January 2001

Volume 21, Number 1

Vishaka Mehta at the Eric Lindeman Center, Massachusetts Deptartment of Mental Health received a Performance Recognition Award from Governor Paul Cellucci on September 27^th. Mehta was one of only 15 DMH employees to receive the award, and was chosen on the recommendation of her peers at the DMH during an annual nomination process. She was awarded for her work with consumers, who were able to successfully gain employment after attending her library training sessions.

Mass. DMH Commissioner Mary Lou Sudders publicly commended Mehta, saying that she herself uses the library.

Mehta was philosophical about her achievement. "We go on helping others. No one ever puts us (librarians) in a thesis preface. That's the way of life. We are at the back of everybody's mind-we are important but we are not normally noticed. 'Who cares about recognition?' I thought. Then I got (this award)."

Out of approximately 102,200 state employees, only 390 are honored annually.

 (Statistics provided by the Mass. Division of Employment & Training).

A panel of JCAHO experts was questioned about the lack of Medical Library inclusion in accreditation standards surrounding patient and staff education. Questions posed by Donna Beales of Lowell General Hospital were aired in a live satellite broadcast of the JCSN (Joint Commission Satellite Network), Patient Rights and Education. Beales questioned why Medical Libraries weren't included in JCAHO Educational Standards.

The panel's response was noncommittal. They stated that Medical Library participation in education is implied, and covered in other standards.

The program went on to focus an entire segment on web site educational efforts undertaken by hospitals, and viewed positively Internet outreach efforts which provide high quality health information links as part of hospital community education.

The segment made no mention of how Medical Librarians are often significant contributors to web site evaluation, selection, and organization, as well as direction of overall hospital educational content.

Countway Library Rededication - September 28, 2000 

On September 28, 2000, the Countway Library of Medicine hosted a daylong rededication ceremony. Speakers and guests grappled with the problems facing libraries in the 21^st century, such as the stature of print materials in an increasingly electronic world and the direction libraries should take to meet the challenges of modern knowledge management.

The Rededication events capped a two-year, $26M renovation project at the Countway Library. Among the guests were individuals without whose support and generosity the renovation would not have been possible. In addition, several members of the Countway family attended the ceremonies, continuing the commitment to the Library begun by the generous gift from Sanda Countway that supported the Library's construction in 1963.

A tent on the Harvard Medical School quadrangle served as the venue for an afternoon Symposium entitled "Medical Libraries: Will a Rich Past Assure a Relevant Future?" Dr. Allan Brandt, Professor of the History of Medicine at Harvard Medical School moderated the Symposium. The spirited discussion among the panelists was followed by an equally informative question and answer session.

The formal rededication of the Countway followed the Symposium. Guest speakers on the podium included Dr. Joseph B. Martin, Dean of the Harvard Medical School; Dr. Barry Bloom, Dean of the Harvard School of Public Health; Dr. R. Bruce Donoff, Dean of the Harvard School of Dental Medicine; Dr. Leonard W. Morse, President of the Boston Medical Library; Dr. Donald Lindberg; Dr. Sidney Verba, Directory of the Harvard University Library; Pamela Surkan, a doctoral candidate at the Harvard School of Public Health; and Judith Messerle, the Countway Librarian. Each of these speakers reflected on the importance of libraries to students, educators, scholars, and researchers. Each also expressed confidence that the Countway Library renovation is a significant step toward preserving the best of yesterday's library while preparing to meet the challenge of tomorrow's information needs.

The keynote speaker, Dr. Hanna Holberg Gray, President Emeritus and Harry Pratt Judson Distinguished Service Professor of History at the University of Chicago, gave an address entitled "Keeping the Books." Dr. Gray reminded the audience of the history of access to printed materials from the locked vaults of the book's early history to worldwide accessibility of electronic resources.

Attendees then moved from the tent to the Countway Library for a champagne toast (champagne donated by OVID Technologies, Inc.) and the unveiling of the new Countway logo. Dr. Leonard Morse oversaw the logo unveiling and shared with the group the concept statement that motivated the logo design. This statement focused on the Countway as an "amalgamation of partners and disciplines combined to serve a global medical community. Its noble history, rooted in tradition, continues to demonstrate relevance in the current day." The logomark uses the book as a metaphor representing the library as an information resource, a reservoir of knowledge, as well as the unification of partners coming together to create a unique organization.

Guests were then invited to tour the renovated Countway and enjoy the camaraderie with friends and colleagues. The tour marked the finale to an extraordinary day.

Judith Messerle

Countway Librarian

The transition to the new web application/renewal process is complete. No, it still can't be done completely electronically, but the forms and brochure about the process are now at the Academy website - www.mlanet.org/academy/index.html.

