All of Us Research Program 

The All of Us Research Program (All of Us) is based on precision medicine and aims to build one of the largest, most diverse datasets of its kind for health research, with one million or more volunteers nationwide who will sign up to share their information over time. Researchers will be able to access participants’ de-identified information for a variety of studies to learn more about the biological, behavioral and environmental factors that influence health and disease. Their findings may lead to more individualized health care approaches in the future.

The National Library of Medicine and All of Us are partnering to provide opportunities for NNLM Members to support health literacy programming, be a resource for library staff, and participate in All of Us activities within their communities. Visit the NNLM All of Us Community Engagement Network website at nnlm.gov/all-of-us to learn more about the partnership and about how you can get involved!

Celebrate National Nutrition Month!

The National Network of Libraries of Medicine has created resources to help libraries and community organizations commemorate March as National Nutrition Month, a National Health Observance to raise awareness about nutrition and healthy eating. The NNLM National Nutrition Month Program toolkit provides an introduction to this National Health Observance, related health information resources, tips for raising awareness about the observance, and program idea to get your library started. Library programs can also be expanded to think about address issues of community access to healthy food, family connection to different foods or ingredients, understanding of nutrition labels, and more. National Nutrition Month was created by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Their website also offers a National Nutrition Month Celebration Toolkit of information that can support library programming and awareness around this health topic. The toolkit provides program ideas, a powerpoint of information, and marketing messages. The United States Department of Agriculture also provides a handy toolkit to help celebrate National Nutrition Month. The USDA’s Choose My Plate Nutrition Month Toolkit  provides information about tips for healthy eating and brings together quizzes, guides, and games to educate different age groups about healthy eating habits. How is your library celebrating National Nutrition Month? What healthy eating programs do you have all year round? Contact your NNLM Regional Medical Library to see how the NNLM can support your healthy community efforts.

Stand Up for Health: Health and Wellness Services for Your Community for Public Libraries

Do your patrons have questions about health and wellness? Do they ask about medications or alternative treatments? Do they want to know about something they heard in the news or social media? Are you unsure where to find reliable and authoritative information to assist them? This class is specifically for public library staff to help increase knowledge and confidence in health information services. Over four weeks we will explore consumer health, health reference in a public library environment, free health resources for library staff and patrons, and developing health and wellness related programming. New content is released each week and consists of assigned readings, discussion with your fellow cohort members, and an assignment, all of which should take about three hours. Class runs from May 20 – June 16. Register here.

"How to Interact with People with Mental Health Conditions" Presentation The Avon Free Public Library and Avon Senior Center, in partnership with the Farmington Valley Health District and the Farmington Valley VNA, launched the first programs in their NNLM grant.  The topic, "How to interact with people with mental health conditions" was presented by Richard Fisher, LCSW, Director, DMHAS Office of Workforce Development, in two sessions: one for town of Avon employees, and one for the public.  Richard covered how to successfully interact with those with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, PTSD, borderline personality disorder, and those on the autism spectrum. The town of Avon training included 35 employees from all departments: the library, parks and recreation, the police department, social services, the senior center, and the town manager's office (including the town manager!).  The public session had 29 attendees who asked thoughtful questions and left with practical advice for their personal and professional lives.  The next program in this series is on Depression; full details are available here at www.avonctlibrary.info, then enter "Take Care of Yourself"

You’re Invited: New England Graphic Medicine ComicCon Are you interested in using Graphic Medicine as a health outreach tool, but don’t know where to start? Does your library have a Graphic Medicine collection, but you want ideas of how to expand and create outreach around these resources? Is your organization interested in creating Graphic Medicine to address a health need in your community? NNLM-NER is excited to announce the New England Graphic Medicine ComicCon taking place at the University of Massachusetts Medical School on Wednesday, April 10, 2019. Learn more and register here!

Know of a good book?

The NNLM Reading Club wants to hear from you! Perhaps you’ve read a good book – it can be any genre – that has a health thread that relates to one of our upcoming National Health Observances: e.g. LGBTQ Pride Month, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Day etc. If so, please submit it for consideration to the NNLM Reading Club. Share your ideas here.

Astronaut Health: Science Education Resources

Are you prepared for A Universe of Stories - the Collaborative Summer Library Program’s 2019 theme? Join us for the first online offering of NNLM’s Astronaut Health: Science Education Resources and get ready to spend this summer celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Apollo moon landing with your community and network partners! This free, one-hour webinar is offered on Tuesday, April 23 at 9:00am Pacific Time. Register.

The Journey Hits the Pacific Northwest Summer 2019!

