A Call for Research Mentors

By Aidy Silva-Ortiz, MSLIS.

Are you new to writing a research poster or paper? Unsure of whether the library program you’ve created could be conveyed into a journal article or poster presentation? Are you adept at conducting research and crafting papers or posters? Maybe even interested in sharing your knowledge with other librarians?

Whichever one you answered “yes” to, we’re looking for you! Whether you are new to the area of library research or you’re a seasoned library professional, the SC/MLA Research Committee is looking for active SC/MLA members to participate in the Research Mentors program.

Mentors: If you have written a research paper or poster and/or presented your findings, consider offering your skills, knowledge, and experience to a librarian seeking to publish for the first time.

Mentees: If you have an idea in mind that you believe could be a future research paper or poster, or just have questions about the process, let a mentor help you bring those ideas to life through constructive feedback and support.

In addition, the Research Committee is especially interested in boosting participation for mentors and mentees from hospital librarians who are interested presenting research in this unique field.

There are great benefits in partnering with each other to promote research in the field of medical librarianship as noted by Research Committee Chair, J. Michael Lindsay:

"One of the most powerful ways we can advance medical librarianship as a profession is through publishing and presentation, and in mentoring colleagues in their development of these skills.  The research mentorship program is a great way to advance these efforts."

So let’s “stimulate and facilitate research activities within Southern Chapter membership,” by your participation in the Research Mentors program. Connect and foster new relationships with your fellow librarians. Encourage one another to develop new research initiatives and if you’d like to further “investigate” this opportunity please contact Kay Hogan-Smith or Lisa Travis, or read more about the mentoring program.

Upcoming Learning Opportunities!

Spring has sprung so dust off your winter blues and learn something new! Below is a selected list of professional development offerings, but please share other learning opportunities in the comments. 
 
From Problem to Prevention: Evidence Based Public Health
Sponsor: National Network of Librarians of Medicine (NN/LM)
Format: Webinar
Date: March 22, 2017
Time: 12:00pm ET
More details, and registration: https://nnlm.gov/class/problem-prevention-evidence-based-public-health/6771

Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, & Health
Sponsor: National Network of Librarians of Medicine (NN/LM)
Format: Webinar
Date: March 27, 2017
Time: 2:00p-3:00pm ET
More details, and registration: https://nnlm.gov/class/augmented-reality-virtual-reality-health/7105

The Pieces of Systematic Review: What happens after the search?
Sponsor: Medical Library Association
Format: Webinar series
Date: April 6, 2017
Time: 11:00am-12:00pm ET
More details, and registration: https://nnlm.gov/scr/professional-development/systematic-review-series#


Over Diagnosis - Why Too Many Lab Tests are Bad for Your Health
Sponsor: SCR CONNECTions, presented by National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM), South Central Region
Format: Webinar
Date: April 12, 2017
Time: 11:00am-12:00pm ET
More details, and registration: https://nnlm.gov/class/over-diagnosis-why-too-many-lab-tests-are-bad-your-health/7209

PubMed® for Librarians: Using Evidence-Based Search Features
Sponsor: National Network of Librarians of Medicine (NN/LM)
Format: Webinar
Date: April 12, 2017
Time: 1:00-2:30pm ET
More details, and registration: https://nnlm.gov/class/PML-EBM/7047

Beyond the SEA: Drab to Fab: Making Conference Posters Pop!
Sponsor: National Network of Librarians of Medicine (NN/LM), Southeastern/Atlantic (SEA) Region
Format: Webinar
Date: April 19, 2017
Time: 12:00pm ET
More details, and registration: https://nnlm.gov/class/april-beyond-sea-monthly-web-seminar/6505

Navigating Without a Chart: Perspectives on the Basics of Acquisitions
Sponsor: Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL)
Format: Webinar
Date: April 20, 2017
Time: 2:00-3:00pm ET
More details, and registration: http://www.ala.org/acrl/basicsofacquisitions

Happy Learning!

Member Spotlight: Elena Azadbakht

Every month, we would like to take a moment to learn more about a fellow librarian and SC/MLA member.  For March, we talked to Elena Azadbakhat, who is the first librarian from Mississippi to step into the member spotlight and the second place winner of the SC/MLA 2016 Paper Research Awards for her presentation on humor in library instruction.

Name: Elena Azadbakht

SC/MLA Member Since: 2012

Officer/Committee Positions:

• Public Relations Committee (Co-Chair)
• Communications Committee
• Southern Salutations Subcommittee
• MLA Scholarship Jury

First Professional Position:

Library-wise, that would be my current position (although I did have several student jobs and internships).

Current Position:

Health and Nursing Librarian at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg.

Education (Include all Degrees):

I have a Bachelor of Arts in English literature with minors in German and International Studies and a Master of Science in Information with a specialization in Library and Information Science, both from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Favorite website, blog, or twitter feed:

This a tough question for me! I’m a big fan of Ask a Manager, and I’ve really gotten into podcasts lately – my current favorite is the Myth and Legends podcast, and I follow the show on social media.

How did you become interested in medical librarianship?

When I was in graduate school, I worked at the University of Michigan’s Taubman Health Sciences Library. I mostly did reference but got to help out with other projects as well.

Reminder: 2017 Health Literacy Summit and Scholarships!

The 2017 Health Literacy Summit is for anyone interested in health literacy and how the health care system can be changed to accommodate low health literacy patients. Speakers include: Dr. Cynthia Baur, Co-Author of the Ten Attributes of Health Literate Health Care Organizations and Dr. Rima Rudd, Co-Author of Health Literacy Environment of Hospitals and Health Centers. The Summit will also look at how we used the Health Literacy Environment of Hospitals and Health Centers to assess the University of Tennessee Medical Center’s health literacy attributes.

Are you interested in attending, but worried about cost? Scholarships are available! 

Scholarships to the 2017 Health Literacy Summit will be awarded to up to 5 librarians to cover the cost of registration (will not cover travel or housing). Preference will be given to:

• Librarians in a hospital setting.
• Librarians who are engaged in improving health literacy.
• Librarians who are serving the public through consumer & patient health information services.

To apply, submit a short 500 word essay describing the impact of low health literacy on patients and the role of medical librarian in reducing barriers to health information for people with low health literacy. Please send completed essays to Sandy Oelschlegel at SOelschl@utmck.edu by March 14, 2017.

Each recipient will be required to complete a short survey about their experience and what they learned from the Summit.

“Developed resources reported in this resource are supported by the National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH) under cooperative agreement number UG4LM012342 with the University of Maryland, Health Sciences and Human Services Library. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.”