Health Care Information for the Underserved
The question of medical care effectively addressing the needs of underserved
communities was the focus of the three presentations for this session. The
moderator was Peggy Jones of Pritzker Research Library, Children's Memorial
Hospital, and current chair of the Medical Section of the Biomedical and Life
Sciences Division of SLA. Howard J. Fuller, Stanford University Medical Center,
opened the session. Mr. Fuller presented an epidemiological review of the
health issues of gays and lesbians in the US. He noted that because certain
stigmas exist, obstacles to the most effective care continue to proliferate.
These obstacles are the lack of awareness of health care professionals to
the health risks particular to this community and the lack of fully effective
patient/physician communications. Fuller closed his talk by sharing several
helpful resources and Web sites to visit for further information.
Mary Jo Dwyer, University of TExas Health Science Center at San Antonio Hospital,
reviewed the development of the Circuit Librarian Health Information Network
in TX. Via this established traveling librarian initiative, information professionals
provide standard reference, research and interlibrary loan services to medical
professionals, support and networking for librarians, and information support
and assistance to patients in underserved areas along the Texas/Mexico border.
Patti J. Patterson, Rural and Community Health, Texas Tech University, Health
Sciences Center, presented information on a telehealth and public health program
in place in west TX. She provided an overview of the health issues of the
region, some of the obstacles to providing effective care there, and reviewed
how technology could be used to help address these needs.
The session was sponsored by CISTI and Merck Research Labs.
Tally Ho: The Development of Retriever, an Integrated
Digital Library
The Independent Sector presented this session to a capacity audience.
Sponsored by SIRSI Corporation, the session covered the fine points of developing
and implementing an in-house digital library system. Suzanne Cole and Bruce
Compton, the chief librarian and archivist, respectively, at the Pew Charitable
Trusts in Philadelphia, explained their need for an internal integrated system
that would combine an online library catalog and a full-text search database.
They then detailed how the system, called Retriever, came into existence,
from setting priorities and organizing work groups for staff input to gathering
and classifying internal documents and selecting software. Ellen Wert, a program
director in the Trusts' Education Division, explained staff involvement and
gave insight into the user's point of view. Charlotte Olson from SIRSI Corporation
spoke about the vendor's contribution. A live display of the system was a
crowd-pleaser, from Retriever's position atop his doghouse on the home page
to the links for Hunt and Fetch, to search the catalog and the latter to actually
pull up the full text of a document. All agreed it was an informative and
enjoyable session that covered all the major points involved in installing
a successful digital system.
Digital Projects: Partnerships for Success
David Hendricks of the Bureau of the Census joined Jim Madigan, Nancy
Adam, and Mary Feldman of Stanley Associates/GCI Information Services, Inc.,
to describe successful digital projects of Census material.
The Census Library embarked on an ambitious program to digitize key census
publications and integrate the digital collections into an online catalog.
Working with contractor Stanley Associates/GCI Information Services, Inc.,
Census staff identified two important collections to digitize: the decennial
Census back to 1790 and Census Authors' Papers. A primary reason for this
initiative was the need for multi-user remote access as well as intranet access
by Census staff and other Commerce Dept. libraries, with a long-term goal
of public access through the internet.
Each decennial census was scanned into PDF format and linked to a catalog
entry. This project did not include the individual census forms or schedules.
Instead, the project focused on the statistical compendia for each census,
from 1790 to 1970.
Until now, the Census Authors' Papers collection could not be easily accessed
and was deteriorating. Representing decades of work by Bureau specialists,
the papers were not included in the library catalog and could only be used
by request during library hours. The papers were scanned into PDF format and
cataloged; for the first time, Bureau staff could search then read the work
of colleagues through the online catalog.
A key factor leading to the success of these digital projects was the partnership
between contract staff and Contracting Officer's Technical Representative
(COTR). Automation expertise provided by the contract staff and the subject
and historical expertise of the COTR created the successful digital project.
International Reception and Wine-Tasting
A sultry breeze wafted across the San Antonio Riverwalk Hotel's canopied
River Terrace as a festive crowd of more than 300 gathered to salute non-US
SLA attendees. Given the heat of the day and despite the proximity of the
Riverwalk itself, most of the guests gravitated to the air-conditioned indoor
venue. The reception was generously sponsored by Factiva, a Dow Jones and
Reuters company, and collectively hosted by members of the Social Science
Division, the European Chapter, and the International Relations Committee.
