Chapter makes trip to Tripler
Ten of us - some survivors of the long HLA Conference weekend, some SLA members and a few students - enjoyed a tour of the library which serves doctors, nurses and other staff of Tripler Army Medical Center.
Why should you be a medical librarian? If you want to serve a specialized clientele, and have an interest in this subject, this may be a choice for you. Our tour leader and TAMCL managing librarian, Mabel Trafford, wants Health Sciences librarian Virginia "Ginny" Tanji and Hamilton Library's Science & Technology department head, Paul Wermager, to teach a UH LIS course in medical librarianship, as she feels it is an area of interest for LIS students.
Unlike most libraries, TAMCL is open 24 hours a day. Initially, there was concern over security. The collection is generally inventoried every three years. A 5 percent loss rate is acceptable, but TAMCL's loss rate has been only 1 percent. Access for the users of the library is more important than the negligible losses.
Nursing supervisor Lt. Col. Mary Hardy stressed that nurses' need for access to information from anywhere (and at any time) is key. Nurses need to learn where to find information, and to proactively seek it instead of waiting for information to come to them. She spoke briefly about the importance of Evidence Based Practice, in which the best outcomes are studied for best care.
Lt. Col. Hardy feels that nurses and librarians are regarded as professionals with a small "p," and both need to strive improve our image to professionals with a big "P." With Trafford's help, nurses are being taught to search and find information, and lecture series are now available online for them to study. A working relationship and communication between Trafford and Lt. Col. Hardy is crucial in getting the best books and journals for nurses.
TAMC library assistant Erlinda Tacadena talked about interlibrary loans. She processes 400 to 500 requests a month, and sends out books, chapters and articles in response to 200 to 300 requests from other institutions. Requests are made through DOCLINE and delivered via Ariel.
Dr. Denise Demers of the TAMC Pediatric Department expressed her gratitude to the public librarians among us. She and her family are frequent patrons of local public libraries. She emphasized that TAMC is a teaching institution. Students - ranging from high-school students from Waianae exploring health careers for the future, to medical students and nurses at all levels of educational experience (MSs, MBAs and PhDs), rely on the medical library for their studies. Dr. Demers feels that patients in teaching hospitals receive better care from residents.
TAMC librarian Walter Benavitz is a UH LIS graduate. He started his career in an Army Morale, Welfare and Recreation library, whose patrons are servicemen and their dependents as well as contract workers. His areas of responsibility include cataloging, collection development and troubleshooting.
Pervaiz Meer, Senior Information Research Analyst at the Pacific Disaster Management Information Network, Center of Excellence in Disaster Management & Humanitarian Assistance represents alternative librarianship. He is a UH LIS alumnus.
COE promotes dialog between military and non-governmental organizations. It is a "federally funded project given a mandate by the US Congress to improve the coordination and integration of the world's response to natural disasters, humanitarian crises and peace operations."
The Information Network is one of four areas under the COE. It produces informational reports that are freely accessible by anyone. Information is gathered from sources related to the events, like the Red Cross, related foreign embassies, the United Nations, individual governments, NGOs and the press. Who uses the reports? The staff of the Center itself, military units, NGOs, other governments and agencies involved in humanitarian and relief assistance.
You can subscribe to one or all reports by signing up here: http://pdmin.coe-dmha.org/apdr/index.cfm?action=list&reporttype
Mahalo to SLA Director Mabel Trafford for scheduling the tour, and for arranging the very engaging speakers.