was “Health Information for the Global Village.” Four plenary sessions and over 80 contributed papers highlighted that theme. In keeping with the informatics theme, a World Wide Web site was created for the 95th Annual Meeting (www.kumc.edu/MLA/MLA95). Visit the site for photos from the meeting and more detailed information. In addition to the spectacular spring weather, the local arrangements committee, headed by Michelle Chatfield, put together a wide array of activities to suit the varied interests of the largest group to ever attend an MLA Annual Meeting. An MLA Restaurant Guide was available to all attendees highlighting the culinary variety available in Washington. “Dine Arounds” were organized so that individuals could find dinner companions. The Friends of the National Library of Medicine sponsored a reception at the Mansion on “0” Street, a renovated art deco house. An opening reception held in the Exhibit Hall was styled after a political rally, complete with hot dogs and pretzels. Plenary Session I featured Daniel R. Masys, M.D. who presented the Joseph Leiter NLM/MLA Lecture ont;+lnrl LIICICIb”
“The Tmfn-o&no 111L IIII”IIIIclULJ
nf “I
Unr>lth IlLalL‘
P.>ra LLUL
Daft.1,L~“IIII.
”
Ua 1IL
illustrated the cost savings that could result from a managed care environment and pointed out that excessive cost-cutting could endanger the library. He believes that the Internet can be a tool to enhance the value of library services as well as the visibility of services provided. Masys stressed the role of librarians in promoting the use of the Internet within their institutions, and encouraged the librarians present to learn HTML and become World Wide Web information providers. Masys also pointed out some useful Internet sites for health services research information, particularly the Clinical Guidelines available from the -Apenrv -D _‘__,
fnr -_-
Hecalth Care ________ -__
po!icv ,
2nd I___
Reccwrh __ __I_____
thrmluh _____I b__
the NLM. The second Plenary Session brought journalist Cokie Roberts’ perspective on the politics of health care reform. Her lighthearted comments were peppered with personal anecdotes about reporting the activities of our elected officials, along with insights into the likelihood of various initiatives becoming law. She pointed out that with federal health care reform floundering, there are still initiatives in each state which will affect the business of health care. Roberts stated that the key issues in health care reform are portability of insurance, the need for coverage of preexisting conditions, the transition of Medicaid
88
SER~ALSREVZEW
patients into managed care plans and the availability of affordable insurance for the working poor. Cultural anthropologist Jennifer James presented the McGovern Lecture at the third Plenary Session. She described the rapid pace of change in our world in stark comparison to the slower changes of the past. This rapid change leads to a feeling of chaos and disorientation, requiring a new mind to deal with the new universe. James pointed out that librarians are the guides, or cyborgs, of the information age, responsible for leading the way through cyberspace. Librarians can provide the necessary balance between the technological and the human. The rapid change as the world evolves into the “Information Age” has left large numbers of disenfranchised people with too little time to adapt. James concluded by outlining steps to take to not merely survive, but to lead: understand cultural evolution; be conscious of the need to change; be organizing agents; look to your own mythology and understand history; have a sense of humor. In James’ view, civilization exists when three things are in place: open information, new contracts and nonviolence. The role of the information professional is clear in maintaining open, free flowing information channels. The final Plenary Session was the Janet Doe Lecture, entitled, “The Changing Face of Health Information,” given by Jana Bradley, incoming MLA President and Assistant Dean/Assistant Professor at the Indiana University School of Library and Information Cri,=nrp 111 in L”u’u”uy”“.3. Tnrli~n~nnlir Rrnrll~~r L&LO” alcn l”“UOUU fnr,,r,vl nn the “~IUIIUU Y’UU’UJ “11 LLlU rapidly changing information technology environment and its impact on the profession of health sciences librarianship. Over 100 exhibitors were available to answer questions and show off their new products and services. The theme for the exhibit area was clearly high-tech and almost all booths featured new electronic resources of one kind or another. Electronic serials were visible everywhere-from traditional print journals newly available in electronic format to new publications designed to take advantage of World Wide Web technology to improve upon the printed journal. The exhibits gave a glimpse into the library of the future. Attendees chose from over 80 contributed papers coordinated by the Chapters and Special Interest Groups. While space does not permit listing each presentation, the following papers are representative of what was presented. For a complete list of contributed papers, visit the MLA ‘95 Web page at www.kumc.edu/ MLA/MLA95 (case sensitive). Abstracts for many of
