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FAQ: Resources for International Librarians, Health Professionals and Researchers in Developing Countries

Question: Where can I find training, document delivery and other useful resources for health and information professionals in developing countries?

Answer: You can find resources for health and information professionals in developing countries at:

NLM® Databases & Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) | NLM Training and Courses - including PubMed® & Toxicology Resources | Getting Journal Articles, Including Free Full Text | Resources for Setting Up a Library/Resource Center | Librarian Career Training and Library Groups | Fogarty International Center & Global Health Grants | Tours of NLM

NLM Databases & Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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Training and Courses - including PubMed & Toxicology Resources

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Getting Journal Articles, Including Free Full Text

You can use filters to limit a PubMed search to citations with links to free full text. Information about NCBI filters is at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/?term=filters%20AND%20helppubmed[book].

Or, you can enter a command in the search box. Include AND free full text [sb] to limit search retrieval.
Example: aids[mh] AND free full text [sb]

In the Summary display, citations with links to free full text are indicated as "Free Article" or "Free PMC Article". Some providers may require you to register to access free full text. For additional information see FAQ: Finding Full Text Articles - US and International Resources
at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/getting_fulltext_articles.html.

  • The National Library of Medicine (NLM) is the library of last resort for materials that are not available from local or regional libraries. NLM does not supply materials directly to individuals, but will to other libraries. We encourage you to contact local university or medical libraries to ask about services. Please refer to FAQ: Document Delivery/ILL - Delivery Methods - international requests at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/ill_del_meth_intl.html.
  • NLM has bilateral agreements with public institutions in foreign countries that serve as International MEDLARS® (MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System) Centers. These Centers:
    • assist health professionals in accessing NLM databases;
    • offer search training;
    • provide document delivery; and
    • perform other functions as biomedical information resource centers.

    More information about these centers is at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/factsheets/intlmedlars.html.

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Resources for Setting up a Library / Resource Center

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Librarian Career Training and Library Groups

Librarian Career Training

The path to becoming a medical librarian is often easier with help from professional library associations. These resources may be helpful:

  • The NLM Library Associate Fellowship Program for librarians who completed a master's degree
    http://www.nlm.nih.gov/about/training/associate/index.html
  • The American Library Association Directory of ALA-Accredited Master's Programs in Library and Information Studies
    Some offer online learning courses.
    http://www.ala.org/accreditedprograms/directory
  • The Medical Library Association (MLA) career descriptions in the United States
    http://www.mlanet.org/career/career_explore.html
  • MLA Health Sciences Librarianship Courses in ALA-Accredited School Programs
    http://www.mlanet.org/education/libschools/index.html
  • MLA Cunningham Memorial International Fellowship for a health sciences librarian from a country outside the U.S. or Canada
    http://ics.mlanet.org/fellowship.htm
  • Travel grants to attend professional conferences may be available from library associations.
  • Financial aid to study in the U.S. or other countries
    • Information may be available from government and organizations in your country.
    • Foreign embassies may have cultural and educational attachés who provide information about financial aid or
      who can provide access to directories of educational grants and fellowships.
    • Some schools may provide financial aid.

Library Groups

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Fogarty International Center & Global Health Grants

The Fogarty International Center at http://www.fic.nih.gov/Pages/Default.aspx, part of the National Institutes of Health, publishes a directory of funding opportunities at http://www.fic.nih.gov/Funding/Pages/default.aspx for global health research. It also includes information about the NIH funding process and where to find non-NIH funding, including travel support. You can also read a weekly newsletter about Fogarty funding opportunities at http://www.fic.nih.gov/Funding/News/Pages/default.aspx.

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Tours of NLM

The NLM Visitors Center in the lobby of the Lister Hill Center (NIH Building 38A) is open weekdays 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. except Federal holidays. We offer tours for orientation to the National Library of Medicine, print information and interactive computer displays. See http://www.nlm.nih.gov/about/vcenter.html for more information.

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http://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/international.html