Showing papers in "Bulletin of The Medical Library Association in 1988"

Library use and information-seeking behavior of veterinary medical students.

Abstract: Veterinary medical students at Iowa State University were assessed for general use of the veterinary library and for their information-seeking behavior. The library was most frequently used for studying and for making photocopies of materials. The typical respondent relied on course textbooks and handouts for current information on unfamiliar topics, instead of using indexes or abstracts for guidance to recent literature. Light use of library information resources raises the concern that students are developing an inadequate base of retrieval skills for finding information on new procedures, diseases and drugs. No differences were found between students with and without formal bibliographic instruction in their approaches to seeking information or in library use.

An evaluation of four end-user systems for searching MEDLINE

Abstract: This study compared features and determined which of four end-user systems (PaperChase, GRATEFUL MED, Med-Base, or Compact Cambridge: MEDLINE) would best serve the Medical Sciences and Optometry Libraries of Indiana University in providing biomedical information to faculty and graduate students through MEDLINE. Cost, ease of use, retrieval, training needs, equipment requirements, and adequacy of documentation were examined. The study consisted of a comparison of the features of each system based on available documentation; a controlled search performed by the investigators on each system and on regular NLM MEDLINE; and a user study based on observations, questionnaires, and interviews with eleven library patrons who performed the same search of their choice on each of the four systems.

User attitudes toward end-user literature searching.

Abstract: A survey to determine attitudes toward end-user searching was made at Loyola University's Medical Center Library using MEDIS, an online full-text and bibliographic medical retrieval system. One hundred forty-one completed questionnaires were analyzed for this report. Information was collected on user familiarity with computers, end-user training, system use, mechanics of searching, and attitudes toward future use. Computer familiarity was highest among the faculty users. Ninety percent of the respondents saw librarians as a crucial agent in training and in providing end-user assistance. Respondents identified five major reasons for using the system: helpfulness, convenience, time savings, rapid feedback, and presentation of needed information. Searching the MEDLINE database rather than the full-text database was the search method of choice. Continued use of both mediated and end-user searching was intended by most of the respondents. Survey results support a perceived need for end-user searching and confirmed recommendations of the Association of American Medical Colleges on medical information science skills.

The knowledge workstation: an electronic environment for knowledge management.

Abstract: This paper focuses on the creation of the IAIMS workstation in the context of the outcomes of a year-long IAIMS strategic planning process at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions (JHMI). These outcomes include a long-term institutional vision for a functional knowledge management environment, a JHMI IAIMS model, a strategic plan, and two model prototypes. The functional requirements and specific implementation strategies for the IAIMS workstation, the prototype for managing the knowledge base of the published biomedical literature, are discussed in detail.

A Virtual Notebook for biomedical work groups.

Abstract: During the past several years, Baylor College of Medicine has made a substantial commitment to the use of information technology in support of its corporate and academic programs. The concept of an Integrated Academic Information Management System (IAIMS) has proved central in our planning, and the IAIMS activities that we have undertaken with funding from the National Library of Medicine have proved to be important extensions of our technology development. Here we describe our Virtual Notebook system, a conceptual and technologic framework for task coordination and information management in biomedical work groups. When fully developed and deployed, the Virtual Notebook will improve the functioning of basic and clinical research groups in the college, and it currently serves as a model for the longer-term development of our entire information management environment.

Occupational therapy articles in serial publications: an analysis of sources.

Abstract: This study was designed to locate and document serial literature on occupational therapy published since 1900. Emphasis is placed on finding articles on occupational therapy or by occupational therapists from sources other than those normally associated with the professional journals. Multiple sources were used including print indexes, online databases, occupational therapy bibliographies, and tables of contents or yearly indexes. Almost 7,000 articles were identified, not including those published in foreign journals. Occupational therapy publications have increased steadily since 1900, with the most rapid increase during the 1970s and 1980s when five new occupational therapy journals were initiated. Suggestions for formulating search strategies are included.

Reference activity and the external user: confluence of community needs at a medical school branch library.

Abstract: The allocation of reference services between primary and secondary users constantly challenges academic medical libraries. Routine statistics at a medical school branch library suggested that over 40% of its reference transactions involved persons not affiliated with the university. To investigate this finding, a survey of reference activity was conducted using measurement techniques unobtrusive to the user. Fifteen data items were recorded, including user status, type of question, intended use of information requested, status of staff taking request, and staff time spent. Survey results showed that nonaffiliates accounted for 51% of reference activity. Based on this documented data, definitive reference guidelines addressing hours, priority of requests, charges, and staffing patterns can now be developed. Findings will also assist in evaluating the library's regional role, in formulating marketing strategies, and in determining library objectives.

