UC E-Links gets a facelift

The UC E-Links display has been reorganized and streamlined. The changes were based on user feedback and usability studies conducted by the California Digital Library which maintains UC E-Links. The screens are generally easier to read and group things together letting you focus more easily on what you want - ie, getting that full text!

There’s a nice roundup of the changes over at the Science & Engineering Library blog.

(UC E-Links is the system that manages linking between our catalog and databases such as Roger, PubMed, etc., and our electronic journals. It keeps track of which years we have from which publishers, how to create links from database recordto individual articles, requesting copies, etc.)

List of Title Word Abbreviations online

The List of Title Word Abbreviations is referred to by many journals as the source authors should consult when preparing the references section of their article manuscripts. We recently located an online source for this content, List of Title Word Abbreviations Online, from the organization that creates journal standard numbers, aka ISSNs.

Medical Center Library Summer Book Giveaway

MCL will host a Summer Book Giveaway on August 9th and 10th, 9:00am - 5:00pm.

With many thanks to the UCSD Friends of the Library, the selection this time includes hundreds of books on a variety of subjects, e.g., large format art books, medical books, novels, travel–you name it!

The Medical Center Library is located at UCSD Medical Center-Hillcrest. If you’re in the area, drop by. There’s a treasure waiting just for you!

GIS & Public Health Talk

There’s still room but sign up soon for:

“Spatial Epidemiology: Potential Uses of GIS in Public Health Studies”

Dr. Kimberly C. Brouwer, PhD
Assistant Professor in the Division of International Health & Cross Cultural Medicine in the UCSD Department of Family and Preventive Medicine

Dr. Brouwer will provide a brief introduction to the emerging field of spatial epidemiology. Data collection techniques and ethical considerations for mapping in health studies will be discussed. A number of practical examples, from using geographic information systems (GIS) to track epidemics to identifying unhealthy neighborhoods, will be presented. Particular emphasis will be placed on studies of injection drug use in Tijuana, Mexico.

Wednesday, August 1, 12-1 p.m.

UCSD Biomedical Library Events Room

Bring your own lunch. Bottled water and cookies will be provided.

Seating is limited. RSVP by July 27 to Vicky Anderson at vkanderson@library.ucsd.edu is highly recommended. Co-sponsored by the UCSD Biomedical Library and the UCSD Social Sciences & Humanities Library. This is the second in the GIS Lunch Series.

InfoCommons computer problems

Most of the computers in our Information Commons and 24-hour graduate study are not working at present. Academic Computing Services is having problems with the process that “builds” lab computers like ours. Unfortunately, we don’t have an exact estimate for when the problem will be fixed. We do have about 10-15 computers working, as well as the 22 InfoStations which are not part of the Commons.

Comparative Biology Data

Today someone asked me about a cow’s temperature, and the calcium content of cow’s blood.  I looked around on Google a bit, and then I remembered my old friend, the Biology Data Book series.  The purpose of the Biology Data Books is to “present numerical data of biology and medicine in a convenient and accessible form for reference, and to standardize accepted constants as a basis for correlation, establish common standards for statistical studies, and provide normal values for research.” 

They include tables, diagrams, charts and graphs on the following topics:  Genetics and Cytology, Reproduction, Development and Growth, Morphology, Nutrition and Digestion, Metabolism, Respiration and Circulation, Blood, Biological Regulators and Toxins, Biophysical and Biochemical Characteristics, Environment and Survival, Parasitism, and Materials and Methods. 

These books often offer comparative data about various organisms, including some lab animals.  Published in the 1970s, they are now available online as well in our reference collection.  This resource allowed me to answer this difficult question without leaving my desk.  I love the Biology Data Books!

UCSD Medical Center - Among the Nation’s Best

The University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Medical Center is the only San Diego hospital that ranks among the best in the nation in six specialty areas in the 2007 U.S. News and World Report annual “Best Hospitals” issue. The ratings came out July 16th in a special issue of the magazine. Details of the report can be found online (UCSD ID & password required if off campus).

In the 2007 report, UCSD Medical Center is ranked:
8th in Respiratory Diseases
18th in Rheumatology
30th in Kidney Disease
30th in Gynecology
39th in Cancer
50th in Ear, Nose, Throat

Quality ratings on hospitals & surgeons for CABG

In a recently released report from the Office of Statewide Health Planning & Development (OSHPD), quality ratings for 121 hospitals & 302 surgeons performing Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) surgery were made publicly available. It is the first report by OSHPD that includes detailed performance ratings for the surgeons as well as hospitals.

In general, 95% of the surgeons “performed within their expected range.” Four individual surgeons performed better than the state average, while a total of 12 surgeons “performed significantly worse” than the state average. For the hospitals, 92% performed as expected with an average mortality rate of 3.08% for CABG.

What benefit comes from posting this information online? Hopefully, improved care and perhaps a reduced CABG mortality rate. A similar project in New York (started in 1989), found just that result.

For details about the how the information was collected and reviewed, see the OSHPD press release.

The executive summery or the Full Report can be found at the OSHPD web site.

We get suggestions

Some recent items from our suggestion box:

- “Can you please provide ‘Wall Street Journal’ as possible newspaper reading material. Thank-you.”

Luckily, we found that the cost for the Library to subscribe to the Wall Street Journal was within our price range, so we will be adding the newspaper to our Recreational Reading Collection. Thanks for the suggestion!

- “This library is pretty. I am going to study here more often next year. Circulation people should get a raise, especially student workers. Thanks!”

Hmmm… We weren’t able to read the name on this suggestion, but it seemed a little like a plant ;). Nevertheless, thanks for the compliment, and please feel free to return next year. By the way, we agree our staff and students should make more, but our current starting student employee rate is not too bad, $8.75 an hour. If you’re interested in student positions at the libraries, you can see open jobs using Port Triton on the Career Services Website. Thanks!

- “At least one more public computer is needed in the second floor, near the collection of biomedical journals (there is only one now). Only one computer for all the people studying in that part of the library, and people who come to look for journals is not enough! Thank you!”

Good suggestion. We are planning to make some adjustments to the seating and location of computers on the 2nd floor in the near future, and we don’t think this should be a problem. In the meantime, there are more computers available on the north side of the 2nd floor, as well as the 1st floor. Thanks!

Report: Shortage of doctors & nurses by 2020

A report released today, by PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute, projects that over the next decade the shortage of physicians in the U.S. will be about 24,000 and the shortage of nurses will be nearly one million. The problem is not just a matter of baby boomer doctor & nurses retiring, it is also an issue of not enough graduates to fill the positions.

The numbers applying to nursing programs have risen over recent years, however, nursing programs have limited capacity for students, so many applicants are turned away. Medical schools have similar problems and new medical schools are being planned, however, only 1 new school has been accredited in the last 20-plus years.

Hat tip to The Chronicle blog

What works: Health the healthcare staffing shrotage report is available (registration required)