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Medical Libraries and Hurricane Katrina

MLA continues to collect information and this Website serves as a clearinghouse and information resource for the many efforts our members have made to support their friends and neighbors.

MLA has collected more than $14,055 in donations for hurricane relief as of July 19.

As always, the MLA Board wants to hear ideas you may have about how to help friends and colleagues. Please send ideas to President Jean P. Shipman, AHIP, or to Executive Director Carla J. Funk, CAE.

To top of page MLA Efforts

Relief awards:

MLA individual members, member libraries, and chapter member libraries adversely affected by Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, or Wilma can apply, through September 1, 2006, for a monetary award up to a maximum of $2,500. Link to eligibility and use requirements, criteria, and an application form [PDF]. Posted 2/23/06

Fundraising:

MLA established the Medical Library Disaster Relief Fund to raise money specifically for medical libraries impacted by the hurricane. To contribute to this fund, visit the MLANET secure donation site [link removed], or make a check out to the Medical Library Association and note that it is for the Medical Library Disaster Relief Fund. Mail your check to: MLA, 36348 Treasury Center, Chicago, IL 60694-6300. Donations are acknowledged on MLANET.

MLA has cooperated with its chapters to collect donations for the fund to help medical libraries:

  • The Midwest Chapter collected donations at its September 2005 chapter meeting in Fargo, ND.
  • The South Central Chapter of MLA initiated a red wristband fundraiser at its October 2005 meeting. The wristbands, imprinted with "Relieve, Recover, Rebuild," netted more than $1,400 in donations.
  • Proceeds from the sale of Librarians Who Lunch!, a collection of 250 recipes from librarians and friends of the Sauls Memorial Library, Piedmont Hospital, Atlanta, GA, benefit the MLA Medical Library Disaster Relief Fund for victims of Hurricane Katrina. The cookbook is $10. A check payable to MLA Disaster Relief Fund can be sent to Sauls Memorial Library, Piedmont Hospital, 1968 Peachtree Road NW, Atlanta Georgia 30309. Or, place an order by calling 404.605.3305 or sending an email to sauls@piedmont.org.
Dues relief:

The MLA Board of Directors approved giving free 2006 MLA memberships to the twenty-nine MLA individual members and four MLA institutional members located in the areas most impacted by Hurricane Katrina. MLA is also holding hard copies of the MLA News and Journal of the Medical Library Association for those unable to receive mail and will send copies to the affected areas as soon as possible.

To top of page Poster Presented at MLA '06

Libraries and Disaster Preparedness and Recovery: Making Your Library a Safer Place to Be During a Natural Disaster and Making It Easier for Your Library to Recover from a Natural Disaster

Darcel A. Bryant, AHIP, associate librarian, Louis Stokes Health Sciences Library, Howard University, Washington, DC

Objective:

To provide an overview of the library's role in an event of a natural disaster. The information includes options and strategies to help staff develop or improve disaster preparedness at a library.

Methods:

This electronic poster gives a description of the damage that occurred in many libraries that resulted from a flood, earthquake, hurricane, or tornado. These disasters happened in various parts of the United States between 1994 and 2001. In each case, the disasters had a profound affect on library services and materials. That is why it is imperative for every library (no matter the location, size, or type) to take steps to develop a disaster preparedness plan or update present plans. Included is a list of libraries with disaster plans in place. There were many lessons learned from the aftermath of the library disasters. This information will provide some of those lessons, which can be helpful with planning, staff training, and recovery from a natural disaster at a library.

Link to electronic poster file (PowerPoint, 1.02 MB) | Link to bibliography [PDF]

To top of page Other Assistance

Free Journals
  • The Harrison Medical Library at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, Baltimore, MD, is discarding its bound journals, including those titles that have current issues. Link to the list of available bound journals [PDF]. If you are in need of journals on this list, please contact Linda Gorman. Posted May 10, 2006.
  • The West Virginia University (WVU) Health Sciences Library–Morgantown has collected duplicate journals for libraries impacted by Hurricane Katrina. Link to the list of available unbound journals [PDF]. If you need journal replacements, please contact Jean Siebert, AHIP, 304.293.1920 or Susanne Rasmussen 304.293.1932. Through a grant from MLA, the journals will be mailed library rate to those in need free of charge. Posted June 6, 2006.

