Thursday, March 29, 2018

PubMed Labs - a test site for future PubMed features

I was adding PubMed's mobile site to a device today and ran across something interesting. 

I hadn't heard of PubMed Labs before. What is is you ask?
  • "PubMed Labs is a test site where we are experimenting with new features and tools that eventually may be incorporated in PubMed, in their current or a revised form based on the input we receive. Please try the site and let us know what you think." 
  • Highlights include a new search algorithm, mobile friendly design, and important points from article abstracts.
  • Additional features are added monthly.



Monday, March 26, 2018

Chartomas, gossypibomas, and textilomas - oh my!

Our hospital Quality department asked for a search on retained sponges/gauze after pacemaker implantation. It was a really interesting search to work on, but for me the best part was finding a new bunch of "oma" words that I hadn't heard before. 

I bet you have others to add to the list. Share which "omas" you've run across in your research. 

Chartoma = "a malignant and metastasizing disease immortalised by being cut and pasted into every note by the sheer key strokes of “CTRL+C” on our computer keyboard." - from Hospital Authority Convention 2017

Gossypibomam, textiloma: "gossypiboma, also called textiloma or cottonoid, refers to a foreign object, such as a mass of cotton matrix or a sponge, that is left behind in a body cavity during an operation. It is an uncommon surgical complication." - from Radiopaedia




Friday, March 23, 2018

WHSLA elections - VOTE today!




WHSLA OFFICER ELECTIONS FOR 2018
VOTING NOW OPEN THROUGH 3-30-2018


The ballot for WHSLA 2018 Elections has been emailed and the voting is open until March 30, 2018.  If you did not receive the email or you are having technical difficulties, please contact Michele Matucheski, WHSLA President, Michele.Matucheski@ascension.org

Milwaukee's cryptosporidium outbreak - 25 years ago

1993 saw a massive outbreak of a tiny parasite, Cryptosporidium, that sickened 400,000 Milwaukeeans. For those living in Milwaukee at the time, it probably doesn't seem like 25 years have gone by. 

Milwaukee Public Library is remembering this pivotal event with a program on Saturday, April 7 from 2-3 pm at Central Library (800 W. Wisconsin Ave, Milwaukee). Former health commissioner Paul Nannis will be on hand to talk about it. 

Vicki Budzisz who worked at St. Joseph's Hospital in Milwaukee at the time, told me they did lots and lots of literature searches about this at the time. I can just imagine!



Tuesday, March 20, 2018

WHSLA Spotlight - Michele Matucheski with Ascension Wisconsin Library Services in Oshkosh, WI


This month’s Spotlight focuses on our 2018 WHSLA President, Michele Matucheski, MLIS, AHIP. 


Michele Matucheski is currently a medical librarian for Ascension Wisconsin, based at Ascension Mercy Hospital in Oshkosh, WI.   She previously worked for Affinity Health System and Ministry Health Care before the most recent merger with Ascension.  Not quite a solo Librarian through those years, out of necessity, Michele has learned  to wear just about all hats in a hospital / health system  library environment from research, web mistress and information architecture,  contract negotiation, end user training, marketing library services, cataloging, and archives.    

Since 2009, she has been working with the Sisters who founded Mercy Hospital on an oral history project to record their memories and life work with The Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother.  This has been a very purposeful and satisfying project that reminds me why I do what I do as a Librarian.  One of the interviews is available at The Stories of the Sisters.   This interview is with Sr. Frieda Mohnl, who survived WWII and Kristallnacht, The Night of Broken Glass.  Sr. Frieda was a pioneer in social work and hospital case management. 
Before coming to work at Mercy, Michele’s first professional library job was for Middleton Health Sciences Library at UW-Madison as a Reference Librarian who also did User Education and Outreach.    While still in Library School, Michele worked as a Medical Library Technician at St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison.  This was a perfect “lab” to compliment the theory and philosophical base of library school. 

