Strengthening health information librarianship in Africa through associations and partnerships: personal reflections in memory of Shane Godbolt.

This paper describes the significant roles Shane Godbolt played in promoting partnerships and collaborations and strengthening the Association for Health Information and Libraries in Africa (AHILA). It presents the personal reflections of each author about Shane, the part she played in their professional and personal lives as well as Shane's vital support for AHILA and AHILA members during her lifetime.

Shane Godbolt: the Charing Cross years (1970-1991).

This article looks at the period in Shane's career when she was based in the library at the Charing Cross Hospital Medical School (1970-1984) and then the Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School (1984-1991), following the merger. The topics covered include audio-visual materials and new technology, user education, staff training and development, word processing and automation in the library and Shane's involvement and activities in the wider profession.

The tenth Janet Doe Lecture, a forty-year perspective: still relevant after all these years.

Erich Meyerhoff was an academic health sciences librarian and a distinguished member of the Medical Library Association when he was invited to present the Janet Doe Lecture in 1977. His lecture on the state of the association is considered one of the finest Doe lectures and is still relevant more than forty years later, not only from an historical perspective, but also for his projections for the future and his prescient comments about the future of hospital librarianship and the important role of women in the association. Key 1977 Doe lecture topics are reviewed and updated in the context of the current health sciences library environment.

Medical history: as it was; as it will be.

Born shortly after World War I in 1919 and living through multiple wars, conflicts, and cultural changes in his ninety-six years, Erich Meyerhoff remained a student of history throughout his long life. He regularly attended the annual meetings of the American Association for the History of Medicine and other history groups such as the Medical Library Association's History of the Health Sciences well into his nineties. This essay traces how the field of history and historical methods changed during Erich's life and suggests that he saw history and librarianship as a means for achieving social justice and social equity.

Biblioteconomia: passado e presente de uma profissão / Library science: past and present of a profession

Biblioteconomia: passado e futuro de uma profissão' é um livro comemorativo, lançado após exatos 80 anos da criação do curso de Biblioteconomia que, em 1940, foi acolhido pela então Escola Livre de Sociologia e Política, num momento em que a cidade vivia uma expansão populacional, industrial e cultural e as bibliotecas se destacavam como polos de conhecimento. A presente obra se inicia com um panorama sobre o surgimento das bibliotecas no Brasil, descortinando aspectos históricos do nosso País de maneira instigante, culminando com a trajetória dos primeiros bibliotecários brasileiros, cuja imagem ainda estava muito ligada a guarda e preservação de acervos. No começo do século XX, a Biblioteca Nacional, sediada no Rio de Janeiro, começou a promover a capacitação de profissionais para organizar os acervos que proliferavam no País e em São Paulo. Duas personalidades são marcantes para o início dos cursos de Biblioteconomia: Rubens Borba de Moraes e Adelpha Figueiredo, cujo pioneirismo marcou profundamente a nossa história. E, falando em história, a obra apresenta a participação de Mário de Andrade no nascimento da biblioteconomia paulistana e o acolhimento pela Escola Livre, iniciando a longa e profícua formação de bibliotecários e bibliotecárias, com relatos das várias fases de formação, sempre acompanhando as necessidades da sociedade e os desafios que ela apresentava. O curso, ao longo de oito décadas, vem preparando profissionais capazes de atender às demandas informacionais da sociedade, seja nos ambientes mais tradicionais, seja em sistemas e serviços ligados à tecnologia e, nas últimas décadas, dos inúmeros desafios que a sociedade da informação e do conhecimento descortinam. E por falar em desafio, uma figura que representa muito bem essa palavra é Laura Russo. Uma mulher à frente do seu tempo, que foi responsável por muitas conquistas da profissão, dentre elas, sua regulamentação na década de 1960. Como nos relembra o presente livro "Junto com Rubens Borba de Moraes e Adelpha Figueiredo, Laura Russo forma a tríade fundadora da Biblioteconomia brasileira". Biblioteconomia essa que evoluiu e cujo mercado de atuação vem se ampliando e diversificando, do mais tradicional ao não explorado, como é muito bem descrito nesta obra, com destaque para o excelente panorama apresentado sobre o papel da biblioteca no século XXI.