Annabel Colley, BBC Current Affairs Web Producer, received the European Special
Librarian of the Year Award from Clare Hart, CEO of Factiva. Donna Scheeder,
2000/2001 SLA President, presented Nancy Stewart, Library Director at The
Freedom Forum, with the International Special Librarians Day Award. Veronica
Kennard, Chair of the European Chapter, gave a few welcoming remarks before
introducing Clare Hart. Once again, 25 US Department of State US Embassies
Abroad Librarians from around the world attended.
The Texas wines sampled were: Fall Creek Vineyards -- Blush and Merlot; and
Llano Estacado Winery's Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Mineral water,
various cheeses, crackers, French baguettes, and whole fruit garnish were
also served.
One Dot Shopping: The Best International Business
Sites
The audience for this content-rich session overflowed the room, stretched
the time allotted, and exhausted the supply of handouts. How gratifying for
the four presenters, each of whom focused on a different world region to introduce
the best websites for finding international business information. Planned
and moderated by Ann R. Sweeney, Librarian and Webmaster of the European Union's
Delegation of the European Commission to the US, and Iris W. Anderson, Group
Leader of Information Delivery at the Joint World Bank-IMF Library, the session
was sponsored by the Social Science Division and the Business and Finance
Division. Financial support came from Ebsco Subscription Services. Here's
the "beef":
1. Iris W. Anderson presented highlights of the World Bank and International
Monetary Fund websites, focusing on finding country and regional information
and the easiest ways to find country statistics from these two institutions.
Special mention was made of two new initiatives of the World Bank: their Projects
Database and the Development Gateway, a major portal for development information.
To see the latter, go to http://www.developmentgateway.org
2. Ann R. Sweeney (current Chair-Elect of the Social Science Division) presented
best sites for finding European Union business information. She began with
the local EU delegation's comprehensive website and went on to show sites
for e-commerce, Euro Info Centres, Eurostat, and much more. Ann is planning
a session for next year's SLA conference on the final implementation phase
of the new Euro currency in Europe.
3. Ann Griffith, Business Researcher at Ernst & Young's Center for Business
Knowledge in Dallas, TX, presented the best business sites on Latin America.
The man site continues to be the Latin American
Network Information Center (LANIC) at the University of Texas, but she
also discovered other interesting sites that are less well known.
4. Tesse Santoro, Senior Account Executive at Dialog in New York City, presented
the best Asian and African websites for conducting business research. She
divided her presentation into Japanese, Asian, and African groupings. The
good news here was that there really is a lot of good information from and
about Africa. One of the best sites, however, remains the UN Economic Commission
for Africa at http://www.uneca.org
Annual Division Luncheon
Harry J. Middleton, Director of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum
in Austin, TX, was the featured speaker at the Annual Luncheon of the Social
Science Division. Mr. Middleton, who began his professional career as a wire
service reporter in New York City, later wrote and directed episodes of "The
March of Time" television show. During the Johnson Administration he
worked as a Staff Assistant to President Johnson, serving as a speech writer.
After Johnson's retirement in 1969, Mr. Middleton worked with both President
Johnson and his wife Lady Bird on their memoirs. director of the LBJ Library
and Museum since its opening, Mr. Middleton received the Presidential Rank
of Meritorious Executive in 1999 for making that Library a model for other
Presidential Libraries. Mr. Middleton retired on September 30, 2001.
Texas Monthly for August 2000 calls Mr. Middleton "the man who
saved LBJ," crediting his decision to release the audiotapes of President
Johnson's White House telephone calls with burnishing the former President's
damaged reputation. The audiotapes are regularly played on National Public
Radio and Mr. Middleton has appeared on both NPR and C-SPAN to introduce and
discuss the tapes.
During his presentation, Mr. Middleton played nine excerpted telephone conversations,
giving with each one his own insightful interpretation of the events and the
persons recorded. We heard with pleasure the dulcet toes of Illinois Senator
Everett Dirksen and the Southern drawl of Georgia Senator Richard Russell
receiving the famous "LBJ Treatment" to persuade them to support
the President on some issues of national importance. We heard Johnson charm
Washington Post Chair Katharine Graham and intimidate Harlem Congressman Adam
Clayton Powell. Perhaps most poignant was a telephone conversation between
Johnson and his National Security Advisor when the President expressed his
strong fears that any escalation of US involvement in Vietnam would be a grave
mistake. History would perhaps have been quite different if Lyndon Johnson
had followed his instinct and personal preference, than if, as happened, he
followed the advice of his Cabinet.