The Journey, the All of Us Mobile Education and Enrollment Center is coming to a city near you in the Pacific Northwest this summer and is in need of host sites. For more information on this unique opportunity, contact Michele Spatz, NNLM All of Us Community Engagement Coordinator at mspatz@uw.edu. To listen to a recording of Hailey (ID) Public Library’s experience in hosting the Journey last fall, click here.

CHIS Spotlight – March Name:  Anne Reever Osborne Position:  Assistant Regional Director Institution: Buffalo River Regional Library, Tennessee State Library & Archives,   Office of Tennessee Secretary of State, Tre Hargett

A couple of sentences about your position and what you do.
My primary responsibility is to provide training, training opportunities, assistance, and advice in all areas of public library service to library staff in the Buffalo River Regional Library’s 9 -county service area in south central Tennessee.  Along with the regional director, I also provide guidance and advice to public library board members on advocacy, policies, programming, and budgeting.

Why did you want to receive Consumer Health Information Specialization (CHIS)?
Being in the unique position of working with several libraries and aware of the daily challenges library staff face every day, I knew that increasing my knowledge in health information resources could have a direct benefit in improving one small rural library’s ability to assist its patrons in finding good health information.    I am able to provide direct training to key library staff in my region and share this information with other state regional libraries through our network of training and in-service workshops for member libraries across the state. 

How have you used what you learned in NNLM CHIS course(s) in your work?
In January 2019 I provided a Stand Up for Health workshop to library staff from 12 of the 14 libraries served by Buffalo River Regional Library.  Those who attended this workshop have begun taking steps to improve their collection resources, explored the online resources available through NLM and the NIH, and brainstormed ideas for health-related programming and partnerships.  Materials used in the workshop were pulled from the Stand Up for Health course I took at the ARSL [Association for Rural and Small Libraries] pre-conference in Springfield, IL.  I have been asked to present similar workshops on health literacy and consumer health information resources at other Tennessee regional libraries in the next fiscal year.  

Why do you feel providing health information is important to your work/community?
There is so much information easily available out there that one can become overwhelmed.  It can also be difficult to determine what is accurate and reliable information. The library is often the community center that citizens rely on for assistance in navigating this sea of information.  Many Tennessee libraries do not employ degreed librarians and rely on the regional library to provide training on relevant topics.  By reaching out and providing this training and assistance to libraries I am able to support their work to improve their collection of health information and better assist their patrons with finding understandable and relevant health information from good resources.    

Any additional tips or advice you have for someone interested in taking classes to achieve CHIS? 
Taking classes to achieve your CHIS not only benefits your patrons but also benefits you personally.  Empower yourself to be a better health information consumer and advocate for your health and the health of your community. Engage your health providers in the conversation and seek ways to partner with them and offer programming and resources to make your community a healthy place to live and thrive. 

Upcoming NNLM Classes

Climate Change and Community Health in Rural Alaska: This PNR Rendezvous session provides an overview of climate change in rural Alaska, the impacts on the environment and observed health effects. The presentation includes specific community examples, and also explores some examples of adaptations that are being applied in Alaska through the tribal health system. Effects of climate change on health in general will also be addressed. The session will be recorded March 20 at 2:00pm MT. (1 Medical Library Association CE) Registration is encouraged

Stand Up for Health: Health and Wellness Services for Your Community for Public Libraries:  Do your patrons have questions about health and wellness? Do they ask about medications or alternative treatments? Are they asking about something they heard in the news or social media? Are you unsure where to find reliable and authoritative information to assist them? This class is specifically for public library staff to help increase knowledge and confidence in health information services. Over four weeks we will explore consumer health, health reference in a public library environment, free health resources for library staff and patrons, and developing health and wellness related programming. New content is released each week and consists of assigned readings, discussion with your fellow cohort members, and an assignment, all of which should take about three hours. Class runs from May 20 – June 16. (12 Medical Library Association CE, qualifies for Consumer Health Information Specialization level 1) Register

NNLM Resource Picks: ToxTutor: NNLM Resource Picks is a collaborative, bimonthly, webcast series featuring the National Library of Medicine resources to increase awareness of these resources as well as encourage their integration by libraries and other organizations to more fully serve their colleagues and communities. Experts from the National Library of Medicine will present about ToxTutor, a self-paced tutorial covering key principles of toxicology for users of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) chemical and toxicology databases. This is an excellent resource to recommend to high school students interested in this area of health. The basic principles of toxicology described in ToxTutor are similar to those taught in university programs and are well described in toxicology literature. A certificate of completion is provided for those who finish the tutorial but requires registration to receive it. March 27 at 1:00pm MT. This session will be recorded. (1 Medical Library Association CE) Registration is encouraged