The New UAA/APU Consortium Library welcomed a high-level delegation from the National Library of Medicine (NLM) July 13.

 NLM is not only the world’s largest and best-known medical library and producer of MEDLINE, it has also helped improve access to medical care for Alaskans over the past decade through a million-dollar telemedicine grant.

 It has particularly close ties to the Consortium Library’s Health Sciences Information Service (HSIS): Both are members of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine and are partners in developing the Arctic Health website, an NLM initiative to bring focused health information to Alaska Natives in remote communities.

Dr. Donald Lindberg, M.D., the director of the Maryland-based NLM, was in Alaska as part of an outreach effort to survey populations underserved by current health care resources. He was accompanied by Dr. Elliot Siegel, Ph.D, the NLM associate director for health information programs development (HIPD); Fred Wood, an HIPD special expert; Gale A. Dutcher, head of the NLM Office of Outreach and Special Populations; and Catherine Burroughs, acting associate director of the National Networks of the Library of Medicine, Pacific Northwest Region.

The NLM is conducting a broad effort to determine under-filled needs, and how those needs could be met through better allocation of resources and the innovative use of technology.

“In some ways, Alaska is the perfect testing ground for this type of thing,” Lindberg said.

“You have a lot of T1 [high-speed communication] lines, and a willingness to look at technology and use those kinds of resources. How can those be used to meet the needs of these populations? Alaska is in an excellent position to ask — and answer — these kinds of questions.”

Lindberg described the newly expanded library as impressive, particularly noting the extensive medical resources it makes available both onsite and remotely through specialized electronic resources.

 “The new library houses the largest medical collection in the state,” said Kathy Murray, manager of HSIS. The collection includes over 600 current medical journals, together with approximately a dozen medical databases. It spends approximately $20,000 per year on medical and nursing books.

“Part of our mission is to provide health information to everyone in the state, not just health care providers but also consumers,” she said.