The National Journal, popular in policy circles, has been running a series on the public’s distrust of institutions.  On Thursday they posted an article on “Why We Trust Doctors.”  The article reports, “At its core, medicine is a personal business.  Even as health care has become more technological (surgical robots, electronic medical records) and physicians have become more squeezed for time, nearly every medical encounter involves a face-to-face interaction between a doctor and a patient…Pollsters and scholars of medical ethics say that this personal interaction is a key to doctor-patient trust.”

The article also noted, “A doctor is rarely seen as the agent of a big institution or, like a member of Congress, as a well-liked but distant individual.  Your doctor is the person who sits in a room with you and helps to solve your problems…The structure of medicine may also account for some of the lingering trust. The insurance system places an intermediary between care and payment, which makes it harder for patients to see doctors as profiteers”:  http://nationaljournal.com/features/restoration-calls/why-we-trust-doctors-20120419?page=1.

Recognizing a pressing need for data management education in the sciences, the Lamar Soutter Library at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and the George C. Gordon Library at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) have collaborated on an IMLS National Leadership Planning Grant, “Planning a Data Management Curriculum  and Requirements for a Collaborative Repository,” to develop frameworks for a case based data management curriculum for science, health sciences, and engineering students at undergraduate and graduate levels, and to identify user needs for repository software for storing data sets.

The purpose of this grant has been to develop:

• a flexible, case based curriculum that teaches data management best practices to students enrolled in a broad range of scientific disciplines
• an evaluation of user requirements for open source software for storing data generated by student research projects

The libraries have worked with faculty, curriculum, evaluation, and instructional design consultants to develop Frameworks for a Data Management Curriculum, a modular case-based approach for data management instruction. Included in these frameworks are lesson plans for seven course modules, real life research cases, readings, assignments, a simplified data management plan, a prototype of developed content for one module, and assessment questions and answers.  The modular design of the curriculum allows faculty to pick specific course module(s) that are relevant to their courses.   The curriculum could be delivered by faculty or librarians in a variety of ways:  face-to-face classes, as self-paced online modules, or a hybrid format.

The Research Computing and Academic Support Group at WPI conducted testing of three open source software programs to evaluate user requirements for storing data.  A summary of the testing process and a matrix of the results of the software testing are available on the project website below the heading “Project Deliverables.”

For further information, contact Donna Kafel, Project Coordinator at donna.kafel@umassmed.edu.

MAR is in the process of reviewing and updating the contents of our membership files. So we want you all to know that it may be several weeks before we’re able to send new certificates out to all our members. We thank you for your patience. If you have any questions, please contact our Network and Advocacy Coordinator, Michelle Burda:  mburda@pitt.edu.

We are pleased to announce that MAR is now fully staffed.  We would like to take this opportunity to introduce our team.

• Barbara A. Epstein, HSLS Director, is responsible for overall implementation of the contract, and will lead planning and implementation of the Regional Medical Library for the Middle Atlantic Region.

• Renae Barger, Executive Director, is responsible for leadership, development, administration and evaluation of MAR programs.  Renae serves as a liaison to the National Library of Medicine, other Regional Medical Libraries and the Network members.

• Tristan Lucchetti, Administrator, will manage the budget, as well as monitor and track expenditures for subcontracts and awards.

• Michelle Burda, Network and Advocacy Coordinator, will plan Network member programs, with an emphasis on advocacy and changing roles for the information professional; coordinate outreach activities to hospital librarians; and manage the Region’s Membership and DOCLINE program.

• Lydia Collins, Consumer Health Coordinator, will have lead responsibility for developing, coordinating, and implementing consumer health information programs and providing outreach to public libraries and consumer groups, including soldiers, veterans and their families, senior citizens, caregivers, K-12 schools, and community-based and faith-based organizations.

• Kate Flewelling, Outreach Coordinator, will develop outreach programs to health professionals, with emphasis on services to unaffiliated health professionals, minority health professionals, public health workers, and mental health professionals.

• Melissa (Missy) Harvey, Technology and Communication Coordinator, will identify and evaluate technologies for MAR programs and develop a communication strategy to ensure that Network members and others in the region are informed about MAR activities, award opportunities and other initiatives.  Missy will also provide support for academic librarians within the MAR.

American Medical News, published by the AMA, has posted their most intriguing medical facts of 2011.  They also included a link to last year’s edition:

• http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/site/facts11.htm
• http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/site/facts10.htm

Calling on MAR members to bring their expertise to volunteer and serve on the MAR Regional Advisory Committee or a Special Advisory Group

MAR is forming its Regional Advisory Committee (RAC) and four Special Advisory Groups (SAGs):

• Outreach to Health Professionals & Public Health Workers
• Consumer Health
• Hospital Libraries
• Resource & Academic Libraries

Now is your chance to help shape MAR programming and showcase your expertise.  To volunteer, complete our online application form (http://nnlm.gov/mar/about/volunteer.html) by January 22, 2012.

One in-person meeting will be scheduled before April 30th to introduce members.  Virtual meetings will occur at least every quarter.

In JAAPA’s “Ask a Librarian” this month, topics that include how to evaluate the results of evidence-based literature searches, as well as use of the Evidence Pyramid for categorizing results:  http://bit.ly/vSHbZG.

Free registration is required to access JAAPA’s columns and articles, and you may choose Institution/Library as a profession.

This month’s topics in JAAPA’s “Ask a Librarian” column are the differences between a systematic review and a review article.  As well as, how to differentiate between an electronic medical record and an electronic health record (including a reference to Nikki Dettmar’s class on EHRs):  http://bit.ly/pEQNyK.

Free registration is required to access JAAPA’s columns and articles, and you may choose Institution/Library as a profession.

We are pleased to announce that funding opportunities are now available for MAR Network members.  Please visit the Funding section of our website and apply for all Express Awards by November 18!

As the east coast prepares for Hurricane Irene, we want to remind users of the following resources:

The NN/LM Emergency Preparedness & Response Toolkit is an excellent source of information on preparing a disaster plan for your library, provides current information on disasters (including updates on Irene), and information on how to obtain assistance. See http://nnlm.gov/ep/

If your library is closing ahead of the storm, please set your Out of Office message in DOCLINE to prevent new requests from routing to your library. Go to Institutions, Update. Navigate to the Out of Office tab, and enter dates. If your return is uncertain, you can leave that blank. You can enter an active date in the Out of Office window upon your return. The Regional Medical Libraries are standing by for any requests, and will want to know of any problems that might arise during the storm. You can reach your RML through the Contact Us link in DOCLINE or by calling 1-800-338-7657. Canadian libraries can call CISTI at 1-800-668-1222.

For personal and family preparation, see the Ready.gov site http://www.ready.gov/america/index.html