Outreach News

Welcome to the newest column of UAMS Library News, contributed by Susan Steelman, the UAMS Library's Coordinator of Outreach Services. Through this column we hope to keep you informed about the Library's outreach activities around the state. The UAMS Library has a subcontract with the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, South Central Region (NN/LM SCR) under the National Library of Medicine to act as the Resource Library for the state of Arkansas. This subcontract enables us to provide backup reference services, interlibrary loans and document delivery services, training, and technical support to other Arkansas medical libraries and health care professionals. Library services and the databases/products of the National Library of Medicine, such as PubMed and the MEDLINE database, are promoted through exhibits at professional meetings of librarians, physicians, pharmacists and other health care professionals. We also provide free training to any Arkansas librarian or health care professional in the proper use of PubMed and the Loansome Doc document ordering system.

A major aspect of our outreach activities is the symbiotic relationship between the UAMS Library and the Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Libraries in the state. Arkansas is divided into 7 regions with each AHEC covering certain counties. This regional breakdown is important because it forms the backbone of local medical library services available to health care professionals in the state. The UAMS Library provides direct service to health care professionals in Cleburne, Faulkner, Garland, Hot Spring, Perry, Pulaski, Saline, Van Buren and White counties. These services include computer searches, current awareness services, interlibrary loan and document delivery assistance. For health care professionals in other counties, the local AHEC/DHEC will provide similar services.

All health professionals in the state can receive basic reference assistance and can arrange tours and demonstrations in the Library and the Learning Resource Center as well as access to the Historical Research Center collection. Also, any licensed health professional in Arkansas may check out books and journals by applying at the Circulation Desk for a UAMS Library card. Those individuals who are unable to come to Little Rock may request UAMS Library materials via interlibrary loan through their local hospital, AHEC/DHEC, college or university library.

If you are interested in a list of the counties served by each AHEC or have questions regarding outreach services or events, please contact Susan Steelman, Coordinator of Outreach Services, UAMS Library, 501-686-6737 or SteelmanSusanC@exchange.uams.edu.