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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
The Institute of Medicine was chartered in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to enlist distinguished members of the appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. In this, the Institute acts under both the Academy's 1863 congressional charter responsibility to be an advisor to the federal government and its own initiative in identifying issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Kenneth I. Shine is president of the Institute of Medicine.
Support for this project was provided by the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, under Contract No. N01-OD-4-2139. The views presented are those of the Institute of Medicine Committee on Internet Access to the National Library of Medicine's Toxicology and Environmental Health Databases and are not necessarily those of the funding organization.
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COMMITTEE ON INTERNET ACCESS TO THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MEDICINE'S TOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH DATABASES
HOWARD KIPEN (Chair), Associate Professor and Director,
Division of Occupational Health, Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey–Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway
JAMES CIMINO, Associate Professor of Medical Informatics in Medicine,
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, New York
ROBERT COPELAND, JR., Associate Professor,
Department of Pharmacology, Howard University College of Medicine, Washington, D.C.
FRED HENRETIG, Professor of Pediatrics and Emergency Medicine,
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine,
Director,
Section of Clinical Toxicology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
EILEEN KRAEMER, Assistant Professor,
Department of Computer Science, University of Georgia, Athens
LINDA MILGROM, Network Librarian,
National Network of Libraries of Medicine, Pacific Northwest Region, University of Washington, Seattle
MELANIE MINTZER, Assistant Professor,
Department of Family Medicine, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill
CLIFFORD MITCHELL, Assistant Professor,
Division of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Hygiene and Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland
LILLIAN MOOD, Director of Risk Communication and Community Liaison,
Environmental Quality Control, South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, Columbia
KATHLEEN REED, Program Manager and Senior Technical Specialist,
Oak Ridge Associated Universities, Washington, D.C.
BARBARA SATTLER, Director,
Environmental Health Education Center, University of Maryland at Baltimore School of Medicine
Staff
CATHARYN T. LIVERMAN, Study Director
CAROLYN E. FULCO, Senior Program Officer
SANDRA AU, Project Assistant/Research Assistant
KATHLEEN STRATTON, Interim Director,
Division of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention
Acknowledgments
The IOM staff and the committee wish to thank National Library of Medicine staff members Jeanne Goshorn, Michael Moore, and Melvin Spann for providing the committee with insight and updates on the TOXNET Web site. We appreciate the input provided by the individuals named in Appendix A who took the time to search TOXNET and to share their thoughts and search experiences with the committee.
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the NRC's Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making the published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their participation in the review of this report:
Bruce G. Buchanan, University of Pittsburgh;
Keith Burkhart, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center;
Terry Ann Jankowski, University of Washington;
Michael J. Kosnett, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center;
Trace Warner, Washington State Department of Health; and
M. Donald Whorton, M. Donald Whorton, M.D., Inc., Alameda, Calif.
While the individuals listed above have provided constructive comments and suggestions, it must be emphasized that responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution.