Flu outbreaks—workplace and school safety—emergency preparedness and response—food safety. What do these things have in common? They are all public health issues.
Based at HSLS, the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, Middle Atlantic Region (NN/LM MAR) promotes the use of and access to reliable health information by public health workers in Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and New York. We are guided in this work by our Special Advisory Group on Outreach to Health Professionals and the Public Health Workforce. Members of the advisory group include Barb Folb, HSLS Public Health Informationist, and Maggie Potter, Associate Dean, Graduate School of Public Health at the University of Pittsburgh.
The National Library of Medicine (NLM) has a number of free information resources for the public health workforce. Those resources include Partners in Information Access for the Public Health Workforce, a collaboration of U.S. government agencies, public health organizations and health sciences libraries. A one-stop information resource, PHPartners.org provides links to health promotion resources, literature and guidelines, health data tools and statistics, grants and funding, and training. A highlight of PHPartners.org is structured PubMed searches for Healthy People 2020 topic areas. NLM also has resources for environmental health and toxicology and disaster information.
Services that NN/LM MAR provides to public health organizations and departments include:
- Free online and in-person training on reliable health information resources, often in collaboration with HRSA-funded Public Health Training Centers
- Exhibiting and speaking at professional conferences
- Free educational materials for order and download on NLM resources
- Free consultation on health information outreach planning and evaluation
- Funding opportunities for health information outreach
Free membership in NN/LM MAR is required for some services.
If you know of a public health organization that would benefit from the services of NN/LM MAR, or if you would like us to exhibit or speak at your next conference, contact Outreach Coordinator Kate Flewelling at 412-624-3336 or send an e-mail to flewkate@pitt.edu.
~ Kate Flewelling, Outreach Coordinator