Project Uncover Health Information Databases (UNHID)

1. Project Uncover Health Information Databases (UNHID) Morehouse School of Medicine Library Masters of Public Health Program Booker T. Washington High School

2. Statement of Need The staff at the library of the Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) has determined that the need exists within its community of students, faculty, and surrounding community residents to become knowledgeable about the National Library of Medicine (NLM) databases. This determination is based on observations of all three groups over the past four years through Library orientations and previous work done in the community.

3. Project UNHID is designed to: • Promote the use of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) consumer health information databases among: • students and faculty of the Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) Master of Public Health (MPH) Program • adults and high school students in the community adjacent to the school’s campus • public, school, and academic librarians

4. This Project seeks to: • Improve health literacy • Decrease health disparities • Inform health professionals • Increase preference for NLM databases

5. Partners • Booker T. Washington High School • MSM Public Health Program • MSM Library

6. Core Project Team

7. Goal To reduce health disparities among African American students and faculty at MSM and residents in communities adjacent to the campuses by leading them to understandable information about their health

8. Objectives and Activities • Enhance the abilities of faculty at MSM to use the NLM databases in developing health information components in their curriculum • Two interactive hands-on workshops • Faculty will be requested to attend both workshops

9. Objectives and Activities (continued) • Increase the levels of awareness and use of the NLM databases among students at MSM • Four interactive hands-on student workshops • Students will be asked to attend at least two of the workshops

10. Objectives and Activities (continued) • Increase community awareness of NLM databases so that they become the sites of choice in the search for authoritative health information • Four community resident workshops • Residents will be asked to attend one of the workshops

11. Objectives and Activities (continued) • Enhance the abilities of public, school, and academic librarians to help library patrons in the use of the NLM databases • Two days of interactive hands-on workshops • Librarians will be asked to attend both days in order to receive Consumer Health Information Specialization Certification.

12. Project Challenges • Scheduling of Sessions • Consistent Communication • Unavoidable reduction in staff

13. Project Impact as of April 30, 2008 • Participation in a Health Fair at Washington High School • Acknowledgement from Washington High Faculty of willingness to put use of the NLM databases into their science curriculum • Increased collaboration between the MSM Library and the MSM MPH program

14. Activities accomplished as of April 30, 2008 • Enhance the abilities of MPH faculty at MSM to use the NLM databases in developing health information components in their curriculum • Two interactive hands-on workshops • Faculty will be requested to attend both workshops The First MPH Faculty workshop was held March 28, 2008

15. Activities accomplished (continued) • Increase the levels of awareness and use of the NLM databases among MPH students at MSM • Four interactive hands-on student workshops • Students will be asked to attend at least two of the workshops The First MPH Student workshops will be held with MPH Faculty participation in August 2008

16. Activities accomplished (continued) • Increase community awareness of NLM databases so that they become the sites of choice in the search for authoritative health information • Four community resident workshops Eight (8) community resident workshops were held in the Booker T. Washington High School in 2007. High school students from three (3) chemistry classes, two (2) botany classes and three (3) physics classes of 10th through 12th graders plus three (3) teachers and one (1) paraprofessional assistant which made for a total of one hundred seventy seven (177) participants trained. A total of seven (7) teachers were trained at a separate orientation.

17. Activities accomplished (continued) • Enhance the abilities of public, school, and academic librarians to help library patrons in the use of the NLM databases • Two days of interactive hands-on workshops One (1) interactive hands-on workshop was held in the MSM Library Electronic Laboratory for twenty (20) public, school, and academic librarians for instruction in searching the NLM Consumer Health databases, search strategies, and evaluation of web sites. The workshop trainers were from ORISE.

18. The Next Six Months • Faculty Workshops - One (1) interactive hands-on workshop for thirty (30) faculty members. • Student Workshops - Four (4) interactive hands-on workshops sessions for 100 MPH students. • Resident Workshops - Four (4) community resident workshops will be held in the Booker T. Washington High School. • Librarian Workshops – One (1) interactive hands-on workshop will be held in the MSM Library Electronic Laboratory.

19. Sustainability • Partners will collaborate to hold an annual Health Information Literacy Fair at MSM. • MSM Librarians will provide refresher annual training sessions. • MSM Librarians will also serve in a resource capacity after the project and submit articles and/or stories to UNCFSP about continuing ehealth efforts made by MSM library.

20. Evaluation • Focus Groups • Pre and Post Test Measures of awareness and use of NLM Databases • Pre and Post Test Measures of preferred sites for health information

21. Conclusion • Project UNHID will support health promotion and disease prevention and should provide further steps towards ensuring good health.

22. Acknowledgement This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the National Library of Medicine and the UNCFSP/NLM-HBCU ACCESS Project. Any opinions, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Library of Medicine or the UNCFSP/NLM-HBCU ACCESS Project.