Medical Library Association
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| Medical Library Association | |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1898 |
| Type | Non-profit |
| Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois |
| Membership | 3,600 individual members and 1,100 institutions |
| Website | Medical Library Association |
The Medical Library Association (MLA) is a nonprofit, educational organization with more than 4,000 health sciences information professional members and partners worldwide.
Its mission states, "The Medical Library Association is organized exclusively for scientific and educational purposes, and is dedicated to the support of health sciences research, education, and patient care. MLA fosters excellence in the professional achievement and leadership of health sciences library and information professionals to enhance the quality of health care, education, and research."[1]
Contents |
[edit] History
Founded on May 2, 1898, by four librarians and four physicians, the Association of Medical Librarians, as it was known until 1907, was founded “to encourage the improvement and increase of public medical libraries.”[2] MLA is the second oldest special library association in the United States. Two of the eight founding members were actually Canadians, William Osler and Margaret Ridley Charlton.
The now-defunct MLA Exchange was one of the founders’ earliest and most important projects, helping build medical libraries in the United States and many other countries by exchanging duplicate publications. The organization has subsequently developed a variety of programs to serve the needs of health information specialists.
[edit] Membership
MLA's members are more than 1,100 institutions and 3,600 individuals in the health sciences information field worldwide, though - as many other countries now have their own national health library organizations - it now primarily represents health sciences libraries and librarians in the United States.
Membership is structured to accommodate varying needs and professional status of a diverse field of practitioners. Categories include Regular Membership, Institutional Membership, International Membership, Affiliate Membership and Student Membership.
[edit] Academy of Health Information Professionals
The Academy of Health Information Professionals (AHIP) is MLA's peer-reviewed professional development and career recognition program. The Academy recognizes the personal investment of time and effort required for exemplary professional performance and for contributions to the association and to the profession.
[edit] Governance & Structure
MLA is governed by a board of directors. The President, President-Elect, Immediate Past President, seven Directors elected by the membership at large, and Chairs of the Chapter and Section Councils shall serve as Voting Members of the Board of Directors. The President shall serve as Chair of the Board of Directors and shall not vote except to make or to break a tie. The Executive Director shall serve as a Nonvoting Member of the Board of Directors.
[edit] Chapters
Fourteen geographic groups within the United States are currently affiliated with MLA. These Chapters provide a vital link to the programs and services of the Association; they are open to both MLA members and non-members.
[edit] Sections
Twenty-three MLA sections represent the varied subfields and areas of specialization of the association’s membership. Sections meet at the Annual Meeting and share information during the year through listserv communication, informal networking, and newsletters.[3] Examples of MLA Sections include: Cancer Libraries, Hospital Libraries, Medical Informatics, Public Health/Health Administration, Research, and Veterinary Medical Libraries.[4]
[edit] Special Interest Groups
According to the MLA Section Council's Special Interest Group Manual, "MLA Special Interest Groups (SIGs) provide a forum for members with unique interests to identify and meet with others with similar interests without having to fulfill the governance requirements of Sections. SIGs are generally created as less formal and more flexible organizational units, with the advantages of fewer reporting and no minimum membership requirements".[5]
[edit] Activities
[edit] Career Development
MLA offers career services for health sciences information professionals, students attending library school programs, and those interested in learning more about a career as a medical librarian. MLA offers programs to improve the knowledge and skills of its own members, and provide continuing education and credentialing to its members.
[edit] Cunningham Fellowship
The Cunningham Fellowship is an award for health sciences librarians from countries outside the United States and Canada. The award provides for attendance at the MLA Annual Meeting and observation and supervised work in one or more medical libraries in the United States and Canada.
[edit] Librarians without Borders
MLA believes that key elements in improved health for all peoples are the ability of each nation to strengthen and build health sciences information capacity through qualified health sciences librarians, implementation of supporting technological infrastructure, and access to quality information. MLA supports capacity building programs at the association, section, chapter, and individual member level. MLA believes that building capacity will be most effective and long-lasting when partnerships are created with groups sharing similar goals, particularly partnerships with international agencies where shared goals intersect with available expertise and infrastructure. MLA is an official supporting organisation of HIFA2015 (Healthcare Information For All by 2015), a global initiative that aims to improve the availability and use of reliable healthcare information in low-income countries.
[edit] Publications
Journal of the Medical Library Association MLA's quarterly, peer-reviewed scholarly journal.
MLA-FOCUS A bimonthly electronic newsletter for MLA members.
MLA News A monthly newsletter for members and subscribers that covers MLA products and services, news about the profession, and articles that impart practical, on-the-job wisdom.
Books Expert information that provides insights into best practices.
BibKits Selective, annotated bibliographies of discrete subject areas in the health sciences literature.
DocKits Collections of representative, unedited library documents from a variety of institutions that illustrate the range of approaches to library management.
[edit] Conferences and Meetings
Attendees at MLA’s annual meeting present and discuss scholarly papers, applied research, and issues in health sciences information management. Professionals with specific interests in related fields such as medical informatics come together to address topics of timely importance. Educational sessions are complemented by an exhibit featuring more than 100 vendors of appropriate products and services. The first MLA annual meeting was in 1898, in Philadelphia, PA.
[edit] Past Annual Meetings
1997 Seattle, WA
1996 Kansas City, MO
1995 Washington, DC
1994 San Antonio, TX
1993 Chicago, IL
1992 Washington, DC
1991 San Francisco, CA
1990 Detroit, MI
1989 Boston, MA
1988 New Orleans, LA
1987 Portland, OR
1986 Minneapolis, MN
1985 New York, NY
1984 Denver, CO
1983 Houston, TX
1982 Anaheim, CA
1981 Montreal, PQ, Canada
1980 Washington, DC
1979 Honolulu, HI
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.mlanet.org/about/mission.html
- ^ (George Gould: Medical Libraries1:4 May 1898 pp 15-19)
- ^ http://www.mlanet.org/sections
- ^ http://www.mlanet.org/sections/sections.html
- ^ http://scouncil.mlanet.org/blogs/sigs/sigmanual/
[edit] Further reading
Connor J. (2000). Guardians of medical knowledge : the genesis of the Medical Library Association Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 0-8108-3470-7
[edit] External links
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