Spring has sprung! We’ve been busy here in Library Services and we are excited to share our updates with you. This month’s update includes a retirement announcement from a long-time staff member, information on navigating federal health data and misinformation, and a tool you can use to keep your research organized. Let's spring right in!

Pamela Barnard smiling.

Pamela Barnard retired April 1st

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Congratulations to Pamela Barnard on her retirement! Pam’s last day was Tuesday, April 1st.  

Pam has been with Allina Health for 30 years as a Knowledge Consultant Librarian. Pam supported and served countless numbers of clinicians, leaders, staff, patients, and families throughout Allina Health.  

Her expertise, insights, kindness, humor, and hard work ethic have made her an amazing colleague and friend. Pam’s strong connections and foundational knowledge will be greatly missed.  We are excited for her to start her next chapter. 

 

Navigating Changes in Federal Health Data Access

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There are many questions and much uncertainty around the state of health data from the CDC and other health departments. Library Services is here to help you in the ever-changing federal government landscape.

The New England Journal of Medicine published “Disappearing Data at the U.S. Federal Government | New England Journal of Medicine” last month, offering their perspective on this topic and its possible consequences.  

What we know

  • Many data sets were removed and/or altered.
  • Some of these data sets were made available after court decisions. Find more specifics about this on the STAT website, an online newspaper reporting on health, medicine, and life sciences.
  • There are resources available to find missing data sets, or other data sets that may suffice for your research purposes.

How can I access removed data sets or other health information?

  • STAT and the Internet Archive, another online resource, have archives of federal health data sets. However, these platforms are not the easiest to use. Library Services is here to help you find potential alternatives. Email us at library@allina.com.

More information

Check out our new subject guide: Health Misinformation

From our media ecosystem to dinner table conversations, health misinformation is pervasive in our lives. It is more important than ever to be alert and respond to health misinformation to keep our patients, our communities, and ourselves safe and healthy.

Library Services can help you do that. Our new Health Misinformation subject guide is full of resources to help you address health misinformation. 

Spring Cleaning with Zotero

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Spring is a time for cleaning. Do you need to clean up your research? Zotero is a free, easy-to use tool to help you collect, organize, annotate, cite, and share research.  With Zotero you can:

  • Obtain citations about any websites or references with a single click.  
  • Research can be sorted into collections and tagged with keywords.  
  • References and bibliographies can be seamlessly added to any text editor including Word, LibreOffice, and Google Docs.  
  • Zotero lets you build a collaborative bibliography and share a library with as many people as needed at no costs. 

For more information about Zotero, visit our Citation Tools page or request training by emailing library@allina.com. 

That is all for our April update! To learn about how Allina Health Library Services can make your work easier, visit our Library Services webpage or email us at Library@allina.com.