Around the Region

Spokane Medical Library
As of January 1, 1997, the Spokane Medical Library is no longer affiliated with Washington State University Spokane. The contractual agreement between WSUS and the Spokane County Medical Society came to an end on December 31, 1996. For all purposes, there is no longer an SML.

The SML collection <43+ titles/10 year runs> were gifted to WSUS and CALS which is a joint-use library of Washington State University Spokane and Eastern Washington University. We will maintain this collection , we'll also add our WSU/CALS and EWU/CALS health science titles to our Serhold list. We will continue to be a Docline participant and maintain all other local and regional health science library ties. Instead of referring to us as the SML, just replace it with CALS!

submitted by Kathy Schwanz

ILL Charges Instituted
Effective March 15, 1997, Bastyr University will begin charging $8.00 for filling interlibrary loan requests to all lenders. For a very long time, we have been a net lender, and had not been charging for ILLs to health science and public libraries. Now it is becoming apparent that it is necessary for us to institute this policy. Thank you for your understanding.

BASTYR UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
library@bastyr.edu

New address and phone:
14500 Juanita Dr NE
Bothell WA 98011
206-602-3020

website: http://www.bastyr.edu (Library subdirectory)

Oregon Consumer Health Alliance
A group of Oregon medical librarians have been meeting since 1995 to discuss the creation of an Oregon consumer health library on the Internet. Named the Oregon Consumer Health Alliance, this project includes representatives from Oregon Health Sciences University, the VA Medical Center in Portland, Tuality Hospital in Hillsboro, and Willamette Falls Hospital in Oregon City. Incorporated in January, 1997 as an Oregon not-for-profit corporation, the OCHA is committed to empowering Oregon citizens to become healthier through cost-effective delivery of consumer health information on the Internet.

The Columbia-Willamette Area Health Education Center, one of the five regional AHEC sites in Oregon, has agreed to support OCHA through participation as its fiscal agent. The Oregon AHEC is a network of five regional sites for the education and training of current and future health care providers, and for the provision of health education programs for the public. The OCHA is currently seeking funding from a variety of granting agencies, although it eventually anticipates that the project will be self-sustaining as it brings in new members.

The collaborating institutions have agreed to promote patient usage of these services by incorporating this initiative into their current preventive health care strategy. This will include making physicians aware of this new resource, distributing information through newsletters, and by printed brochures.

For further information about the project, contact:

• Natalie Norcross (norcross@ohsu.edu)
• Jim Morgan (morgan@ohsu.edu)
• Elizabeth Wood (woode@ohsu.edu)
• Margaret Connors (connorsm@ohsu.edu)
• Mara Wilhelm (wilhelm.mara_r@portland.va.gov)
• Kathy Martin (martink@teleport.com)
• John Webber (103160.3137@compuserve.com)

submitted by Kathy Martin, Medical Librarian
Willamette Falls Hospital