End-user programs in medical school libraries: a survey.

Abstract: A questionnaire was sent to all medical school libraries listed in the Annual Statistics of Medical School Libraries in the United States and Canada (1983-1984) asking librarians to describe their end-user programs Of the 113 responding libraries, 78 had an end-user program All provided some kind of formal instruction, 39 made equipment available to end users, and 22 provided and administered passwords The reasons most cited for starting a program were staff interest and patron requests The two most frequently taught systems were NLM/MEDLINE and BRS/Colleague In general, respondents felt positive about the programs and planned to continue them The most frequently mentioned problem was need for more equipment

Information management through integration of distributed resources.

Abstract: Duke University Medical Center conducted a strategic planning process focused on information management needs beginning in 1983 and ending in 1985. That effort concluded that the institution was ready to establish an Integrated Academic Information Management System (IAIMS). A model was proposed in which information management was to be achieved through integrated distributed resources. The elements of the IAIMS model are ongoing policy development and planning; communications; an electronic library or resource inventory; coordination of the development or selection of the end-user function; user support; and ongoing evaluation. This model is being tested to determine its effectiveness in meeting the administrative, patient care, research, and educational needs of a basic science department and a clinical science department at Duke University.

The information needs of health care professionals and consumers in developing countries

Abstract: The health information needs of health care professionals and consumers in less-developed countries, although somewhat similar to those of their U.S. counterparts, have a number of unique differences. Health care professionals in developing countries are more diverse in their backgrounds, training, experience, and work settings. These differences, combined with cultural variables, a lack of resources and trained information professionals, contribute to the complexity of health information delivery. Consumers in developing countries, due to a lower literacy rate and a higher rate of commercial health information, face different problems when attempting to make health-related decisions.

An introduction to independent learning skills for incoming medical students.

Abstract: A partnership was initiated between educators of the College of Medicine and the McGoogan Library at the University of Nebraska Medical Center to establish a new educational component for incoming medical students The objective was to encourage the development of the students' independent information seeking skills A three-day seminar was introduced in which the process of seeking information was emphasized rather than the final product Cooperative development of the seminar resulted in a fresh approach to educating medical students at the College of Medicine and the emergence of an ongoing instructional link between the library faculty and educators in the College of Medicine

The economics of academic health sciences libraries: cost recovery in the era of big science.

Abstract: With launching of Sputnik by the Soviet Union in the late 1950s, science and technology became a high priority in the United States. During the two decades since, health sciences libraries have experienced changes in almost all aspects of their operations. Additionally, recent developments in medical care and in medical education have had major influences on the mission of health science libraries. In the unending struggle to keep up with new technologies and services, libraries have had to support increasing demands while they receive a decreasing share of the health care dollar. This paper explores the economic challenges faced by academic health sciences libraries and suggests measures for augmenting traditional sources of funding. The development of marketing efforts, institutional memberships, and fee-based services by the Louis Calder Memorial Library, University of Miami School of Medicine, is presented as a case study.

IAIMS development at Harvard Medical School

Abstract: The long-range goal of this IAIMS development project is to achieve an Integrated Academic Information Management System for the Harvard Medical School, the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, and Harvard's affiliated institutions and their respective libraries. An "opportunistic, incremental" approach to planning has been devised. The projects selected for the initial phase are to implement an increasingly powerful electronic communications network, to encourage the use of a variety of bibliographic and information access techniques, and to begin an ambitious program of faculty and student education in computer science and its applications to medical education, medical care, and research. In addition, we will explore means to promote better collaboration among the separate computer science units in the various schools and hospitals. We believe that our planning approach will have relevance to other educational institutions where lack of strong central organizational control prevents a "top-down" approach to planning.

Is there an optimal bibliographic software product for end users

Abstract: Personal bibliographic database software is one of many products being marketed to researchers. A review of the literature reflects a growing interest in using this software in office settings. Five bibliographic database software products are compared and eight important attributes are identified. We report experience in user training and in providing support by offering discounts on software sold through the library to patrons.

The IAIMS project of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists: using information technology to improve the health care of women.

Abstract: The mission of the ACOG IAIMS project is to identify the core of knowledge necessary for the practice of obstetrics and gynecology, structure it and put it in electronic form, integrate it into a national ob-gyn information network, prepare ACOG members to use it, and disseminate this core of knowledge to members in appropriate forms. This mission will be accomplished through four project objectives: educational programs on computers and information use; definition of a prototype ob-gyn knowledge base; automated access to ACOG and NAACOG membership services; and integration of ACOG IAIMS activities with other organizations. The ACOG IAIMS model phase project is a model for the role of a national specialty society in meeting the information needs of its members and for the integration of national specialty IAIMS programs with locally-developed programs.

