Author Archives: alisha764

• iMedicalApps — Mobile Medical App Reviews & Commentary – A publication by medical professionals

  • Because

• Why Big Oil May Be Afraid of Bicycles : TreeHugger

• House Built From Shipping Containers is High Tech Chic : TreeHugger

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Free Today!!

Today at 12 EST the NN/LM SE/A will present Beyond the SEA: The Changing Hospital Library Environment: New Roles for Librarians presented by Sybil Bullock, MLIS, EdS.  

I am curious to hear Sybil Bullock’s comments and suggestions on the subject. I have been working on a few things behind the scenes in preparation for responding to the Medlibs-L sad state of the hospital discussion.

I have suggestions, comments, and yes some criticism but before I post I have been talking to several other medlibs, researching online, & waiting to hear this presentation.

So join me in a few minutes to hear about the changing roles for hospital librarians. If you cannot make it that’s ok. I will post a follow-up here with comments. Look for my response to the Medlibs-L discussion very soon…

Forgot the link!

• Happtique to create a certification program for mobile healthcare apps

  Wahoo!! Way2go @krafy w/publishing on #iMedicalApps #medlibs (note I may have missed previous articles u pub)

  tags: medlibs mobile

• Starbucks secret menu

  tags: coffee recipes Starbucks

• Home – SEAGuides at National Network of Libraries of Medicine, SE/A Region

  tags: governement nnlm sea libguides

• Home | AHRQ Effective Health Care Program

  Compare to PubmedHealth. Why do we need this information in 2 places???

  tags: AHRQ governement quality Effectiveness PubmedHealth

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

T(h)reed Years

Yesterday marked the 3 year anniversary of this blogs first post: I am a tree.

During this time the blog and I have both experienced growing pains but it’s been a fun, challenging and educational ride. I no longer try to post everyday (did I ever really do that? Nah), or week. I post when I have something to add to the discussion, and I post for me because I enjoy blogging.

I have seen many librarian and especially medical librarian blogs come and go. Some people stop blogging due to time restraints or lack of drive. As a solo hospital librarian I can completely understand the limited time and energy. I mean heck I didn’t even post about the anniversary of this blog on the exact date, then again it has been a hectic week. I do all my blogging from home. Often when I leave work at 6, 7, or even as late as 8 I do not want to go home and get on the computer to blog. Who does after a 10-12 hour work day?

But I do post when I have something to contribute. Many have asked me why I bother. Why do I put in extra time at work, online, etc. The answer is simple… this is my career, and I enjoy what I do and I am willing & know that successful careers require putting in extra hours.

Three years ago I received some great advice from my colleagues online– that it doesn’t matter how often you post or are online but that you have an online presence showing you are interested in and contributing to the field.

This advice, and this blog has directly or indirectly lead to publishing 2 articles, chairing a SCMLA committee, presentations, committee appointments, and the opportunity to network with wonderful colleagues online.

So I pass on the advice I received three years ago when I started in the field. Start a professional blog, join Twitter, comment on others blogs, participate in discussions online, at least set-up LinkedIn, Google Profile or something else so people who google you will find something.

Think no one is googling you? Think again. I recently had a discussion with other medlibs who work on committees about the difficulty of picking new committee members. When you have 10+ people to choose from you rely first on the qualifications submitted on the committee form (have you been filling those out? Don’t leave them blank!), and then you Google people. Why? Well you want to make sure the people you pick are right for the position. By the way, this applies to job applications too.

So what happens when you Google yourself? If you don’t like what you see then it is up to you to change it. Just like it is up to Hospital Librarians to change their future (more about that next week).

I appreciate everyone who reads my posts and especially to those who comment. If you want to hear more about projects I am working on or the trials and tribulations of being a hospital librarian let me know in the comments.

Thank you to all of my fabulous readers, followers and commenters for helping making it three great years! Lets all keep participating in the virtual conversation.

If you could see me now I am doing a happy dance in my office because of an email I just received.

I was accepted to the Fall Session of the National Library of Medicine 2012 Fellowship program in Biomedical Informatics (Fall) at the Marine Biological Laboratory!

From the website:

This week-long survey course is designed to familiarize individuals with the application of computer technologies and information science in biomedicine and health science. Through a combination of lectures and hands-on computer exercises, participants will be introduced to the conceptual and technical components of biomedical informatics. The conceptual components will include principles of database design, human-computer interfaces, medical terminologies and coding systems, medical decision analysis methods, clinical information systems architectures, and methods for measuring costs and benefits in health care systems. The technical components will include use of the Internet for biomedical applications, current and emerging wide area network technologies, use of literature and molecular sequence databases, and systems for telemedicine. Evening workshops will include hands-on project development to give students the opportunity to bring their own expertise to bear and apply the lessons learned in class to a relevant informatics application.

