Library Outreach Brings Health Information to the Community: May Events by Ruth Smith

Posted on April 26, 2012 by April Pace

Since 2001, over eight thousand citizens from Southeastern Virginia have attended EVMS Brickell Library outreach events at a variety of venues, including public libraries, senior centers, health fairs, employee benefit sessions, public schools and the EVMS campus. These informative events provide the region’s non-health science librarians, the general public and government leaders with free training on how to access health information. Programs scheduled for May include:

Partrea Midrise Health Fair Day 2012
May 4, 2012

150 attendees will have the opportunity to visit the EVMS Brickell Library booth and learn how to access consumer health diabetes information via the consumer health link found on the Brickell Library homepage.

Norfolk Senior Olympics
May 9, 2012

150-200 attendees will have the opportunity to visit the Brickell Library booth and learn how to access consumer health diabetes information via the consumer health link found on the EVMS Brickell Library homepage.

Virginia Beach Health and Human Services Adult Services Unit
May 14, 2012

16 members of the Adult Services Unit will attend EVMS CARES: Consumer Health Information at Your Fingertips! They will learn how to access quality consumer health information via the EVMS Brickell Library.

To set up a training session at no cost to you or your organization, contact Ruth Smith, Outreach Services Coordinator, at smithrm@evms.edu or phone (757) 446-5849

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Library Outreach Brings Health Information to the Community by Ruth Smith

Posted on March 28, 2012 by April Pace

Since 2001, over eight thousand citizens from Southeastern Virginia have attended EVMS Brickell Library outreach events at a variety of venues, including public libraries, senior centers, health fairs, employee benefit sessions, public schools and the EVMS campus. These informative events provide the region’s non-health science librarians, the general public and government leaders with free training on how to access health information. Programs scheduled for March include:

24th Annual Senior Support Services Seminar
April 10, 2012

400 attendees will have the opportunity to visit the EVMS Brickell Library booth and learn how to access consumer health diabetes information via the consumer health link found on the EVMS Brickell Library homepage.

Norfolk State University Upward Bound Program
April 11, 2012

25 high school students are expected to attend the training EVMS CARES: Homework Health at Your Fingertips!

Tidewater Area Reference Librarians Meeting
April 19, 2012

Members of TARL will hold their meeting at the EVMS Brickell Library. Attendees will be given a tour of the library along with the EVMS Center for Simulation and Immersive Learning.

Medical Library Association Consumer Health Information Specialization Level 1 for Non-Health Librarians Re-Certification
April 26, 2012

19 area librarians and library workers are expected to maintain their certification in the Medical Library Association Consumer Health Information Sepcialization Program Level 1 Certification for Non-Health Librarians program.

To set up a training session at no cost to you or your organization, contact Ruth Smith, Outreach Services Coordinator, at smithrm@evms.edu or phone (757) 446-5849

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The Origins of AIDS

Posted on March 14, 2012 by April Pace

Most histories of AIDS start about 1981 when the first published case studies of this “new” disease appeared in the medical literature.  Dr. Jacques Pepin, in the Origins of AIDS recently published by Cambridge, traces it back to the jungles of the Belgian Congo in 1921.

Read the New York Times review of this fascinating book – or read the entire book available at the EVMS Brickell Library.

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Library Outreach Brings Health Information to the Community by Ruth Smith

Posted on February 28, 2012 by April Pace

Since 2001, over eight thousand citizens from Southeastern Virginia have attended EVMS Brickell Library outreach events at a variety of venues, including public libraries, senior centers, health fairs, employee benefit sessions, public schools and the EVMS campus. These informative events provide the region’s non-health science librarians, the general public and government leaders with free training on how to access health information.

Programs scheduled for March include:

Virginia Diabetes Council Meeting
March 2, 2012
50 attendees will have the opportunity to learn how to access consumer health diabetes information via the consumer health link found on the EVMS Brickell Library’s homepage.

Deep Creek High School Health Sciences and Medicine Academy
March 12, 2012
60 students will learn what it is like to be a Clinical Medical and Reference Librarian.

2012 Geriatric Symposium
March 15, 2012
150-200 caregivers and professionals who work with seniors will have the opportunity to visit the EVMS Brickell Library booth and learn how to access consumer health information concerning seniors via the EVMS Brickell Library consumer health link located on the library’s homepage.

Harbor’s Edge Health Fair
March 22, 2012
200 attendees are expected at this event. Seniors and caregivers will have the opportunity to visit the EVMS Brickell Library booth and learn how to access consumer health information via the EVMS Brickell Library consumer health link.

Meyera E. Orbendorf Central Library (Virginia Beach Public Library System) Staff Training
March 29, 2012
25 members of the Meyera E. Orbendorf Central Library will attend “Virginia’s Healthy Heroes: Consumer Health Resources for US Active Duty, Veterans and Their Families”
With a total of 24 military installations, these veterans and active duty service members along with their families visit our public libraries. This class will provide attendees with a basic understanding of the health information needs of veterans, active duty member and their families.