- SUSAN DAVIS -
the contributed papers are also available for viewing and printing from the Web site. “Budgeting for Access: Challenge and Opportunity,” Daniel T. Richards, Director of Biomedical Libraries, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH. “Building A Virtual Medical Library,” Patrick Newell, second-year student, UCLA Graduate School ,CT ;h,,,,, a,,u ,..A lll‘“lllkILl”ll T..E,-,t;,-., c,;,,,, T -0 rIllg;c;lGa, A..,,l,, PA. “I Ll”laly Lx,IGIIL,G, Id”> LA) Pamela Moffett-Padley, second-year student, UCLA Graduate School of Library and Information Science, Los Angeles, CA; Irene McDermott, second-year student, UCLA Graduate School of Library and Information Science, Los Angeles, CA; Lonny Brooks, second-year student, UCLA Graduate School of Library and Information Science, Los Angeles, CA. “Creating a World Wide Web Home Page for a Medical Library,” Marilyn Tinsley, Information Services Librarian, Lane Medical Library, Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, CA; Jane Goh, Information Services Librarian, Lane Medical Library, Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, CA. “Developing Health Sciences Library Collections in a Networked Environment,” Brian Warling, Personal Information Management Specialist-Clinical Proand Center for Knowledge grams, Library Management, University of California, San Francisco, CA; Glennda Vandegrift, Collection Development Librarian, Library and Center for Knnwl~dcw IS.1” II ‘VUbU Management, University of California, San Francisco, CA. “Digital Full Text Journals to Enhance Patient Naomi Broering, Director, Biomedical Care,” Information Resources Center and Medical Center Librarian, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC; Jeffrey S. Hylton, Assistant Director for Medical Technology, Dahlgren Memorial Library, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC; Jane L. Banks, Assistant Director for Databases, Dahlgren Memorial Library , Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC; Ronald Shaloup, D,,,,,,-,.. ,4,,l..,r ~,L,,,,, 1~,.-,,:,1 T :k.-,-. rl”g;lallllllr;l, Allalysk, va,ug,lr;,, I”Ie;III”IILLI L,“laly, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC. “Do Library Journal Collections Contribute to the Productive Use of the Journal Literature?,” Gary D. Byrd, Director, Health Sciences Library, SUNY at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY. “Electronic “Library Without Walls” in a Hospital Library,” Michael Kronenfeld, Director, Health Sciences Library, Maricopa Health Systems, Phoenix,
-SERIALSSPOKENHERE-
AZ; Femande Hebert, Health Sciences Library, Maricopa Health Systems, Phoenix, AZ. “Identifying Library User Journal Needs: A Comparison of Traditional and Information-based Techniques,” Cheryl Chisnell, Head, Information Systems, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN; Deborah Broadwater, Acquisitions/Serials Librarian, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN; Kathel Dunn, Information and Education Librarian, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN; of Medical Dean F. Sittig, Assistant Professor Informatics, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN. “A . uursourcing Your Cataloging: Expanding Your Services as the Library Vision Changes,” Timothy C. Judkins, Assistant Library Director and Manager, Database Development and Control, UT Southwestern Medical Center Library, Dallas, TX. “Re-Engineering Technical Services for the 2 1st Karen Graves, Head, Access Services, Century,” Library of the Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL; Elaine Russo Martin, Assistant University Librarian for the Health Sciences, Library of the Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL. “A Validation of the Brandon-Hill List,” Kathel lnfnrmatinn ancl Frlllrntinn 1 .ihmrian F&&d -Dllnn ..*..., ~....,...II..V.. . . .._ -I..I....V.. I-v-..---_--, Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN; Cheryl Chisnell, Head, Information Systems, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN; Dean F. Sittig, Assistant Professor of Medical Informatics, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN. Plans are well underway for the 96th Annual Meeting, to be held in Kansas City, MO, June l-5, 1996. Next year’s theme is “The Information Frontier.” To keep up to date as plans are finalized, visit the MLA ‘96 web page: www.kumc.edulMLAlMLA96. Eichholtz is Document Delivery Librarian Medical University of South Carolina Library.
WINTER
at the
1995 89