[Law-making "pioneers" of scientometrics]. / A tudománymetria törvényalkotó "úttöroi".

The three much cited laws of scientometrics are the laws of Bradford, Lotka and Zipf. The authors briefly review the scientific career of the men behind the names, and that how they discovered the laws named after them. An outline is also given of the scientific aftermath of the laws and of the oeuvre of their eponym.

La Bibliotecología en dos tiempos / Library science at two moments in time

Con el objetivo de analizar el devenir histórico de la Bibliotecología en dos momentos particulares de su desarrollo, que resultan determinantes en su estructuración como espacio de conocimientos, se utilizó como punto de partida una división cronológica que responde a los períodos temporales en que transcurre la existencia de este campo, y se examinan en cada uno determinadas variables que inciden en su conformación y peculiaridades. El análisis se realizó mediante una investigación bibliográfica. Se identificaron dos tiempos en el desarrollo histórico de la Bibliotecología y se establecieron sus principales características y diferencias. La Bibliotecología como espacio de conocimiento se conformó bajo marcos temporales diversos y desiguales. La constitución formal de este espacio se inserta en el siglo XIX, donde confluyeron múltiples factores que facilitaron su establecimiento y que van desde su notable conexión con la práctica bibliotecaria hasta su postulación como disciplina de estudios. De otra parte, la renovación tecnológica y los cambios en el papel de la información caracterizadoras del siglo XX impulsaron el nacimiento de nuevas áreas de estudio en el campo informacional y documental; desde entonces, la Bibliotecología se inserta en un inevitable diálogo e intercambio con esos emergentes campos de conocimientos...

With the aim to analyze the history of library science at two particular moments of its development, which were decisive for its structuring as a knowledge area, the starting point used was a time line including the periods into which the history of library science is divided. Each period was examined using variables affecting their structure and distinguishing features. The analysis was based on bibliographic research. Two time points were selected along the historical development of library science, and their main characteristics and differences were identified. As a knowledge area, library science was shaped up along a variety of different time frames. From a formal point of view, library science emerged in the 19th century, when a large number of factors coincided which facilitated its development: from its notable relationship to library practice to its postulation as a study discipline. On the other hand, the technological advances and changes in the role of information witnessed by the 20th century fostered the emergence of new fields of study in the area of information and document analysis. Ever since then, library science has been involved in a permanent dialogue and exchange with those fields of study...

Information prescriptions, 1930-2013: an international history and comprehensive review.

OBJECTIVES: Recently, government agencies in several countries have promoted information prescription programs to increase patients' understanding of their conditions. The practice has a long history and many publications, but no comprehensive literature reviews such as this. METHODS: Using a variety of high-precision and high-recall strategies, the researcher searched two dozen online bibliographic databases, citation databases, and repositories, as well as many print sources, to identify and retrieve documents for review. Of these documents, ninety relevant English-language case reports, research reports, and reviews published from 1930-2013 met the study criteria. RESULTS: Early to mid-twentieth century reports covered long-standing practices and used no rigorous research methods. The literature since the mid-1990s reports on short-term trial projects, especially of government-sponsored programs in the United States and United Kingdom. Although the concept of information prescription has been in the literature and practiced for decades, no long-term research studies were found. CONCLUSIONS: Most of the literature is anecdotal concerning small pilot projects. The reports investigate physician, patient, and librarian satisfaction but not changes in patient knowledge or behavior. Many twenty-first century projects emphasize materials and projects from specific government agencies and commercial enterprises. IMPLICATIONS: While the practice is commonly believed to be a good idea and there are many publications on the subject, few studies provide any evidence of the efficacy of information prescriptions for increased patient knowledge. Well-designed and executed large or long-term studies might produce needed evidence for professional practice.

International trends in health science librarianship Part 10: The Greater China area.