Monograph support provided by the National Library of Medicine and its regional medical libraries in the medical behavioral sciences.

Abstract: The National Library of Medicine's (NLM) monographic resources in the medical behavioral sciences (MBS) were examined to assess NLM's ability to support the needs of researchers writing in this area. A sample of 239 representative monographs derived from citations in MBS-related articles published in 61 journals in 1981 were evaluated. These monographs were limited to works published between 1978 and 1981, inclusive. The subject distribution of the sample included fourteen of the twenty-one main classes in the LC classification, although BF (psychology), H (social sciences), and R (medicine) constituted 80.3% of the sample. The study revealed that NLM held 48.5% of the sample. The holdings of ten research medical libraries, including six of the seven regional medical libraries, were also evaluated in order to gauge NLM's ability to support that element of the medical library network. The holding rates of these libraries ranged widely (9.6% to 36%), although NLM was found to have far more extensive holdings overall, and when assessed against classes BF, H, and R. Overall, NLM could have supplied from 28.8% to 44.5% of the monographs not held by the medical libraries. In only a few cases were the ten medical libraries able to provide access to monographs not held by NLM. The findings of the study indicate that, regardless of NLM's indication of support to the MBS area, the holdings of more general research and academic libraries are essential to support the monograph needs of MBS researchers.

Selective Medical Library on Microfiche. An international experiment supported by the Rockefeller Foundation.

Abstract: The Selective Medical Library on Microfiche (SMLM) project is designed to improve access to the world's significant biomedical literature in developing countries' medical school libraries through the provision of a first-rate, low-cost core collection of journals. One hundred and five journals representing thirty-six biomedical specialties were selected using a method designed specifically for SMLM. The journals are provided on microfiche because of its relative low cost, durability, easy reproduction, and rapid delivery by air mail. SMLMs have been established at test and demonstration sites in four medical schools in Egypt, Indonesia, Mexico, and Colombia. SMLMs are delivered as turnkey systems consisting of the microfiche collection, a reader-printer, four fiche readers, necessary furniture, and promotional and training materials. The project involves extensive evaluation.

Semantically assisted medical bibliographic retrieval: an experimental computer system.

Abstract: An experimental computer-based bibliographic retrieval system has been implemented to explore how semantic (conceptual) relationships between MeSH terms might assist the retrieval process. To construct the experimental system's database, lists of abstracts were produced using MEDLINE. Each list contained papers discussing a specified pair of terms. Each abstract was then analyzed to determine the specific relationship(s) between the two terms discussed in that paper. The project then explored how these semantic relationships could be incorporated into the computer to enhance bibliographic retrieval.

The marketing audit: a new perspective on library services and products.

Abstract: A marketing audit enables a library to look at audiences, services, and products with a structured approach. The audit can be used to assess operations and to provide a framework for ongoing decision making, evaluation, and long-range planning. An approach to the audit process is presented and its application is demonstrated in a case study featuring the American Hospital Association Resource Center.

Designing Instruction for Library Users; a Practical Guide

Abstract: Spend your time even for only few minutes to read a book. Reading a book will never reduce and waste your time to be useless. Reading, for some people become a need that is to do every day such as spending time for eating. Now, what about you? Do you like to read a book? Now, we will show you a new book enPDFd designing instruction for library users a practical guide that can be a new way to explore the knowledge. When reading this book, you can get one thing to always remember in every reading time, even step by step.

University of Cincinnati Medical Center: integrating information.

Abstract: The University of Cincinnati Medical Center has combined five existing units into a new organization responsible for initiating an Integrated Academic Information Management System (IAIMS). This new organization, Medical Center Information and Communications, was reorganized into nine departments, which now provide a variety of information services. Ultimate goals for IAIMS include a patient-centered database, a decision-support system, and a knowledge network. The IAIMS prototype, currently under development for the University of Cincinnati Hospital's Internal Medicine Service, consists of components representative of the IAIMS model's ultimate goals. A major premise of this IAIMS effort is that it is patient-centered.

University Libraries in Transition.

Abstract: Will reading habit influence your life? Many say yes. Reading university libraries in transition is a good habit; you can develop this habit to be such interesting way. Yeah, reading habit will not only make you have any favourite activity. It will be one of guidance of your life. When reading has become a habit, you will not make it as disturbing activities or as boring activity. You can gain many benefits and importances of reading.