News from the Libraries – January 2021
Danny Jones History of the Health Sciences Essay Award
On Friday, March 6th, Briscoe Buddies Angel and June visited the South Texas Research Facility (STRF) for a puppy picnic to celebrate Employee Appreciation Day. Accompanied by their handlers, Dana Whitmire and Andrea Schorr, both Angel and June joined STRF faculty and staff for a walk on the greenway followed by lots of cuddles.
For more information about the Briscoe Buddies contact Askalibrarian@uthscsa.edu.
Librarians Emme Lopez and Chris Gaspard published an article entitled, “Predatory publishing and the academic librarian: Developing tools to make decisions” in the Jan-Mar issue of Medical Reference Services Quarterly. Confusion exists around identifying trustworthy journals, especially those without the benefit of name recognition. Authors often turn to their librarian for help determining whether a journal is potentially predatory. Academic librarians need to be prepared with tools to help review potential publishing outlets and facilitate decision-making for authors. While the tools outlined in the publication are intended for academic librarians in the health sciences, they may be adapted and used more broadly.
Click here to view the citation information in PubMed. UT Health San Antonio affiliates can read the full text here.
Fifty years ago the Bexar County Medical Society gifted a collection of rare and significant medical historical books to the University of Texas Medical School in San Antonio, now known as UT Health San Antonio. The collection originally belonged to distinguished San Antonio physician Dr. Pat Ireland Nixon, who was the founder of the Bexar County Medical Society Library in 1919. Today, the collection is named after Dr. Nixon in honor of his tireless efforts to build it, and is housed in the P.I. Nixon Medical Historical Library, located on the 5th floor of Briscoe Library.
Over the years, the Nixon Library collection has drawn campus-wide, local, and world-wide interest. This interest has evolved into programming and events that focus on the origins of healthcare and their impact on the future of medicine. Today the Nixon Library continues its legacy of preservation, promotion, and engagement through the tireless efforts of the Briscoe Library and the Friends of the P.I. Nixon Library Board.
For more information about the Nixon Library visit libguides.uthscsa.edu/specialcollections
Check out the Treasures Blog for more historical anecdotes and announcements about the Nixon Library as we celebrate this momentous year!
For a list of the newest titles at the Briscoe Library click here.
Purchase suggestions?
Complete the online Purchase Suggestion Form or contact
Andrea N. Schorr, Associate Director of Resource Management.
Nestled in the heart of downtown is the newly designed Bexar Heritage Center, a project which began its development in early 2017 as part of a idea spearheaded by County Judge Nelson Wolff. The goal of the Center is to preserve the historical roots of Bexar County and highlight the accomplishments of the county government. The Bexar Heritage Center officially opened it’s doors in October of 2019 and features a series of interactive exhibits that provide a glimpse into Bexar County’s historic treasures and culture. Among these treasures are medical instruments from the P.I. Nixon Medical Historical Library loaned to the county for display as part of the Healing Arts exhibit. Items on display include an ophthalmology kit, doctor’s bag, brass scarificator, and a pharmaceutical case just to name a few.
The Bexar Heritage Center is located at 100 Dolorosa Street and is free and open to the public. Hours of operation are Monday thru Friday from 7:00 AM to 5:30 PM.
Briscoe Library is pleased to announce the judges for the 2020 Image of Research Photography Competition. The judges are listed as follows:
Dr. Jaqueline Mok, Vice President for Academic Affairs
Dr. Bridgette Piernik-Yoder, Associate Professor & Chair, Department of Occupational Therapy
Jo Ann Jordan, Assistant Professor, Clinical Director, Dental Hygiene
Dr. Maria Danet Bluhm, Associate Professor, School of Nursing
The IPE Award will be judged by Dr. Joseph Zorek and the Faculty Council for LINC.
Submissions will be accepted through March 13th. For more information or to submit your photo please visit library.uthscsa.edu/2019/11/ior2020.
In February, the Friends of the P.I. Nixon Medical Historical Library Lecture Series welcomed John Calhoon, MD, to speak on the history of heart surgery and his experiences as a congenital heart surgeon. Recounting his experiences a boy learning by his surgeon father’s side, Dr. Calhoon described how he is able to pass on the knowledge and wisdom gained from many of these formative experiences to his students and those who will become our future surgeons. After hearing a thorough review of the history of modern heart surgery and enjoying many humorous and touching stories from Dr. Calhoon’ s career, the lecture audience sat rapt with attention as he ended his presentation with a video of his ground-breaking operation on the heart of a 2-day-old infant.
Dr. Calhoon obtained his medical degree at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas in 1981. He is board certified in Thoracic Surgery and Congenital Cardiac Surgery. He joined the group in 1989 and is professor and founding chair of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery.
His current interests include complex congenital heart surgery, heart and lung transplantation, complex adult cardiac surgery, the Ross procedure, less invasive cardiac surgery, and improving education and patient care. Nationally, he has served as President of the Thoracic Surgery Directors Association and Secretary of the Southern Thoracic Surgery Association.
He is currently president of the Thoracic Surgery Foundation for Research and Education, a member of the Joint Council on Thoracic Surgery Education Board, an at-large director of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, and has served as chair of the American Board of Thoracic Surgeons. Locally, he has been chairman of the Dominion Country Club and president of the local American Heart Association affiliate. He is a founder and board member of HeartGift San Antonio, an organization that sponsors charitable lifesaving congenital heart repair for children around the world.
Next in the P.I. Nixon Medical Historical Library lecture series is Anti-Vax: 19th Century Insights into a Modern Healthcare Issue, Speaker: Jacob Canfield (School of Medicine) on Wednesday March 4th from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm in the Howe Conference Room, 5th floor of Briscoe Library. Please register here.
Several Briscoe Library staff members recently reached a milestone in their careers here at UT Health San Antonio. Join us in congratulating and thanking them for their years of service.
Chris, Andrea, and Ron with Dr. Jacqueline Mok at 2020 Service Award Dinner, a 20+ year employee celebration held on February 6th.
Chris Gaspard – 30 years
Associate Director of Liaison Services & Liaison to the School of Medicine
Rona Mesa – 30 years
Administrative Assistant-Senior
Albert Ramirez – 20 years
Library Clerical Assistant, Intermediate
Andrea Schorr – 20 years
Associate Director of Resource Management
Maria Mota – 15 years
Library Clerical Assistant, Intermediate
Thanks to all of our hardworking library staff!
Shortly after the first of the year, a white board was rolled out into the entry area of Briscoe Library. It was placed not far away from a new student “lounge” area adjacent to the library entry. Students (and anyone else who wanted to offer an opinion) were asked to suggest names for the new area. After all, how do you tell someone where to meet you (for studying or a lunch break) without knowing the name of the exact spot where you would like to meet?
As a sign of the growing popularity of the space, over 50 names were suggested. Tentative plans are for library staff to narrow down the suggestions to a more manageable number and then put it back to students for a vote.
Stay tuned for the next update and your chance to vote!
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