ERIC Will Continue, Although Reduced

On April 23, 2025, I posted RIP ERIC.    There has since been an update to the story.  It looks like ERIC will continue with a reduced budget.

Johanna Jacobsen Kiciman of The UW Tacoma Library recently posted this article to their blog:

Changes to the ERIC Database

Posted on April 23, 2025 by Johanna Jacobsen Kiciman

Beginning April 24th, 2025, ERIC (Education Resources Information Center) – a key indexing database for education and the social sciences that is government hosted – will see a significant reduction in its content moving forward. Information about this reduction is hard to come by and communication around what will happen has been opaque; this post reflects knowledge available the day of publication.

How does this impact you?

• Starting 4/24/25, there will be less new content added to ERIC.
• If ERIC remains unstaffed, current content may degrade because it will no longer be maintained (think: broken links, keyword issues, etc.) 
• You will have less access to grey literature ...

• 4/28 update: An article in The Hechinger Report notes a contract has been signed which slashes the ERIC budget in half but keeps it running for now.

Read more ...

See Also:  New Guidance on ERIC Database Availability (from IL State University)

"While we do not currently believe that ERIC will go offline, a team engaged in government information rescue initiatives has created ERICA, a backup catalog of 500,000 files from ERIC uploaded as open-access PDFs to the Wayback Machine. "

Substack and Other Sources for Following Health Policy and News

by WHSLA Member, Diane Giebink-Skoglind

Being an informed citizen requires work to find quality information and identify misinformation
and disinformation. Librarians are well-qualified to do this work. We in this field know that the
quality of healthcare information is critical to the work medical librarians do. In today’s
environment some of the sources we have relied on have been impacted in numerous ways
which necessitates looking for experts who can explain, refute, elaborate or otherwise
determine impacts in this chaotic situation which now exists following the monumental
changes to federal resources.

Personally, I've been watching what is happening with HHS, CDC, FDA, NIH, etc. And have
searched for sources of information that can help shed light on what is happening. In the
process I have found commendable people and organizations working diligently to fill in gaps
and illuminate concerns.

Because some legacy news sources have been compromised for a variety of reasons, 

they have been skirting or ignoring some healthcare issues or tempering their comments. 

As an end-around this deficit, I have been using several tools and resources to search for more information.

Here is a far-from-complete synopsis of what I have found. These are resources I use and can
comment on. I am interested in hearing what others use too. Previous WHSLA blog entries
have listed some of these options, so please excuse any duplication.

Substack

My favorite tool is the Substack app which contains experts that are using this resource to
disseminate information that may not be covered in the legacy press and to elaborate on
information that other resources either can’t or won’t provide adequate ink space to. A lot of
the influencers on this resource have multiple accounts on other platforms such as, 

“X”, TikTok, Spotify, YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.). I won’t speak to these 

platforms and their content other than to say, “you do you,” and choose 

your resource per your preference!

Caveat emptor: Concerning Substack, as anyone can use and create on this resource, 

there is a lot of questionable posting on this platform to be aware of. 

Some of it makes for interesting reading, but it’s always good to know what other groups 

disseminate so to fact check and formulate a response.

This knowledge came into good use sooner than I expected. Recently at my local pharmacy, I
had an interesting conversation with a former co-worker that is very conservative and was
repeating some misinformation relating to NIH cuts. I simply asked him where he thought the
Keytruda that is prolonging his life came from, and how cuts to research impact the drugs we
benefit from now and impact future formulations. He considered my example and
acknowledged he hadn’t thought of that.

Health Specific Substack Examples (a limited list)

• Inside Medicine Substack

• McCormick MD Substack

• Paul Offitt Substack

• Your Local Epidemiologist Substack

• Dr Rubin Substack

MORE:

• Top Health & Wellness Substacks

Below, is a screenshot of different payment options and subscription plans using Dr. Rubin’s
site as an example:

When one is in a Substack account, the option, below, is very helpful and the links lead to past
postings and other resources. You can also set up alerts.





Independent News Resources on the Substack App

Following are a couple of independent news resources. Personally, I watch MEIDAS+ and Jim
Acosta which can lead to more shows and recommendations. Of note, a recent addition to the
Meidas+ list of options is Meidas Health which is hosted by Dr. Vin Gupta.



Beyond Substack

In addition to Substack, I monitor/watch/scan various websites of news organizations. 

Note:  Some of these are only accessible via a subscription.  

Some subscribed content may be available through Badgerlink.  

Some are more censored than others.