Getting
Your Point Across: Using Lobbying Techniques to Get What You Need
Before a packed room, moderator Marc Yacker, Director of Government Relations
for ELCON, opened this session with an entertaining primer on lobbying. Gloria
Meraz, Director of Communications for the Texas Library Association, provided
tips for getting what you need, pointing out first that libraries are a good
cause; we deserve what we need. She provided a plan of action. (1) Position
yourself by understanding the climate of your organization, knowing what arguments
will resonate with decisionmakers, and developing a consensus -- get people
to buy into your cause. Then (2) set priorities: focus on two or three things
("For this budget cycle, here's what I need."). Be/appear reasonable
so that, even if there is a conflict, you're still in the process. Also develop
contacts and allies; keep records of outcomes, not just statistics; keep open
lines of communications, always be visible. Work from the assumption that
your boss is trying to do the right thing. Schedule a formal meeting to show
that you're serious and then stay on topic, be succinct, and follow up.
Attorney Jim Cousar, chair of Austin Public Libraries for the Future, shared
his winning tactics for getting his point across. First, develop a consensus.
Organize your advocates and learn to speak in unison. It's important to know
who your funding sources are so you need someone on your team who understands
the mechanics of where the money is. When developing your budget, don't just
take into account your baseline plus inflation; plan for your baseline + inflation
+ population (user) growth. Next, develop a few simple, appealing themes;
get a technology presentation lined up; have someone on your team who has
contacts with the big guys; and then be sure to have someone who is a good,
effective speaker.
Roberta Shaffer, Dean of the University of Texas School of Library and Information
Science, presented the last, very entertaining section of the session. She
outlined the steps to successful lobbying efforts: consciousness-raising,
friend-raising, hell-raising, consensus building, expectation building, results.
She gave us a list of dos and don'ts, including DO: be sincere,
know everyone's position, know all the arguments, be prepared to compromise,
be factually prepared, anticipate questions, use right communication tool
for your audience. And DON'T: make presentations too long,
wear red or pink, use jargon, forget your friends, miss a clue (check out
desks, photos, books, etc.), forget your friends, get discouraged.
Archiving E-mail and Electronic Resources
Dan Jansen, a program manager at the National Archives, presented
an overview of the Electronic Records Archives initiative launched by the
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). The agency has considered
the problem of electronic archives since the first electronic records were
received over 30 years ago. During this time, one terrabyte of data was collected;
now the agency must expect to handle at least that same amount yearly.
The problems of electronic archiving on such a large scale are substantial.
NARA must contend with a diversity of file formats, the complexity of the
information (records that cannot be expressed two-dimentionally such as decision
support systems, interactive web pages, or GIS), volume (both the number of
files and bytes), and the variety of systems used to create the electronic
records. A successful program of electronic archiving needs to overcome technology
obsolescence while maintaining authenticity.
Through the Electronic Records Archives program (ERA), NARA is collaborating
with government and corporate partners to explore different strategies for
preserving electronic records. One goal of the ERA is to devise a methodology
that is scalable, so that government, corporate, and private agencies of all
kinds can benefit. One approach under consideration and research is the creation
of Persistent Object Preservation (POP). Working with partners (governmental,
academic, and corporate) at the San Diego Supercomputer Center, ERA is testing
a variety of record types and sizes to determine the feasibility of POP in
handling email, databases, images, and geospatial data. By identifying the
properties of classes of objects and then expressing those properties in formal
models, the records can be encapsulated in metadata and made independent of
proprietary hardware and software (which is subject to obsolescence). The
possibilities of POP were demonstrated by a Usenet email project in which
one million messages were collected, stored, and made available for access
in just one day.
Together with research partners, ERA is pursuing a variety of research initiatives,
including: Open Archival Information System (OAIS) Reference Model with NASA,
Distributed Object Computation Testbed (DOCT) with the Patent and Trademark
Office, National Partnership for Advanced Computational Infrastructure (NPACI)
with the National Science Foundation, and the Presidential Electronic Records
Processing Operational System (PERPOS) with the ARmy and Georgia Tech Research
Institute. On an international basis, ERA participates in the International
Research on Permanent Authentic Records in Electronic Systems (InterPARES),
a union of seven international, interdisciplinary research teams and ten national
archives.
For information about the ERA program, see http://www.nara.gov/era
Around the World in 80 Minutes: Social Science Research
from an International Perspective
Speakers from three disciplines in the social sciences gave presentations
about international research in the areas of business/economics, psychology,
and law. Professor Lalatendu Misra of the University of TX at San Antonio,
discussed international economics and business resources, and provided several
online sources during his presentation. Professor Manuel Ramirez of the University
of TX at Austin spoke about resources in international and multicultural psychology,
and recommended some book titles for further research. Roberta Shaffer, the
new Executive Director of SL, shared her thoughts and experience in the area
of international law. Bobbi Weaver, reference librarian at California Western
School of Law, served as moderator for this program.