On May 2, 2018, the library received the Outstanding Service to the Allied Health Professions award. This award recognizes extraordinary contributions in health care, education or service that result in the significant advancement of the College and the allied health professions. As one nominator said, “It is difficult to find a faculty and staff that works so hard and is as dedicated to the mission of the University of Nebraska Medical Center. Having the understanding of current practice in learning, education and assessment allows the library to provide services to all stakeholders.” Other nominators noted the library’s involvement in technologies, such as 3D printing and the DigitalCommons repository, and promotion of scholarly activity.

As you look up at University Hospital’s historic façade, you might ponder what has happened throughout the years, within the hospital’s walls and beyond. The forthcoming 10,000-square-foot Wigton Heritage Center will celebrate and memorialize UNMC's and Nebraska’s health sciences history, while also serving as a campus welcome center.. The library will be instrumental in the creation of exhibits, which will include photographs, documents, artifacts, and rare books from the library’s special collections. The Heritage Center will also include a welcome center, coffee shop, information and formal gathering spaces, and an outdoor garden plaza. Major funding has been committed by Robert Wigton, M.D., College of Medicine alumnus and professor of internal medicine, who is also known as the unofficial UNMC historian.

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The library’s plans for a new and improved space continue to move forward. We are excited for a 268% increase in study rooms. We will furnish 44 individual rooms with improved soundproofing—a great increase over our current 16 rooms. We will also add three more wellness rooms, for a total of four spaces to relax and recharge. The library will benefit from natural lighting by replacing two exterior concrete panels with windows, and designated areas for quiet and noisy study will have updated furniture, including height-adjustable options. Our technology spaces will be improved too, including a more open 3D printing and makerspace lab.

 

Also located within the renovated library:

The McGoogan Library has a long history of instructing UNMC College of Medicine (COM) students on best methods to search the literature. Recent changes in medical education at the national level have provided new opportunities for libraries to participate in the curriculum using a more integrated approach. The UNMC COM joined the American Medical Association’s Accelerating Change in Medical Education Consortium in 2015 and has since been redesigning its curriculum to meet the learning and knowledge needs of future healthcare professionals. The Training the Physicians of Tomorrow curriculum makes sure students are prepared for the changing expectations they’ll face as physicians in the 21 ^st Century.

Students in the Class of 2021 were the first to take part in the new curriculum, which began in August 2017. This class is currently working through Phase 1, which lasts 18 months. The Class of 2022 will start Phase 1 in August 2018. Phase 1 is divided into blocks organized by organ systems of the body, where students learn about the normal structures of the organ systems, then pathologic and clinical manifestations of disease in those systems. Phases 2 and 3 will cover Clinical Applications and Career Preparation.

The library is involved with the curriculum through the Inquiry Coil. This travels through the entire curriculum and is meant to give students “knowledge of and proficiency in inquiry, including skills involved in the practice of evidence-based medicine.” Teri Hartman, Education & Research Services Librarian, is the Inquiry Coil Director. She and the library’s Education & Research Services team lead the creation of learning modules and events for the coil. For Phase 1, the team developed Inquiry learning modules integrated for Orientation, and for Fundamentals, Musculoskeletal, and Gastrointestinal Blocks. Librarians are developing learning modules and events that will be integrated into Phase 2 and Phase 3.

A new research guide supports students’ Inquiry Coil-related work. The Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM) Resources guide is available on the library’s website.

Have you ever heard the story about Dr. Harry McFadden’s medical school interview with College of Medicine Dean Charles Poynter? Or about Dr. Myrna Newland’s experience working in a medical library? Oral histories at UNMC bring to life the experiences of our leading figures from the past and present. Beginning in the 1980’s, former library director Bernice Hetzner and Dr. Frank Menolascino conducted several oral histories which have been digitized by the library and Dr. Robert Wigton, who continued conducting oral histories in the early 2000s. Now, the library is capturing additional stories from UNMC leaders and providing online access to the videos and transcripts. Recent histories include Dr. James Armitage, Virginia Grissom, Dr. Gerald Moore, Dr. James Newland, Dr. Myrna Newland and Dr. Rowen Zetterman. Upcoming interviews to be released include Mary Haven, Dr. Rosalee Yeaworth, Dr. Robert Wigton, and Dr. David Crouse.

For the past few semesters, the library has hosted wellness events for students as they prepared for final exams. One of the most popular activities has been pet therapy, where a group of friendly canines are brought in to socialize with students who want to take a break from studying to enjoy some puppy love. Student feedback on pet therapy has been overwhelmingly positive, with many stating that the dogs reminded them of their own pets and made them feel more at home.

At the end of the spring 2018 semester, the library brought a few new animals into the fold. Kittens, penguins and others were broadcast live, frolicking in their natural environments.  Library staff would often find students sitting in a chair watching the streaming activities. In addition to feeding the soul, the library offered free healthy snacks such as fruit and granola bars for anyone looking for a boost.

The library offers wellness activities throughout the year to help relieve stress and keep students energized throughout the day. Some ongoing services include coloring stations where students can express their creativity, as well as massage chairs and a Reflection Room for meditation and yoga.

Danielle Drummond was awarded the Special Library Association Pharmaceutical & Health Technologies $1500 Student Travel Award to attend their conference in June 2018.

 

Alissa Fial co-authored the following papers:

 

 

 

DiAnna Hemsath began her work as Archives Associate in Special Collections.

 

Christian Minter

 

Emily Glenn

McGoogan Library of Medicine

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