My Favorites:

• STAT
• Politico /     Politico Health Care 
• Axios   /    Axios Health
• Vox
• The Associated Press
• The Guardian
• NPR
• PBS News Hour
• The New Republic
• WIRED
• NBC
• MSNBC
• CBS
• CBS Healthwatch 
• ABC
• Slate
• ProPublica
• The New York Times
• The Atlantic

One of the features I appreciate the most with these sites is the ability to sign up for free alerts
to key you into something that may be of interest. In addition, daily newsletters, provide a
synopsis of the news either early in the day or after hours, both aids are helpful and lead to
more information and other resources. Moreover, just exploring a site’s menu and clicking on
various features provide a plethora of options. Serendipity works!

I pay for full access subscriptions for the NYT and The Atlantic.  

Everything else and Substack, I use the unpaid option. In Substack this option allows some access, 

but limits some interactions and access to some features, so I can't comment virtually on the articles displayed; 

however, I can read and 'like' and download or forward. Some websites allow free access, 

with or without sign up for a free account, depending on the resource; others, are behind a firewall, 

but can provide hints of where else to look.

Also, check your public library; through my local public library and the Libby app I can
access WIRED, the Guardian Weekly, and The New Yorker.

It is impossible to watch and/or take it all in (nor is it good for mental health) so I pick and
choose and try to be that informed citizen and take solace in resources I find in my wandering
like this.

Medical Journal Wokeness or when it rains it pours

 In another "fun" news story of the day, the peer-reviewed journal Chest received a letter from the Department of Justice questioning its publication policies. 

Forbes Journal article link: “Trump’s DOJ Is Going After Medical Journals For Being Too Woke”

https://www.forbes.com/sites/amyfeldman/2025/04/18/trumps-doj-is-going-after-medical-journals-for-being-too-woke/ 

Quote from the letter courtesy of the Washington Post (via Fred King on medlib-L) ‘“It has been brought to my attention that more and more journals like CHEST journal are conceding that they are partisans in various scientific debates,” interim U.S. attorney Ed Martin wrote.’

So RIP ERIC and keep an eye on the news for department of justice contact with medical journals. 

I'm heading the MLA in Pittsburgh next week. I'm sure that this will be a topic of many a conversation and discussion there. 

R.I.P ERIC

ERIC stands for Education Resources Information Center and it is a curated online public library of 2.1 million educational documents that is funded and managed by the U.S. Education Department. The collection dates back to the 1960s and used to be circulated to libraries through microfiche. Today it’s an open access website where anyone can search, read online or download material. Neither a library card nor login credentials are needed. It is used by an estimated 14 million people a year. If you’re familiar with MedLine or PubMed for health care studies, this is the equivalent for the field of education.     --Jill Barshay

I will admit that I have not used ERIC much in my professional life, but I know people who depend on it. Way back when I was a student assistant at the Reference Desk in college, part of my job was to re-shelve the ERIC microfiche that the Education students used. Since then of course, all of it has moved to an online format (Thankfully!), but I do realize that 14 million people worldwide depend on it, and that it has become a treasure trove for the education literature that will not be easily replaced.

Fellow Health Science Librarian, R. Kubilius posted on the MLA Collection Development Listserv:

First the announcement was that the ERIC database was going to be reduced by 45%. A group was keeping track of the journals that were no longer going to be indexed: The ACRL Evidence Synthesis Methods Interest Group provided a summary of changes to the ERIC (educational) database that go into effect on April 24, 2025: Upcoming changes to ERIC from an evidence synthesis perspective | Evidence Synthesis Methods Interest Group NOW this announcement (one in various sources); Major Education Resource Set to Shut Down this week: The federal Department of Education maintains an open access database of more than 2 million documents dating back to the 1960s. It will cease operating Wednesday due to DOGE cuts. The ERIC database will cease as today due to cancellation of funding.   Alternate resources include H.W. Wilson’s Education Abstracts, and, of course, the various databases that would cover health education topics, though they wouldn’t index all educational journals… Google and AI simply cannot replace this curated ERIC collection. In WI, we have a handful of other education databases available through Badgerlink.  ERIC was part of the offerings there.  Although not substitutes for ERIC, alternative education databases on Badgerlink include the following:  Ebsco Education Resources Education Source Education Administration Abstracts Library & Info science Source Professional Development Collection Teacher Reference Center It's unclear if ERIC will continue to be available with holdings up until the April 23, 2025 cutoff date, or if they will completely pull the plug on it?  In other words, will Ebsco be able to keep it going with what it contains up until today?  Will DOGE change it's mind if enough people protest? Will Badgerlink continue if it loses funding from the Dept. of Education? What will we do when DOGE comes after PubMed?