Taught by a nationally known faculty, the course will prepare the student to become actively involved in making informed decisions about computer-based tools in his/her organizational environment, and improve the student’s own computer skills.

I am excited and humbled to be given this fantastic opportunity. Particularly I am interested in the Clinical Research Informatics, Infobuttons, CPOE, Clinical Decision Support, … ok the entire program! It will be very beneficial to me considering my work lately with informatics.

Of course I will blog about it all here and post on Twitter to share with others. I will also post some prep work prior to attending.

I am ecstatic to be accepted to the program and eventually join the alumni ranks with Nikki, Michelle, Emily, Max, Heather, and many others!

If you have any suggestions on attending please let me know in the comments.

If you are attending the 2012 Fall session please contact me so we can meet up!

I do not think I have said it enough– I love Prezi!

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http://prezi.com/bin/preziloader.swf

Library Introduction on Prezi

I presented this to a group in the ER and was asked to present again to 2 other groups. I find it fun and great to use different presentation tools (as long as they are appropriate for the presentation) and introduce other new technology in the presentation. I have done this for the last year and instead of me asking to present I have been approached by several people to present. I haven’t added anything too complex and it hasn’t required that much time. Any simple app will do even items like IFTTT, Diigo, etc. are great things to present.

So take a look at your presentations and see if there is a way to spruce them up a bit. Maybe just a few minutes about a new app would help. And it doesn’t have to be a medical app. It can be any app that would help busy professionals.

Recently I was asked by a library instructor to be an interviewee for a 101 Library class.  The class consist of a mixture of students and not all of the students are going into the library field. Also, I am one of two medical librarians on the list. Most of the interviewee list consist of public librarians. I hope I can not only present the overall library field well but particularly the medical library field.

Here is the assignment:

Make an appointment to either meet with or have a phone conversation with one of the librarians on the appointment list. Up to two students are allowed per librarian and it is first come first serve. Conduct a 15 to 20 minute interview asking them about their work. Suggested questions include:

1. What do you do at X library?
2. Why did you choose to be a librarian?
3. If there was one thing you could promote about libraries in a Superbowl commercial, what would it be?

Once you are done write a 500-word essay about the interview, your impressions, and what you learned and what surprised you.

I am still trying to answer number 3 but here is what I have so far (sorry if I ramble):

1. What do you do at X library?
   A. A little bit of everything. I am the manager of a 3,000 square ft. medical library supporting three hospitals, a family practice residency program, pharmacy residency programs, nursing & medical students and several other health care professionals. As a solo hospital librarian I do it all– from checking in mail to budget, training, presenting, researching, maintaining the library website, licensing/ contracting library resources, managing the library, maintaining library computers & programs, filling article requests, cataloging, day-to-day duties, etc. I also have the additional task of coordinating the continuing medical education program for physicians, which includes drafting policies, coordinating events, ensuring compliance with our accrediting body, and basic day-to-day tasks.
With the government’s implementation of ARRA and HITECH I have been involved with several new projects including: working with clinical informatics team, leading order set development, helping with CPOE development, training employees on new Electronic Medical Record & bedside medication verification, and many other tasks. I couldn’t do all of this without a great team and support group at my institution and within my field. My days are never boring and my job description is constantly evolving.

2. Why did you choose to be a librarian?

I don’t know if I chose the library profession or if it chose me. The typical response to this question is “I love to read,” but for me it goes much further than just having a passion for reading. In the medical library field you spend more time researching, organizing data, and developing processes for implementing technology/trials/order sets/evidence based medicine/etc. At least this is my experience. There are others in the field who work solely with cataloging, or computers. Not only is the library field diverse with several sub fields but each of the sub fields have specialized areas.

For me the passion for research and providing quality information is what lead me to the library field.

How did I end up in a medical library? Well to be honest I didn’t plan it or even consider it until I was told about my current position. My husband was talking with a friend about my classes at Florida State University. The next week she emailed him stating the librarian at the hospital was leaving and told him that I should apply. I interviewed for the position with the Chief Medical Officer a week later and then was offered the job about two weeks after that. If my husband’s friend hadn’t told me about the position I am not sure I would have even looked at the hospital since I had no idea they had a library and since I was planning on working at a University as a liaison to the English Department.

Now I couldn’t see myself doing anything else. I come to work eager to provide quality research. My passion for research has evolved into a desire to analyzing, applying, and implementing information. I have also developed a passion (obsession) for technology and its application in the medical field. With my work with Clinical Informatics I have found another joy in reviewing processes and seeing the big picture while still mapping all of the minute details. The medical field is constantly evolving and librarians in this field must not only be able to adapt but also sometimes they must see & fill a need before it is visible.