The website also has 2 brochures for you to look at and print out if you choose. The first, called "What is AHIP", is geared to those of us already in the field who are looking for answers to the question "what good will it do me?". The second is called "Why Hire AHIP-Credentialed Librarians", and is of course geared to employers. Food for thought ...

For those of you who are already in the Academy and need renewal reminders to avoid expiration (only of your membership, we hope!) or for those of you who are thinking about it and need a boost, the Noodge List is still in operation. Send me an email and tell me to add your name to the Noodge List. Each month you will get a crazy message that is intended to help you keep on track with the process.

I am also available to answer questions about the Academy and the application process for you. Let me know how I can help.

Happy Holidays!

joan.yanicke@tenethealth.com

http://www.ladydavidson.com.au/etexts.htm

Provides links to about 50 full-text online textbooks and clinical guidelines.

Contact the Committee Chair and express you interest in joining a MAHSLIN Committee!

Archives Kate Kelly, Mass General Hospital, (617)726-8600

By-Laws Pat Vigorito, Morton Hospital, (508)828-740

Education Peg Spinner, UMASS Medical Center, (508) 856-1267 and Kelly Cronin, UMASS Medical Center, (508) 856-2458

Membership Pat Davis, Falmouth Hospital, (508) 457-3797

Nominating Elizabeth Killoran, Milford-Whitinsville Regional Hospital, (508) 457-3797

Publicity Donna Beales, Lowell General Hospital, (978) 937-6247 and Joseph Harzbecker, Boston University Medical Center, (617) 638-4205

Resource Sharing Barbara Pastan, Faulkner Hospital, (617) 983-7443

Technology Matthew Eberle Forsyth Institute;(617) 262-5200 (x245)

In an effort to provide a common set of electronic resources to Harvard Medical School (HMS) faculty and students as well as the staffs of the affiliated hospitals, a new Digital Library was launched on September 1, 2000. Funded as a pilot by Harvard University President, Neil Rudenstine, the trial will provide utilization data on what resources are being used and by which institutions. Based on this information, HMS and its affiliates will decide whether to provide ongoing funding for this service. The electronic resources that are now available to the seventeen HMS affiliates (and the affiliates of Beth Israel-Deaconess) include:

Eight Ovid databases:

MEDLINE, Bioethicsline, Cancerlit, PsycInfo, HealthSTAR, Evidence-Based Medicine Review, CINAHL and AIDSLINE

84 full text core electronic journals offered by Ovid, MD Consult with its 39 textbooks, The Clinics of North America series and 27 Yearbooks on medical topics.

On January 1^st Elsevier's Science Direct (200 journals and titles) will be offered to HMS ID holders at the 17 institutions.

Access to these resources is managed through an Intranet called E-commons developed by the Medical School.users (both Harvard Medical ID Holders and hospital staff) authenticate through a central system and get access to the core digital library. Harvard ID holders see an extended array of resources made available by Countway through shared University licenses. The list of extended resources includes over 800 e-journals and almost 100 databases such as Web of Science (Science Citation Index), Biosis Previews and Chemical Abstracts SciFinder. A coordinating group of librarians has been meeting monthly to understand the authentication process, receive more training on these resources and to recommend additional resources.

Countway is recruiting for a Digital Library Coordinator to work with this program and a steering committee of senior level managers is being formed.

For further information, contact Judith Messerle at jmesserle@hms.harvard.edu or at 617-432-2142.

Judith Messerle

Librarian

12/14/00

The MAHSLIN CE Committee arranged to have our members attend the recent satellite teleconference on December 13, 2000 at Suffolk Law School. The teleconference was co-sponsored by the American Association of Law Libraries, the American Library Association, the Association of Research Libraries, the Medical Library Association and the Special Libraries Association. All librarians need to become familiar with UCITA (the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act).

Three of the four speakers: James Neal, Dean of University Libraries, Johns Hopkins University, Rodney Petersen, Director, Policy and Planning, Office of Information Technology, University of Maryland and Sarah Wiant, Director of the Law Library, Washington & Lee University, had recently been through the passage of UCITA in their states (Maryland and Virginia are the two states to date which have ratified the act). The fourth panelist, Catherine Wojewodzki, Reference Librarian, University of Delaware and former State Representative in the Delaware Legislature, was able to speak to recent legislative action in her state which resulted in the tabling of the bill for this legislative session in Delaware.

HISTORY

By way of very brief history, UCITA originally was intended to become an amendment to the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) which governs U.S. contract law. After multiple drafts the American Law Institute (ALI) could not agree with the proposed final draft and withdrew its support. The National Commissioners of Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) at that time decided to change the name of the proposed amendment to UCITA, the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act. Since it would not become part of the UCC which is accepted by most states, the alternate route for adoption is to present the act to each state legislature for ratification.

