Toxicology and Environmental Health Information Resources The Role of the National Library of Medicine (1997) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
Executive Summary
Executive Summary
Pages 1-10
The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.
From page 1... ...
As a result, their working knowledge of the adverse effects of chemicals on health and the conditions under which those effects might occur is often limited. Furthermore, with the many competing demands on health professionals' time, it is difficult, even for specialists, to keep apprised of rapidly The committee's use of the term environmental health includes health issues involving exposures to hazardous substances in the workplace, home, and community settings.
|
From page 2... ...
Additionally, NLM staff members provided the committee with information about the databases and ongoing research and development efforts at NLM. CONTEXT OF THE REPORT Both the public health effects of hazardous substances and the changing trends in health care are reinforcing the need for authoritative and easily accessible information in the fields of toxicology and environmental health.
|
From page 3... ...
NLM'S TOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH INFORMATION PROGRAM Currently, the TEHIP program encompasses 16 online databases that contain bibliographic and factual information on environmental contaminants including chemical properties, carcinogenicity, exposure levels, adverse health effects, emergency treatment protocols, and federal regulations. The evolution of NLM's TEHIP program has been the result of both internal NLM commitments to developing toxicology and environmental health information resources (e.g., TOXLINE and the Hazardous Substances Data Bank)
|
From page 4... ...
The committee realizes that the health professional community does not have homogeneous information needs and that there is a wide range of variation in access to online databases and other information resources. Potential user communities include primary care professionals and pharmacists; specialists in occupational and environmental health; emergency medicine and poison control center personnel; health science librarians and faculty at health professional schools; environmental health researchers and scientists; patients, the general public, and community organizations; and health professionals in local public health departments or in state and federal agencies.
|
From page 5... ...
Upon completion of the user analysis, TEHIP program staff could not only prioritize their training and outreach efforts with an emphasis on those databases that are the most useful to health professionals but could also prioritize the resources that are devoted to the databases with the greatest utility for health professionals. The committee recommends that NLM further expand its efforts to understand the toxicology and environmental health information needs of health professionals and the barriers they face in accessing that information by conducting a detailed user profile analysis.
|
From page 6... ...
In 1991, SIS implemented a pilot Toxicology Information Outreach Project with the objective of strengthening the capacity of Historically Black Colleges and Universities to train medical and other health professionals in the use of NLM's toxicology and environmental health information resources. Additionally, SIS is actively involved in a collaborative project between NLM
|
From page 7... ...
The committee believes that the TEHIP program can make significant contributions to health professionals by providing information on the wide scope of relevant toxicology and environmental health information resources. Outreach efforts should be targeted to meet the specific interests of the audience and should be expanded to utilize dissemination networks and environmental health efforts and initiatives currently underway.
|
From page 8... ...
It is clear that NLM has taken a great deal of initiative in disseminating toxicology and environmental health information; however, there is a need for a stabilized funding base, an internal commitment to the TEHIP program and involvement of the TEHIP program in broader NLM research and development (R&D) efforts, an interdisciplinary advisory committee, and the development and implementation of a TEHIP-specific evaluation plan.
|
From page 9... ...
This may be accomplished by providing a stable funding base, ensuring a leadership role for the TEHIP program and promoting the incorporation of the TEHIP program into broader technological developments at NLM, establishing an interdisciplinary advisory committee, and the implementation of an evaluation plan. FUTURE DIRECTIONS The committee believes that it is important to provide health professionals with the tools needed to retrieve toxicology and environmental health information.
|
From page 10... ...
The committee recommends that NLM, other relevant federal agencies, and private-sector organizations work cooperatively to provide health professionals and other interested user communities with the tools that they need to access toxicology and environmental health information. This would involve two different types of access points: .
|
Key Terms
This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
More
information on Chapter Skim is available.