3. If there was one thing you could promote about libraries in a Superbowl commercial, what would it be?

Well if I could write a commercial and had the funds to produce it, I would create a video on the message that libraries and librarians are not dying just evolving. Picture it: The scene opens with an elderly librarian in the stereo typical librarian outfit (you know cardigan, hair in a bun, big glasses, etc.) behind a desk stamping in books. The music changes to an upbeat song as an announcer says “Librarians are not going extinct, well maybe the stereo typical librarian is…instead librarians are evolving.” The scene morphs to a younger librarian carrying an iPad walking the hospital halls and interacting with physicians and nurses. The announcer says “librarians are now information specialists embedded within organizations helping people to navigate the chaotic information highway providing quality information when and where it’s needed most.”

These are just a few ideas I have to answer the questions and I am sure they will change or I will adlib some stuff.

But what do you think? What would your answers be to the questions above particularly #3? Is there something you would add?

I have a captive audience to present to with the possibility of changing their outlook about librarians so if you have any ideas please let me know in the comments below.

• Green, Healthy, & Safe Product Ratings & Reviews | GoodGuide

  I do not recommend this site. They do not take into account animal rights or other issues. Saw several products listed as #1 that have horrible animal & human right issues.

  tags: shopping Green

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Please put your paw up if you are a procrastinator. . .

Yes sometimes I procrastinate. I think most people have procrastinated at some point. Yet, then again somrtimes I just call it prioritizing items to the last possible minute.

As I said in my 2011 year end review sometimes you just need to have some time to reflect

As Dean said, taking time to reflect and being quiet can result in some of our most important work. 

The reflection time helps me to make sure I have everything together and have thought through the entire process. It is a necessary step many skip.

So why am I mentioning this besides it includes funny cats?

I have heard many librarians lamenting lately that they do not blog enough or are not doing this it didn’t respond soon enough to a request. I know I have been guilty of this several times recently.

Also many librarians are the kind of people who want to help and do not know how to say no. Even when it means they are procrastinating prioritizing everything to the last minute. When I first started my career I did this too. I signed up for every project at work I could to get my name and the library’s out there. I joined committees, started projects, worked consumer health fairs, etc. trying to find my niche.

Well I found it. I enjoy technology and its applications to healthcare, which includes medical informatics and social media. I also enjoy developing order sets, evidence bases medicine research, and knowledge management as my boss calls it (organizing information and honing processes. Now I am honing these skills and passions at work and with my other professional activities.

I have even accepted the fact that I will probably not post to this blog everyday and that’s ok. When I do post though it will be quality posts with new information. This all took me reflecting and evaluating my priorities and aligning these with my institution’s priorities. Something I have been saying all libraries need to do continuously.

Why? Well you either over book yourself requiring you to prioritize everything, which is mot good, or you do the opposite and reject great opportunities. Yes I have heard of libraries rejecting opportunities to get involved in a big project at their institution due to other commitments that aren’t as important to their institution. I have been drafting this discussion for a while and will post about it soon when I address the ‘sad state of a hospital library’ discussion.

I am sure many of you have seems the Medlib-l discussion along with Jerry Perry’s post and Michelle Kraft’s follow-up. No I didn’t miss it. If you did then please take time to read the posts above. I haven’t posted about it yet because I am still reflecting. I will post about this soon from a front lines solo hospital librarian’s prospective who has been proactive at her institution and eagerly ready to help others jump in too.

Everyday I’m shuffling.

Ditch the retro– nows the time to be proactive.

Now for some Friday fun check out these procratinator’s online!

Google was dreaming of a white Christmas, and I was hoping Santa would bring back my old Google Reader. Then I was hoping it would be Google’s New Year Resolution to fix Google Reader… I’m not holding my breath anymore nor my criticism. Actually I wasn’t quiet at all about my displeasure with the changes that were made, it was clear I was not happy with Google:

I said in my tweets I would blog later about the issue, and it has been two months. Why the delay? I was holding out hope that Google would listen to the weblash and make some changes. Google Reader was not one of the apps shut down by Google but for many it might as well been.

If Google wanted to ‘fix’ a broken app then it should have started with Google Bookmarks, at least no one is using it so it wouldn’t have mattered if they screwed it up.

I just don’t understand why Google had to change Google Reader. After ignoring it for years, they decide to ‘shake things up.’ Yes I know Google Reader is a free tool, but the ramifications of these changes have financial impact for Google. For instance, not viewing items in Google Reader as often means I view & click on less Google ads. Not to mention the fact that after the change I was ready to ditch Google Reader, Chrome, and even my beloved Android phone.

So what got this librarian so irate?

Timing. I was planning on submitting this wonderful (ok maybe not earth shattering but good) paper proposal for the Medical Librarian Association’s Meeting this year… then came Larry Page’s, who was just prematurely named CEO of the year, changes ruining a great tool. I don’t know if it was actually Larry Page who initiated the Google Reader changes but whoever is trying to make Google into Apple and/or Facebook needs to be reminded that Google is NOT Apple or Facebook. Google is trying to sell not just a mobile phone platform and browser but email, reader, documents, applications, programs… it is different than selling an iPhone.

Steve Jobs said “A lot of times, people don’t know what they want until you show it to them.” Well Google has shown me the new Reader and I know for sure I do not want it. Stop looking at the facts and figures Page and listen to your users.

Google Reader is a curator of news and NOT a news source. Flipboard offers a much nicer experience for reading news. Even with Google Reader Play, I would rather use Flipboard or Zite or another third party app to view my Google Reader feeds.

What Google Reader offered was the ability to easily share items with notes, add notes to view later, follow other curators, create RSS feeds of items you tagged so you could port them into a newsletter, feed items in a controlled fashion to Twitter using dlvr.it, etc. Now Google is forcing us to share items through Google+. I am sorry Google but taking away Google Reader features will not get me to use Google+ any faster, in fact it will and has done the opposite.

Even Google Reader doesn’t want to share items using Google+

Yes you can find the Google Reader team on Twitter, get the RSS feed (you know RSS… what feeds Google Reader, but Google shut down the RSS feeds for folders and tags), but wait… something’s missing here. Oh yeah, where’s Google Reader on Google+? Don’t squint too hard, it’s not there.

The changes to Google Reader went far deeper than the simple interface change many users were complaining about. I am fine with Google adding white space, it’s what’s behind the white space that is causing issues. Fences. Many features no longer work or are just broken. Outcry has erupted across the globe with good reason. Google not only took away features but it did so without giving users the chance to save shared items or the list of followers/followed by. Data you curate is no longer your’s to do with as you please, Google dictates you use Google+– and data is no longer safe with Google since it can be deleted at anytime. This goes against Google’s big push for user’s ability to liberate their data. Heck, it goes against what any good company should do… ever.

Even the previous project manager for Google Reader agrees:

Google Reader Product Manager Brian Shih noted that the new Reader app is a “disaster.” ”it’s as if whoever made the update did so without ever actually using the product to, you know, read something.”

I agree. The additions were not vetted by people who actually use Google Reader… geeks. It is not something everyone uses. I have tried to get physicians to use Google Reader with no luck. Why? It takes time, and an understanding of RSS feeds. It is not difficult, but it is another task for busy physicians who do not want to take the time.

Since my physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals were not ready to devote time to RSS feeds I set-up another way to send them information. I would review items in Google Reader and tag items for different groups. So if I saw a good article on Statins affecting Diabetics then I would tag it to share with Family Practice and the Diabetes Educators. The tags then became their own RSS feeds that I could then load into a newsletter that was emailed to subscribers. I click a button in Google Reader and BAM, a weekly newsletter is automatically generated and emailed to lists of subscribers.

Well not anymore!

All of the work I did setting up literature alerts is gone. As a solo librarian I do not have time to create customized literature alerts by hand. I’ve spent hours looking for an alternative to Google Reader even exploring using a new browser, or even… gasp… moving to a MAC all because of the recent ‘updates’ or ‘downgrades’ to Google Reader.

I had not blogged about this since I was waiting to present it at MLA and then try to publish it soon… that ship sailed when Google broke the Feed URL’s of tags in Google Reader.

This is how Google Reader looked before:

And this is Google Reader now:

Notice the difference? Besides the addition of white space there are missing features.

A simple click of the button in the old Google Reader changes items from private to public. That click assigned tags and folders public pages which had public RSS feeds. This meant I had a public page for Diabetes news information that I could direct physician’s to, or load to the library website. I could even take the RSS feeds and create a newsletter.

Yes you can still grab the Feed URL of tags and folders by right clicking on the tag and then selecting “view details and statistics”:

Example 1:

Example 2:

Again, just a slight difference in the Feed URL makes all the difference in the world to this solo librarian who is trying to curate over 600 feeds a month and create multiple custom literature alerts without exerting too much effort.

In example #1 the word “public” is missing from the Feed URL. Why? Because before Google made the change I had not clicked to make “libraryshare” “public” on the settings page. This means the feed is still private and there is nothing I can do about it.

This is where people need to dig deeper to see how Google has created a fence of white space. By forcing users to share in Google+ and breaking the Feed URL’s of tags Google Reader no longer works with many third party apps and it is difficult to share items. Google is walling itself off and forcing users to use only Google products and to control the data even the data curated by its users.

Feeling a sense of loss of control? I know I am.