by Marcy Horner

 

By this time, most of us who work with computers on a daily basis have heard so much about the Y2K bug that we have begun to tune out the end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it hype. We hope the "experts" are hard at work at the problem and will have everything fixed by the time it affects our personal work or home life. We've become Y2K complacent.

 

I'm not usually one to yell fire in crowded theater, or to imagine worst-case scenarios for every situation, but I am truly concerned about the impact Y2K will have on our ability to provide healthcare information. We have become so dependent on our connections to each other for resource sharing that we are very vulnerable. Most of us work in institutions that rely on multiple vendors for our information systems which increases the probability of failure.

At a recent hearing of the special Senate Committee on the Year 2000 problem, Rx2000 director Joel Ackerman stated, "Some health care institutions intend to rely almost entirely on vendor assurances of compliance, even though experience has proven these to be unreliable." A survey completed by a national law firm estimates that 87 percent of U.S. healthcare institutions are in danger of computer system failures.

 

Some of our institutions have begun to implement Y2K compliance plans, and most are looking closely at patient critical systems, but in the short time we have left to prepare, I believe library systems may well be overlooked. What steps can we take, as professional librarians, to insure that we will be able to effectively fulfill our mission to our patrons on January 1, 2000?

 

Step one is to become educated about potential problems in your library. There are a number of excellent web sites dedicated to informing the public about the Y2K timebomb, some specific to healthcare issues. Checkout www.rx2000.org; this site has a good "self-help" section, a speaker's bureau, and some examples of plans used by other hospitals. Another good site is www.y2Klinks.com. If you want to get really nervous, try www.tickticktick.com

 

Step two is to inventory all of your potential Y2K problems. The obvious issue of circulation or other application software packages that use a two-digit date is just one area of possible failure. Embedded chips and programs that use the date field in an internal error-checking algorithm are often more difficult to detect and correct. Your inventory list should include bar code readers, routers, hubs, network cards, printers, copy machines, fax equipment, security systems, and modems, as well as PCs and all of your software programs.

 

Step three is to check with your vendors to determine if they have tested their hardware and software for Y2K compliance. There are sample vendor letters available on the www.rx2000.org web site. You'll want to keep a hardcopy of your vendor's responses to your query. Don't be surprised if you don't get a quick answer, most vendors are swamped with requests. In the meantime, you can check your vendor's web sites to see if they have posted their test results. The FDA maintains a website for health-related manufacturers at www.fda.gov/cdrh/yr2000/y2Kprblm.html, most of these postings concern direct patient care equipment.

 

Step four is to have your equipment tested. Your institution should have a testing policy in place. There are a number of testing programs available on the web or in retail stores. If you don't know your way around your PC, have a specialist or consultant do this. THIS CAN BE DISASTROUS IF YOU DO IT WRONG!

 

Step five is to develop a contingency plan. What can you do to provide information without your computers? (Remember when we used to do that all the time?) Time for some serious collection development decisions. Are your hardcopy reference materials up-to-date? Do you have an adequate journal collection on-site for your mission critical services? How can you provide drug and emergency information?

 

Step six is to cross your fingers and pray ;-) (And stock up on firewood, candles, fresh water and canned goods.)

---

Table of Contents