Instruction

Information Mastery: Class provides orientation for third year medical students at the beginning of clerkship rotations

Where can you find the best information to support clinical decision making? In June, third year medical students learned about clinical decision support tools in preparation for their 3rd year clerkships.

On Friday, June 24, more than 200 third year medical students in San Antonio and Harlingen received instruction in library resources that support clinical decision making.  As a way of sharpening their information-seeking skills, they worked through a series of case-based scenarios.  Before beginning their 3rd year clinical rotations, the students must complete the Information Mastery class, a part of their Clinical Foundations course.

Information Mastery was presented by a team of instructors in San Antonio which included:  Glen Medellin, M.D., Associate Professor and Director of Medical Student Education in the Department of Pediatrics; Eric Willman, Systems Librarian; and Angela Myatt, Curriculum Liaison Librarian.  Kathy Carter, Ramirez Library Librarian, presented the class in Harlingen.

The growing collection of mobile websites that are available to assist students in clinical decision making is just one of many important components that were highlighted.

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NEW! OvidSP interface changes: Personal logins add flexibility and increase workflow options

On or around August 1, 2010, the OvidSP interface that has been available for several months in “Try It Now” mode will become the default interface for Ovid’s suite of databases.  Familiar search features like mapping to MeSH headings and using limits are basically unchanged, but the new interface greatly enhances workflow options.   

On this page and the next, we highlight some features of the new OvidSP interface.  

My Account: customizable personal space within Ovid 

Setting a personal login allows you to take advantage of new “My Workspace” features including My Projects, My Searches and Alerts, and my eTOCS. (Click on image to enlarge for viewing.)

 

One important addition to OvidSP is the ability to create personal logins through “My Account.”  Setting a personal login allows you to take advantage of new “My Workspace” features, including My Projects, My Searches and Alerts, and my eTOCS.   

Once a search is completed, you can still select the items to be printed, downloaded, emailed.  In addition, these items can now be added to My Projects, a structured storage area that can contain projects and folders to store full text, citations or graphics.  

 

Using My Projects

When first attempting to access My Projects, an Ovid user who has never created a personal account will be prompted to create an account, while users with accounts will simply log in. (Ovid users who already have a personal account will continue to use that account.)  Citations selected from the search retrieval can be added to an existing project, or a new project can be created.  In the My Workspace area, up to 50MB of storage can hold additional project-related items imported from other resources. 

Save searches and create auto-alerts

Being able to set up timely personal accounts also means that you can take advantage of the “My Searches and Alerts” feature.  With a personal account, you can save search strategies permanently, or you can create AutoAlerts so that you are notified by email when new citations based on your search strategy are added to Medline.  And taking advantage of the My eTOCS feature means that you will be notified whenever a new table of contents is available for your selected journals. 

Watch for additional information when the new interface goes live.  Questions about OvidSP and other library resources can be answered by phone, email, instant message, or in person at the library’s Information Desk. 

 Linda Levy 

Assistant Library Director for Database and Branch Services 

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NLM launches updated MedlinePlus Web site

On July 14, the National Library of Medicine unveiled the newly redesigned version of MedlinePlus (http://medlineplus.gov), the NLM’s one-stop comprehensive Web site for trusted health information.  Among the site’s new features:

  • The medical dictionary search box is now located on home page for easy access.
  • Top searches of the day and most-used health topic pages for the day now appear on the site’s home page.
  • The Health Topics pages offer visitors the ability to sign up to receive email updates on specific topics
  • Health Topics pages also offer sharing options to allow visitors to post them easily to bookmarking & sharing services like Facebook, Twitter, Delicious and Digg.
  • The video and interactive content section has been expanded and is more accessible and searchable.
  • MedlinePlus also offers a variety of additional useful tools, including patient tutorials, calculators, self-assessment quizzes, and even games to build health knowledge and healthy lifestyles.

Two other views of MedlinePlus continue to be useful: MedlinePlus en Español, which provides a Spanish-language interface to MedlinePlus, and MedlinePlus Mobile, an interface designed specifically for phones and other mobile devices.

Luke Rosenberger

Director of Library Technology and Historical Collections

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The beta version of RefWorks 2.0 is now available

Refworks 2.0 screenshot

RefWorks, the popular bibliographic management tool, has launched the beta version of its new RefWorks 2.0 interface.  The core functions of RefWorks— storing references in an online repository, creating bibliographies, and information sharing and collaboration— are all enhanced through the improved interface.

RefWorks users who are comfortable with the current version should have little trouble adapting to the new  version, which makes use of icons, tabs, and a “Quick List” for easy navigation.  Editing references by browsing your computer and adding attachments like links to PDF articles or a JPG are even easier than before.

Sometime this spring, RefWorks 2.0 will become the default interface for Health Science Center RefWorks users; however, the classic version will continue to be available.  All references stored in current accounts will be accessible through the new interface, so current users will not lose any information.

If you want to test drive the new interface before it becomes the default for our site, you will need to create a new test account here. Remember that this account is not linked to your classic RefWorks account through UT Health Science Center  at this time.

Linda Levy
Assistant Director for Branch Libraries and Database Services

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UT Health Science Center Libraries will participate in October health literacy events

On October 5th, the UT Health Science Center Briscoe Library will exhibit at the 8th Annual San Antonio Health Literacy Conference. The theme selected for this year’s conference, held at the Hilton San Antonio Airport, is Health Literacy in the Electronic Age: High Tech/High Touch. Exhibitors will focus on the promotion of health literacy through the use of technology such as smartphones, tablets and computers.

The Briscoe Library exhibit will feature hands-on demonstrations of online and mobile resources available through the National Library of Medicine. Over 200 conference attendees will include community service providers, dieticians, health educators, healthcare professionals, nurses/nursing students, patient navigators, pharmacologists/pharmacy students, physicians, promotoras, public health officials and others who are involved in health literacy throughout the state of Texas. Click here to see a video of last year’s conference.

On October 10th, the UT Health Science Center Ramirez Library in Harlingen will participate in a Health Literacy Symposium sponsored by the Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District and Valley Baptist Medical Center.

Peg Seger, Head of Outreach Services
 

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