The ALA Library Bill of Rights

It's been a long time since I was in Library School and had that very important, stimulating and thought-provoking Intellectual Freedom class with Diane Hopkins at SLIS.   I've only been confronted with censorship in my health science library 2x in the last 25 years.   It does come up, but less often than in public or school libraries.   Still, intellectual freedom (and DEI) remains an important foundation in my professional practice.  It may be time to make this part of our official policies.  

With the current political environment and rampant book bans in schools, public and now even military libraries, I thought it would be a good idea to review the American Library Association's Bill of Rights:

The ALA Library Bill of Rights

The American Library Association affirms that all libraries are forums for information and ideas, and that the following basic policies should guide their services.

I. Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.

II. Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.

III. Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.

IV. Libraries should cooperate with all persons and groups concerned with resisting abridgment of free expression and free access to ideas.

V. A person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views.

VI. Libraries which make exhibit spaces and meeting rooms available to the public they serve should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use.

VII. All people, regardless of origin, age, background, or views, possess a right to privacy and confidentiality in their library use. Libraries should advocate for, educate about, and protect people’s privacy, safeguarding all library use data, including personally identifiable information.

Adopted June 19, 1939, by the ALA Council; amended October 14, 1944; June 18, 1948; February 2, 1961; June 27, 1967; January 23, 1980; January 29, 2019.

Inclusion of “age” reaffirmed January 23, 1996.

Although the Articles of the Library Bill of Rights are unambiguous statements of basic principles that should govern the service of all libraries, questions do arise concerning application of these principles to specific library practices. See the documents designated by the Intellectual Freedom Committee as Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights.

 

Check out the My Favorite Tool presentations from the Technology in Education Caucus!

The Technology in Education Caucus (TEC) of MLA hosted their popular "My Favorite Tool" event on April 15th, 2025. During this annual event librarians give brief demos of tools that have helped them with task management, research, and teaching.

This event's roster included presentations on:

• Inciteful
• Goblin Tools
• Microsoft Planner
• Excel for generating PubMed proximity searches (presented by yours truly 😊)
• BBedit
• Visual Studio Code
• Research Rabbit
• Morphic Toolbar

 Check out a recording of the presentations on the TEC's OSF page. For additional information and previous years' presentation rosters, you can visit their home page.

Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone has a great day!

Current Travel Considerations

Guest post by WHSLA Member, Diane Giebink-Skoglind

INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL

Because I travel a lot, I’ve been asked what it's like to do so under the current
administration, with its focus on borders and border crossings. Here are a few of my
impressions.

Regarding international travel, I didn't have any issues while traveling internationally recently.
My advantage, for the time being at least, is that I am an American citizen, not a Visa or Green
Card Holder. Given the current chaos and corruption in Washington, DC, changes are likely.

Below is a screen shot from an April 9, 2025 article in the New York Times that illustrates what rights different groups have upon entry into the USA:

Graphic from here.

Cell Phones and Other Electronics

Border Control has the right to take your phone and download information from it. People are
electing to travel without computers, iPads, personal cell phones. Some are using burner
phones to cross borders. Clean up your phones if needed! However, this may be a situation
where you are damned-if-you-do and damned-if-you-don’t. Most experts recommend some
clean up but not overdoing it because a wiped phone is suspicious as seen by border officials
and can lead to undesired scrutiny.

Below is what Google turned up when I searched “wipe phone before crossing border”:

While completely wiping your phone before crossing a border might seem like a privacy protection, it can also raise suspicion. Border agents may question why a device is empty, leading to unnecessary scrutiny. Instead, selectively deleting sensitive data and turning off the internet and cellular connections is a more practical approach. [1, 2, 3]

Here is a more detailed explanation: [1, 2]

• Wiping your phone might raise suspicion: Border agents may find it unusual if a phone has no data, potentially leading to further questioning and scrutiny. [1, 2]

• Selective deletion is a better approach: Instead of wiping your entire device, selectively delete sensitive files like photos, emails, or chats that you wouldn't want viewed by border officials. [2]

• Limit cloud access: Log out of sensitive apps and disable automatic login to cloud accounts before traveling. [4]

• Disable internet and cellular connections: Turning off internet and cellular data prevents agents from accessing data stored remotely in the cloud. [3, 5]

• Consider using a VPN: A Virtual Private Network can enhance online privacy and make it harder for agents to track your activity, according to a blog post from Reddy Neumann Brown PC. [4]

• Keep your phone off: This is another layer of protection, as the keys that unlock your data are not loaded while the phone is off. [6]

• Inspect your device upon return: If your phone is seized and returned, check for any unauthorized software or changes, according to a post on Reddit. [4]

Generative AI is experimental.