WHAT DOES IT COVER

Not only libraries but also the information technology departments within our institutions should be particularly concerned with this proposal. It has wide-ranging implications for all information in digital format including but is not limited to computer software, databases, images, sound and textbooks. Additionally, the act pays particular attention to shrink-wrap and click-through licenses. The two types of licenses covered are mass market licenses such as general retail or consumer licenses and specific one-on-one contracts usually aimed at industry. Under UCITA the general copyright guidelines which we have used for print and subsequently electronic media no longer govern what we do as UCITA takes precedence (in spite of the fact the Millennium Copyright Act http://www.arl.org/info/frn/copy/dmca.html was passed specifically to include digital media).

SUPPORTERS

Major supporters are AOL, Microsoft and several of the large publishers. A primary tactic when the legislation is introduced into a new state legislature for passage is to say that adopting this legislation makes the state "technology-friendly". Additional arguments given by supporters are that the legislation helps to promote e-commerce activities in the state, will help the economic development of the state, offers a legal framework for businesses and consumers and will be part of a larger series of government legislation including strengthened computer crime laws.

PROBLEMS

1. Privileges granted under the Copyright Act (i.e. fair use) would now be governed by non-negotiable license terms. For instance, libraries could continue to loan books but not the CD Rom version of that book. UCITA concentrates on the licensing arrangement not fair use.
2. UCITA prevents reverse engineering. Universities in particular are very concerned with this provision. Often they will take a software's source code, break it down and rewrite it. UCITA would prevent any such changes.
3. Software vendors would not longer be liable for damage caused to consumers by known defects in their product.
4. Vendors can use something referred to as "Self-Help" which gives them the right to shut off access or disable software based on the terms of a contract. For instance, late payment can result in abrupt termination of service.
5. UCITA provides for Choice of Law/Choice of Forum which means the vendor can determine what court you can sue in if you have problems with a product/software. Litigation costs could prevent injured parties from taking their case to court.
6. Another major area libraries would notice a difference in is that UCITA prohibits comment on digital products. The software reviews were are used to seeing in JAMA, Annals of Internal Medicine and numerous library journals could be prohibited under this act.
7. Additionally, our ability to negotiate licenses will be affected by this legislation. Shrink-wrap and click-through licenses are validated and enforceable. In the case of shrink-wrap licenses, you agree to licensing terms without knowing what they are just by opening the product.
8. There will be a wider gap between the information "haves" and information "have-nots" and partly this is due to the fact that UCITA will definitely raise the cost of doing business.

The ALA website http://www.ala.org/washoff/ucita/controversial.html provides a good review of the inherent problems with UCITA:

Another resource with an abbreviated description of the problems with UCITA for the consumer is at:

http://www.infoworld.com/cgibin/displayStory.pl?/features/990531ucita3.htm

ACTION AT THE STATE LEVEL

Much of the rest of the conference focused on the specific actions taken by various groups, including the library community, opposing this legislation. With the exception of Rhode Island, UCITA has not been introduced into any New England state legislature for consideration. I do not have space to detail the many good ideas for getting the library community's viewpoint heard.

The overriding message is that you need to hit your legislators early and often with information. This is a prime opportunity to educate them about our involvement with digital resources and about copyright protection. UCITA will have an impact on our ability to provide free and equitable access to information. This message needs to be delivered to the state legislature.

Another key point is that we need to work with many other groups including information technology professionals within our own institutions and elsewhere. A grass-roots effort needs to attract broad support from all affected parties.

FURTHER RESOURCES

The 200 page original of the Act:

http://www.law.upenn.edu/bll/ulc/ucita/citam99.htm

The proponents viewpoint:

http://www.ucitaonline.com/ provides information

Anti-UCITA viewpoint:

American Library Association

http://www.ala.org/washoff/ucita/index.html

Association of Research Libraries

http://www.arl.org/info/frn/copy/ucitapg.html

National Consumer Law Center

http://www.consumerlaw.org/ucita/

InfoWorld has covered UCITA frequently in Ed Foster's Gripe Line and other columns:

http://www.infoworld.com/articles/op/xml/00/07/03/000703opfoster.xml

http://www.infoworld.com/articles/op/xml/00/07/10/000710opfoster.xml

http://www.infoworld.com/articles/hn/xml/00/10/26/001026hnucita.xml

The information for the above summary comes primarily from the handout provided to the teleconference participants. The New England Region of NN/LM has ordered the tape of the teleconference which they are making available for loan. For further information about borrowing the tape phone (800)338-7657. 

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