PubZilla, a specialized auction site for back volumes/issues of biomedical serials, is offering unlimited free use of its site for donating journals to hurricane impacted libraries.

Absolute Backorder Service will offer all libraries that lost serial back volumes due to Hurricane Katrina free replacements, with no obligation. Every volume and issue in its inventory will be shipped at no charge. This program takes effect immediately for qualified libraries and continue through December 2007. Absolute's IT staff is also working on a database to post all available donations in one location for libraries in need. This too will be offered at no charge to those affected by the devastating hurricane.

The Arnold P. Gold Foundation has formed a Katrina Assistance Fund. The foundation is accepting proposals for grants of up to $5,000 for service projects in any location where there is a substantial need for assistance to victims of Hurricane Katrina. Such projects may include direct medical aid to evacuees or non-medical assistance to both victims and those adversely affected by this disaster.

The National Cancer Institute, Frederick, ND, offers aid (lab/office space, technology training, etc.) to colleagues and their families at universities and institutions affected by Katrina.

National Network of Libraries of Medicine, South Central Region (SCR) has a Hurricane Katrina in the SCR blog to assist communication efforts among network members. To post a comment, click on the Comments link beneath message.

To top of page Ways You Can Help

  • Partner with your local public library to provide resources for the affected communities, including Internet access.
  • Open your electronic classrooms or computer labs for public access to computers.
  • Hold on to old journals and books that can be donated after cleanup efforts and restoration are complete.
  • Adopt a library or find a buddy library: an academic library paired with a hospital library in the affected areas is particularly helpful.

To top of page Medical Facilities in the Disaster Area

A list of hospitals and medical centers negatively impacted by Hurricane Katrina and links, where available, to facility Websites.

To top of page Allied Resources

American Hospital Association (AHA) Website: AHA is working with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and other national and state hospital associations to help coordinate medical relief efforts for affected hospitals and patients.

Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) Website: This site was established to serve as a central information resource for medical schools, students, teaching hospitals, and residents and to facilitate coordination between academic medicine and the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Disaster Response Bibliography: This annotated bibliography from the American Library Association offers selective resource for libraries of all sizes and types. It contains links to disaster preparedness Websites whose primary role is emergency response or conservation.

Information Resources: Cavan McCarthy, assistant professor at the School of Library and Information Science, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, has posted information resources and a "Librarian's Index to the Internet" that lists flood cleanup, among other relevant topics.

National Institutes of Health (NIH) Website: NIH's response to the devastation and links to health-information resources, including "Coping with Hurricane Katrina" and "Information About Coping with Traumatic Events," from the National Institute of Mental Health.

  • In the National Library of Medicine's (NLM) ongoing effort to assist those libraries in need, NLM announced on January 18, 2006, that it will continue to provide free ILL requests through the April–June 2006 billing quarter for libraries impacted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. NLM and the Regional Medical Libraries (RMLs) will re-evaluate the situation again in July 2006 to determine which libraries might need continued assistance for the July–September 2006 billing quarter. NLM has provided 1,374 free ILL requests since the July–September 2005 billing quarter. Download a PDFs of the initial letter [PDF] from Martha Fishel, deputy chief, Public Services Division, and the updated announcement [PDF] from Mary Hollerich, head, Collection Access Section.
  • Office of Extramural Research has setup a Website for the biomedical research community that posts notices on NIH-funded research projects and deadline extensions.

SOLINET: Hosted by the not-for-profit library cooperative serving the Southeastern United States and the Caribbean, the site offers information on collection salvage and recovery, emergency grants, and links to assistance.

State of Louisiana: Links for replacing documents, library job opportunities, local newspapers, rebuilding progress reports, and more.

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) and VCU Health Systems: VCU faculty, staff, and students at have established a Website on behalf of victims of Hurricane Katrina.

To top of page Other Library Association Websites

American Association of Law Libraries (AALL)
American Library Association, including American Libraries Online news coverage.
Special Libraries Association (SLA)
Thanks to Rittenhouse for their sponsorship of the MLA Website!
Thanks to Mosby's Nursing Index for their sponsorship of the MLA Website!
Thanks to American Psychiatric Publishing for their sponsorship of the MLA Website!