[1] https://apnews.com/article/internet-privacy-smartphones-travel-e0a3146ae7966ea0e4157dbfae1f6a81

[2] https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/mar/26/phone-search-privacy-us-border-immigration

[3] https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/03/27/cbp-cell-phones-devices-traveling-us/

[4] https://www.rnlawgroup.com/your-phone-your-data-how-to-safeguard-your-digital-life-when-entering-the-u-s/

[5] https://www.standardspeaker.com/2025/04/13/device-privacy-borders/

[6] https://toronto.citynews.ca/2025/04/11/us-border-searching-phones-canada-travel-advisory/

It seems one may be more likely to have issues when re-entering the US rather than leaving.

More information on Cell Phone Seizure and Search [Note the last two are from 2017!]

Traveling with Electronics: Border Search 

Why International Travelers Should Consider a Burner Phone Going into the US

How to Lock Down Your Phone if Traveling to the US - Washington Post (by subscription only)

How to Protect Your Phone from Border Guards, and Why it's Probably a Bad Idea  - Mashable

Digital Privacy at the US Border: Protecting the Data on Your Devices - Electronic Frontier Foundation

DOCUMENTATION

Make sure your passport is current.  It is best to renew it one year in advance, in case you
are detained for an unknown period. It would be problematic if your passport expired while detained. 

DOMESTIC TRAVEL

If you are traveling by air domestically, you must have the necessary identification.
I renewed my driver’s license before I needed to obtain a REAL ID compliant driver’s license.
This is what it looks like. Note the star in the right upper hand corner.

Image from here.

Below is information from TSA. I’ve also included the link to this and more information.

Adult passengers 18 and older must show valid identification at the airport checkpoint in order
to travel.

The list of acceptable IDs is subject to change without notice. TSA strongly encourages you
check this list again before traveling, so you do not arrive at the airport without acceptable ID.

• Driver's licenses or other state photo identity cards issued by Department of MotorVehicles (or equivalent)

• Beginning May 7, 2025, if you plan to use your state-issued ID or license to fly within the U.S., make sure it is REAL ID compliant. If you are not sure if your ID complies with REAL ID, check with your state department of motor vehicles.

•  A temporary driver’s license is NOT an acceptable form of identification

This link from the TSA outlines several different forms of acceptable identification and a lot of other pertinent information.

Additional info:

International Travel Info Pages - Travel.state.gov

American Entry into Canada by Land - Wikipedia

Reasons to Explore the Expo Floor at Professional Conferences

Image from here.

If you are attending an in-person conference (like MLA), it's a good idea to take the time to explore the expo floor.

The Medical Library Association recently posted an article that explains some of the reasons why and how a visit to the expo floor can enrich your conference experience:

• Discovering innovative technologies and resources
• Networking opportunities
• Educational sessions and demonstrations
• Staying informed about industry trends
• Gathering info for future decisions
• Enhancing professional development
• Enjoying the experience

I would add a few additional points as well:

• Take a list of questions and map out your time with the vendors in the expo hall that you want to visit. 
• It's a chance to meet some of your/our customer service reps in person.   Most of them don't make "house calls" anymore, so it can be a blessing to meet some of them in person to build relationships.   
• If you're having issues with any of your products, or want to recommend an enhancement, it's a chance to meet face-to-face to discuss problems and solutions.  You may be able to solve some issues with that in-person visit that have not had resolution at a distance.  Or get connected with the people who can help you.
• There may be freebies.  For example, JAMA used to give out artsy posters. 

Pets of WHSLA: The Sassy Hazel

 I figured I would continue the Pets of WHSLA series for my first post, as well! Let me introduce everyone to the photogenic Hazel. 

 An Irish wolfhound mix, Hazel's occupation is being a full-time couch potato (a career which she takes very seriously). She also has a side-hustle being a model, and features pretty heavily in my slide shows for health sciences students (especially her goofier photos).

When she's off the clock, she enjoys hiking and getting the occasional pup cup at a coffee shop. 

Hazel and I are so excited to be contributing to the WHSLA blog! Thanks to everyone for reading, and I hope everyone has a great day! =)

Pets of WHSLA: Lilo and Gus (plus the chicken ladies)

 As my first post on the blog, I'll continue the popular Pets of WHSLA series with my cats: Lilo and Gus

(Attempting to fit in the same bed with mixed results)

They are brother and sister from the same litter and 11.5 years old. They generally sleep a lot, but romp around with each other plenty and keep us on their schedule. Lilo will remind our son when it's time to go to bed and stare at his door if she didn't get in there before he shut it, so she can go snuggle with him. Gus will stare at the bare spot in the 3/4 full food dishes to let us know that he is just wasting away with hunger.

  

And of course both cats love helping me work from home...

Bonus pets: we also have five chickens who like to observe us and the cats through the kitchen door.

Their names are: Love, Tiny, Tornado, Hen Solo, and Princess Leia