Michele has been a WHSLA Member since 1997 when she attended her first WHSLA Conference.  Through the years, she has held various positions in WHSLA, including a previous term as WHSLA President in 2005, Chair of Professional Development, Fox Valley Area Representative, guest WHSLA Blogger, WISDOM Chat Presenter, Annual Meeting Planning Committees, and more. 

She currently holds positions with The Fox River Area Library Consortium (FRVALC) as web mistress, Continuing Education Chair, and Archivist.
In 2017, he presented a paper at MLA in Seattle, co-written with Kellee Selden on Library-Friendly Contract Language.    She is a distinguished member of The Academy of Health Information Professionals (AHIP). 

Michele grew up in the country of north central Wisconsin, outside of Antigo.  She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from UW-Madison in African Literature & Languages, later earning her MLIS degree from UW-SLIS in Madison. 

In her home life, she enjoys “making stuff” from quilting to photography to texture and surface design, hand-dying fabric, weaving, spinning, and fiber arts.  This creative life is tracked on her blog, Sweet Leaf Notebook. 

“What Medical Librarians do on Vacation.”    One of her favorite places to travel is Scotland.  Last summer, she visited The Surgeons Museum in Edinburgh, fascinated with the history of Medicine and the pathology specimens on display there.



Thursday, March 15, 2018

Slow TV - when was the last time you did nothing?

Have you heard of slow TV? Seven hours of a train ride (see below), eight hours of a building a fire,  eighteen hours of fishing, and nine hours of knitting. Norway has started a new trend that millions of Norwegians have watched. I'm a fan, too. 

Need to slow down? Need to relax? Slow TV might not be for you, but it's certainly not the only way to take a moment and breathe deeply. TED Radio Hour had a recent episode on slowing down highlighting creativity, writing letters by hand, and slow moving art. 


Tuesday, March 13, 2018

John Shaw Billings - founder of Index Medicus and director of the Library of the Surgeon General's Office (now NLM)

The National Library of Medicine has an amazing and impressive history, but I didn't know until recently that it has only been called NLM since 1956. One of it's most the most influential individuals in the 19th century was John Shaw Billings. 


  • "THE MEDICAL LIBRARIAN AND BIBLIOGRAPHER The gravitation of John Billings to books was as inevitable and as certain as any law of nature. It was equally certain that, given access to books, he would know their contents, use them, and introduce others to their solace and help. Detailed to the Surgeon General's Office and finding no library, he made one. That he and no one else was founder of the national medical library needs no discussion after reading the following letter, printed in The Medical Letter..."

Friday, March 9, 2018

Pay your WHSLA dues via PayPal!

WHSLA now has a PayPal option for paying your annual $20 membership dues. It's easier than ever to renew! Visit http://www.whsla.org/join-whsla to join today or renew your membership for 2018. 

What are the benefits of joining WHSLA? I'm glad you asked.
  • Eligibility for CE grants ($500 each)
  • Weekly blog
  • Networking with other Wisconsin health science librarians (priceless!)
  • Selected MLA webinars free of charge


    Monday, March 5, 2018

    Disaster Health Information- how can librarians play a role?


    Did you know that the Greater Midwest Region (GMR) has a Disaster Health Information Coordinators Working Group?  The purpose of this Working Group is to provide assistance to librarians in preparing for, and responding to, disasters or localized emergencies.

    As the Disaster Information Coordinator for Wisconsin I am a member of this Working Group. 

    The GMR Preparedness and Response website provides an online collection of resources and tools relevant to disaster and emergency planning.  On the page you will be able to access the Charter of the Working Group, listings of state and federal emergency management agencies, and other links to disaster specific information.

    This past summer I completed the Disaster Information Specialization Program offered by the Medical Library Association.  I encourage all WHSLA members to take this training to be better prepared in assisting your organization and community should disaster strike.  Upon completion, participants receive a certificate of acknowledgment.  MLA contact hours earned through the specialization may also be used for MLA's Academy of Health Information Professionals.

    Robert Koehler
    Meriter-UnityPoint Health
    Medical Library
    202 S. Park St.
    Madison, WI 53715
    (608)417-6234  FAX (608)417-6007