EVMS Community Care Day
March 31, 2012
200-350 members of the public are expected to visit the EVMS Brickell Library booth at this event. Booth visitors will learn how to access consumer health resources via the EVMS Brickell Library consumer health link found on the EVMS Brickell Library homepage. Visitors will also learn that the EVMS Brickell library is a community resource and open to the public.

To set up a training session at no cost to you or your organization, contact Ruth Smith, Outreach Services Coordinator, at smithrm@evms.edu or phone (757) 446-5849

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DynaMed is the most current Clinical Point-of-Care database

Posted on February 20, 2012 by April Pace

An article published recently in BMJ1 identifies DynaMed as the most up-to-date clinical point-of-care database - by quite a margin.  The reviewers chose five *summary type databases based on their breadth of coverage, editorial quality, and evidence based methodology and checked to see how long it took the editors to add new evidence.  The new evidence consisted of 128 clinically important systematic reviews the authors found through literature surveillance journals, like the ACP Journal Club, and from the
Cochrane Library.

By the end of the 9 month study period DynaMed had incorporated 113 of the 128 systematic reviews into their evidence summaries.   The database with the next highest number had only incorporated 41.   On average, it took Dynamed 7.7 weeks to cite a new study and 42 weeks for the runner up.

Fig 1 Updating curves for relevant evidence (128 systematic reviews) by point of care information summaries.

DynaMed and UpToDate are located under “Quick Links” on the EVMS Library’s home page.  eMedicine (now Medscape Reference) is a freely available database.

DynaMed is also available as a mobile application for the iPhone,  iPad,  Blackberry, Android and other devices.  Email April Pace at paceaa@evms.edu for a unique serial number and instructions.

* Summaries provide critically appraised, concise information on all aspects of patient management and derive their information from the best evidence. See ACP Journal Club. 2009 Sep 15;151:JC3-2.

1. Banzi, R. et al. Speed of updating online evidence based point of care summaries: prospective cohort analysis.
BMJ. 2011 Sep 23; 343:d5856.
PubMed PMID:  21948588

 

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First Consult iPhone app through MD Consult

Posted on January 13, 2012 by April Pace

All EVMS associates have access to the First Consult iPhone and iPad App through our site license to MD Consult.  First Consult is an evidence-based clinical decision support reference that provides  answers to treatment, evaluation, diagnosis, prognosis and prevention questions.  It is designed to be quickly accessed at the point of care.

Before you download the First Consult app onto your iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad, you must create an account in MD Consult:

1. Click on MD Consult (under Quick Links) through the library’s Website (if you are off campus, you will be asked to log in using your Novell account– i.e., the login and password you use for Blackboard or in the Library’s Computer Lab).
2. Click on “Create an Account” in MD Consult on the top right.
3. Complete the registration form, create your username and password, click “Submit” and log out.
4. Search the App store for “First Consult” – or directly access it with this link http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/first-consult/id399677784?mt=8 – and login using your new personal login when prompted.

 

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Library Survey of Service Quality (LibQUAL+)

Posted on October 26, 2011 by April Pace

This fall the EVMS Library, along with hundreds of other academic libraries, will take part in LibQUAL+™, a nationwide survey of library service quality and user satisfaction. This is the fourth time EVMS has taken part in the survey. We also participated in 2002, 2005 and 2008. Some of the changes the library made based on feedback we received in these earlier surveys include improving our Web site, adding additional clinical databases and expanding our electronic journal collection.

LibQUAL+™ was developed at Texas A & M University in partnership with the Association of Research Libraries. It is based on the SERVQUAL instrument, a popular tool for assessing service quality in the private sector. LibQUAL+™ is designed to measure library users’ views of services and service quality by identifying gaps between desired, perceived and minimum expectations of service. The survey will help us identify service dimensions that are most important to you and show us how well we are meeting your needs. Also, we will also be able to compare our results to peer institutions and identify best practices in library service.

The LibQUAL+™ survey will be administered by e-mail and should take around ten minutes to complete. Responses are completely confidential. All faculty, staff and students affiliated with EVMS will be asked to participate; and as an added bonus, everyone completing the survey will have the option to enter a drawing for prizes. Entering the drawing will not compromise the confidentiality of your responses.

When the LibQUAL+™ survey is distributed this semester we hope you will take the time to fill it out. If you have any questions about the survey please contact Brickell Library survey administrators April Pace or Judith Robinson at LibQual@evms.edu.

For more information about the LibQUAL+™ research project, see:
http://www.libqual.org/about/about_lq/general_info.

For a list of participating institutions, see:
http://www.libqual.org/about/about_survey/participants

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