Update from the National Library of Medicine, Division of Specialized Information Services
Submitted by Colette Hochstein, DMD, MLS (Colette@nlm.nih.gov), Division of Specialized Information Services, NLM
January 2009
Evaluation of Environmental Health Education Needs
The Outreach and Special Populations Branch (OOSP) of Specialized Information Services is conducting focus groups with elementary and middle school teachers to assess the requirements and need for an environmental health education Web portal. The assessment will help in developing a comprehensive Web portal of environmental health and toxicology resources for elementary, middle and high school students and teachers. The resource will include links to informational Web pages, educational games, videos, podcasts and Webcasts, and lessons plans. The portal will be organized to allow easy matching to national curriculum benchmarks. The portal will utilize existing NLM resources for children and adolescents, as well as vet resources developed by other governmental and educational institutions.
Enviro-Health Links: TVA Kingston Fossil Plant Coal Ash Spill, December 2008
On Dec. 22, 2008, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Kingston Fossil Plant’s retention pond failed, creating a tidal wave of water and fly ash which destroyed several homes and ruptured a major gas line in a neighborhood located adjacent to the plant in Harriman, Tenn. It is estimated that approximately 3.1 million cubic feet of fly ash and water were released on to land adjacent to the plant and into the nearby Clinch and Emory River. There is now concern about the potential effects of this spill on the quality of water, air and soil in the region.
From its extensive environmental health and toxicology resources, the National Library of Medicine (NLM) has compiled a Web page of links to chemical information on fly ash and medical journal articles on the ash’s possible human health effects, http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/enviro/coalashspill.html. These resources provide background information on fly ash, also known as coal ash, which is a by-product of burning coal in power plants to generate electricity.
Radiation Event Medical Management System (REMM)
The Radiation Event Medical Management System (REMM) can now be downloaded to mobile devices (Blackberry, Windows Mobile, Palm) with selected key files from the full online version. http://remm.nlm.gov
For Blackberry download, click on the following link from your Blackberry e-mail and follow the directions: http://remm.nlm.gov/mremm/blackberry/ota/mremm.jad
REMM is produced by the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, Office of Planning and Emergency Operations, in cooperation with the National Library of Medicine, Division of Specialized Information Services, with subject matter experts from the National Cancer Institute, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and many US and international consultants.
REMM provides:
- Guidance for health care providers, primarily physicians, about clinical diagnosis and treatment during mass casualty radiological/nuclear (rad/nuc) events.
- Just-in-time, evidence-based, usable information with sufficient background and context to make complex issues understandable to those without formal radiation medicine expertise.
- Web-based information that is also downloadable in advance, so that it would be available during an event if the internet is not accessible.
NLM Drug Information Portal
A new version of the National Library of Medicine Drug Information Portal was released in October. The portal now covers over 16,000 drugs. http://druginfo.nlm.nih.gov
The update includes:
1. Direct searching of drug categories, which are derived from the Medical Subject Heading (MeSH®) Pharmacological Action field http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/disted/mesh/paterms.html.
2. Name and category suggestions, to eliminate common spelling errors.
3. Phrase parser that assists users in finding drug names within phrases.
4. The addition of the MeSH notes, when available, to spell-checker results to make selection of a possible answer easier.
5. Searches retrieving multiple results now sorted by frequency of citation in PubMed®, from highest to lowest. This tends to show the most commonly used drugs first.
The Drug Information Portal is a free Web resource from the NLM that provides an informative, user friendly entry-way to current drug information for over 16,000 drugs. Links to sources span the breadth of NLM, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other government agencies. Current information regarding consumer health, clinical trials, AIDS–related drug information, MeSH pharmacological actions, PubMed biomedical literature, and physical properties and structure is easily retrieved by searching on a drug name. A varied selection of focused topics in medicine and drug–related information is also available from displayed subject headings.
ToxMystery
The NLM Specialized Information Services Division has collaborated with the Carnegie Science Center (www.CarnegieScienceCenter.org) in Pittsburgh to create a ToxMystery exhibit kiosk. The kiosk was installed in the “Exploration Station” exhibition on the Science Center's fourth floor in late 2008.
The exhibit is a touch-screen computer kiosk that allows visitors to explore the ToxMystery house's rooms and garage. The kiosk's bright green and yellow design attracts kids to play and learn about toxic substances that can lurk in the home. The project is part of SIS's investigation into ways of closing the information gap in environmental health resources for elementary school age children. ToxMystery kiosk blueprints will be available for use by other museums.
ToxMystery (http://toxmystery.nlm.nih.gov) is the National Library of Medicine's interactive learning site for children ages 7 to 10. With lively animations, surprising sound effects and lots of positive reinforcement, ToxMystery provides a fun, game-like experience, while teaching important lessons about potential environmental health hazards.
The Carnegie Science Center is an interactive science museum with some 300 hands-on exhibits in approximately 75,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space.
Class Opportunity: TOXNET® and Beyond
The TOXNET® and Beyond class covers using the National Library of Medicine's Environmental Health and Toxicology Portal. Classes will be held Wednesday, February 25, 2009 and Wednesday, March 11, 2009, 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. ET.
Feb. 25
National Library of Medicine
8600 Rockville Pike
Building 38A, 4th Floor Training Room (4S-412)
Bethesda, MD 20894
March 11
Folsom Lake College
Folsom Lake College Library
10 College Parkway
Folsom, CA 95630
This full-day class is designed to convey the basics of searching the NLM's TOXNET, a Web-based system of databases in the areas of toxicology, environmental health, and related subjects. Students learn the content and structure of files covering toxicology data, toxicology literature, toxic releases, and chemical searching and nomenclature. Among the databases highlighted are TOXLINE®, the Hazardous Substances Data Bank, the Integrated Risk Information System, the Toxic Release Inventory, and ChemIDplus. This class is for U.S. domestic searchers. There are no fees for training, but students must cover their own travel and lodging. Classes are held throughout the United States. The training schedule and other details are available from the National Training Center and Clearinghouse. http://nnlm.gov/ntcc
The TOXNET class is awarded 6 MLA continuing education credits.http://nnlm.gov/ntcc/classes/schedule.html#class5
Contact: Eva Daniels (800) 338-7657 (press 2); edaniels@nyam.org
Stay Updated!
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