This is the 10th in a series of articles exploring international trends in health science librarianship. This issue describes developments in health science librarianship in the first decade of the 21st century in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. The next issue will report on Japan and South Korea. JM.

Presentation of the 2009 Morris F Collen Award to Betsy L Humphreys, with remarks from the recipient.

The American College of Medical Informatics is an honorary society established to recognize those who have made sustained contributions to the field. Its highest award, for lifetime achievement and contributions to the discipline of medical informatics, is the Morris F Collen Award. Dr Collen's own efforts as a pioneer in the field stand out as the embodiment of creativity, intellectual rigor, perseverance, and personal integrity. The Collen Award, given once a year, honors an individual whose attainments have, throughout a whole career, substantially advanced the science and art of biomedical informatics. In 2009, the college was proud to present the Collen Award to Betsy Humphreys, MLS, deputy director of the National Library of Medicine. Ms Humphreys has dedicated her career to enabling more effective integration and exchange of electronic information. Her work has involved new knowledge sources and innovative strategies for advancing health data standards to accomplish these goals. Ms Humphreys becomes the first librarian to receive the Collen Award. Dr Collen, on the occasion of his 96th birthday, personally presented the award to Ms Humphreys.

Estelle Brodman: educator extraordinaire.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this article is to describe the educational contributions of Estelle Brodman PhD, to medical librarianship. METHODS: The article is based on a comprehensive search of Dr. Brodman's articles, a review of her two Medical Library Association oral history interviews, and personal recollections. FINDINGS: This article documents the educational contributions of Dr. Brodman, a librarian, researcher, and educator who had a significant and lasting impact on the education of medical librarians through more than fifty years of concentrated effort.

La enseñanza bibliotecológica en Cuba: orígenes y factores condicionantes / Library science teaching in Cuba: origins and determinants

Se caracteriza el entorno socioeconómico, cultural e informativo que influyó en el surgimiento de la enseñanza bibliotecológica en Cuba. Se examina el panorama informativo a nivel mundial en el que se inserta el origen de la formación de bibliotecarios cubanos. Se considera la dependencia política y económica del país con los Estados Unidos como elemento esencial del que se deriva el atraso sociocultural. Se describe el deplorable escenario educacional y editorial, así como la situación de las bibliotecas republicanas. Se exponen los primeros proyectos e iniciativas que pretendieron establecer este tipo de enseñanza enmarcados en el contexto descrito. Se presentan los cursos que constituyeron el preámbulo de la Escuela de Bibliotecarios de la Universidad de La Habana.

A characterization is made of the socioeconomic, cultural and informative environment that influenced on the appearance of Library Science teaching in Cuba. An assessment is made of the information panorama worldwide, in which the origin of the training of Cuban librarians is inserted. The economic and political dependence of our country of the United States is considered an essential element from which the sociocultural backwardness derived. The deplorable editorial and educational setting is described, as well as the situation of the republican libraries. An exposition is made of the first projects and initiatives that intended to establish this type of teaching in the described context. The courses that constituted the preamble of the School of Librarians of the University of Havana are presented.

Constants, context, and change: the pursuit of purpose.

PURPOSE: This lecture addresses the history and philosophy of librarianship, in general, and medical librarianship, in particular. The author discusses the profession and attempts to set its place in the context of the social and cultural worlds in which we function and in the context of the professions which we serve. DISCUSSION: Goals are identified that are common and immutable. Examined are the changing methods by which we meet these ends, particularly the impact of technology and other factors on how we function now and in the future. Change itself is identified as the one constant of which we can be certain. That we strive and achieve is because of a sense of purpose that has guided so many of our profession's leaders. Acknowledging an embarrassment of riches, I point to the achievements of some of the most notable of my colleagues and friends, as examples of what such an extraordinary dedication to the pursuit of purpose makes possible. CONCLUSIONS: So long as we maintain this pursuit of purpose, which is, as Estelle Brodman said of the pursuit of excellence, a statement of faith in ourselves, our future is secure.