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United States National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health

Fact Sheet
Outreach Programs

The National Library of Medicine has a broad mandate not only to collect and organize the literature of the health sciences and to provide information services, but also to "develop an outreach program aimed at... [and to] publicize the availability of [its] products and services...." An advisory panel on outreach, established by the NLM Board of Regents in 1988, recommended that NLM rebuild its partnership with the U.S. medical library network (the National Network of Libraries of Medicine® (NN/LM®)), redirect its grants program to emphasize outreach, and investigate how best to serve U.S. health information needs. In May 1999, the Library's Board of Regents passed a resolution calling for the NLM to serve the general public as well as the health professions.

Library Network

Outreach programs conducted by the NN/LM during 1991-1996 targeted health professionals that serve rural and inner city areas. In 2001, NLM awarded 5-year NN/LM contracts to the eight Regional Medical Libraries (RML's), that place special emphasis on outreach to health professionals and to the general public. NN/LM Outreach Coordinators travel around the regions demonstrating the user-friendly Web access to NLM's consumer health site, MedlinePlus, and to databases like MEDLINE®, for professional audiences. In 2000 the Library funded 53 electronic health information projects for consumers in 34 states, affecting rural, inner-city, and suburban areas. The purpose is to increase Internet access in a variety of settings, from middle schools, serving low income and educationally underserved students, to shopping malls and senior centers. These awards are stimulating medical libraries, local public libraries, and other organizations to work together to provide new electronic health information services for all citizens in a community. A key role in many of these projects is played by the RML's and member institutions of the NN/LM.

Extramural Support

NLM's Extramural Programs offers several types of grant assistance for outreach projects. Information Access Grants support online information access through the purchase of computer hardware and software in hospitals located in rural or inner city areas. Information Systems Grants are larger in scope and support or connect whole systems, including the library. In addition, NLM provides Internet Connection Grants to both single institutions and consortia to connect to the Internet

Underserved/Minority Populations

Health professionals serving minority populations have a special set of problems in accessing information. NLM has geared a variety of outreach initiatives to these communities in the belief that direct access to NLM's databases can help compensate for the absence of other health resources. Many outreach projects have a minority focus. For example:

NLM has collaborated with Meharry Medical College (Nashville, Tenn.) to develop and put in place an innovative outreach demonstration project for access to electronic information for health care practitioners, including family practice residents and their preceptors, who are located in professionally isolated settings.

Another initiative is aimed at strengthening the capacity of historically black colleges and universities to train medical and other health professionals in the use of toxicological, environmental, and occupational information resources developed at NLM. Some 80 institutions are participating and have received extensive training and free database access.

The Library has an Outreach for Native Americans Project in the Pacific Northwest conducted through the Regional Medical Library for that area. The project is connecting tribal educational and health facilities to the Internet and thus reducing the isolation from quality health information and health care of this vulnerable population.

Publicity

Publicity activities, such as exhibits and seminars at professional meetings, online demonstrations, and public service announcements, are carried out by the NLM.

More information about NLM's outreach program is available from:
Office of Communications and Public Liaison
National Library of Medicine
Bethesda, MD 20894
Telephone: 301-496-6308
Internet: publicinfo@nlm.nih.gov

Last updated: 25 September 2001
First published: 25 September 2001
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