St. Louis Medical LibrariansEvaluation of the 1997-1998 Strategic PlanMISSION The mission of the St. Louis Medical Librarians is to facilitate health care information access and delivery in the greater St. Louis area and to promote the professional development of its members. GOAL I. Facilitate the development, implementation, and evaluation of programs and resources, which support easy access, and prompt delivery of health care information. OBJECTIVE I.l - By March 1997 the SLML Union List of Serials will be published. The Union List was published and distributed. Forty-three paper copies and two fiche copies were produced. Income was $3,100. Expenses were $3,274.30 for production costs plus $108 update labor charges. The Library Systems Service Manager at WU made documentation for PHILSOM, PHILNET, BACS and the Union List Update available via the WWW. The URL is: http://medicine.wustl.edu/~libsys/. The UL Committee is working with the LSS staff to see if it is feasible to make the UL available via the Web. OBJECTIVE I.2 - By December 1996 determine the feasibility, cost, interest and need for SLML to maintain its own Web site. It was decided to get an Internet account at Washington University and develop a web page for the organization. A committee was formed and a web page was designed. The URL for it is http://medicine.wustl.edu/~slml/. It includes a member’s directory, the organization’s procedural manual, a page of institutional and individual member’s web pages, and other pages. We are using the services of current members of the organization to maintain the web page. The Web Committee continues to evaluate and update the pages on the site. Input is always welcome. OBJECTIVE I.3 - By June 1997 identify analytical tools to help librarians evaluate purchases. It was previously determined that the Cooperative Collection Development process was good, but a formal structure and goals were needed. The committee did not meet this year. It will continue its efforts this coming year. OBJECTIVE I.4 - The Board will appoint a strategic planning committee, as the need is determined, but not more than five years from now. A committee was not formed. GOAL II. Promote the professional development of SLML members. The Continuing Education Committee hosted one CE program and will host another CE program on June 13, 1997. The Program Committee hosted five programs throughout the year. OBJECTIVE II.1 - By September 1995 SLML will identify and regularly disseminate information about relevant education opportunities. No report. OBJECTIVE II.2 - By September 1996 the CE committee will identify the perceived skills and knowledge needed for the professional development of its members from the Strategic Planning committeešs survey and identify and plan for appropriate educational opportunities for the 1996/7 calendar year. The Education Committee planned two CE courses and coordinated a satellite videoconference. "Power and Influence", was presented on April 8, and "Surviving the InfoGLUT" will be presented on June 13, at St. Luke’s Hospital. Both programs were also advertised to and attended by members of the St. Louis Metro SLA. "The Future for Librarians: Positioning Yourself for Success", an MLA/SLA/AALL/LEXIS-NEXIS videoconference was held on March 20, the Southwestern Bell’s Telecommunity Center on UMSL’s campus. We were the only downlink site in the area, and members of the St. Louis Metro SLA and the American Association of Law Libraries also attended the program. The Program Committee hosted five programs during the year. They were:
A SLML Discussion Group was also formed to allow members to discuss the day to day operations of a medical library. Two meetings were held, in conjunction with the February and April program. It is hoped that this level of group sharing will continue. OBJECTIVE II.3 - During the 1996-97 year, SLML will identify and recognize members who have made significant contributions to the organization and the profession. Nominations were solicited. The organization awarded Length of Service awards and the Service Award. Certificates for participation on SLML committees were distributed. OBJECTIVE II.4 - By September 1997 prepare and hold the MCMLA Annual Meeting in St. Louis. The MCMLA Planning Committee was formed. The meeting will be held September 27-30, 1997, at the Holiday Inn-Clayton. A Welcome Reception will be held Sunday night at the Library Ltd. in Clayton. CE’s will be held on Saturday and Sunday, with the meeting’s sessions to be held on Monday and Tuesday. Exhibitors will show their wares on Monday and Tuesday also. Exhibitor’s Luncheons are scheduled for Monday and Tuesday also. Guests include local celebrities Julius Hunter and Ray Hartmann. There is a web page for information about the meeting. The URL is http://medicine.wustl.edu/~slml/MCMLA97/. GENERIC STRATEGIES A. FINANCE To support its mission, SLML will generate income from multiple sources, operate in a fiscally sound manner, and allocate resources to programs and committees. The Treasurer of the SLML submitted a budget. Dues and other income was collected and accounted for. Expenses were paid. A Finance Committee was not named. B. HUMAN RESOURCES To support its mission, SLML will identify and select individuals possessing the appropriate knowledge and skills to perform the assigned responsibilities and tasks. The Membership Committee did not exist this year. The President, the Immediate Past-President, and the Treasurer performed the duties of the committee. Memberships were renewed and dues collected. The Directory was published and distributed in print for and on the SLML Web Page. Changes to the Directory were forwarded to the Newsletter. A description of the organization was sent to the Web Committee Chairperson and the LSS Manager for distribution on the Web and on PHILNET. No action was taken on the member’s nametags. The Nominating Committee solicited candidates for officers for 1997-98 and an election was held. C. COMMUNICATION To support its mission, SLML will develop and maintain a communications program and network to communicate its services, products, members, and health information. The Newsletter was published four times in 1996-97. The final issue is due in July 1997. The Newsletter was also published on the SLML Web Page. An e-mail mailing list is available to the members of the organization who have access to the Internet. You can subscribe by sending an e-mail message to listserv@stenosis.wustl.edu. Leave the Subject field blank and, in the body of the message, type "subscribe slml-l Russ Monika", without the quotes and using your name instead of mine. To send a message to everyone on the list, send the e-mail message to slml-l@stenosis.wustl.edu. Questions, announcements, and discussions can be held on this mailing list. D. EVALUATION To support its mission, SLML will monitor and evaluate the Strategic Plan. No Strategic Planning Committee was formed this year. E. ADVOCACY/PUBLIC RELATIONS To support its mission, SLML will promote the value of library services and their impact on health care. Nine members of the SLML Board participated in an advocacy focus group chaired by the Advocacy Chairperson. The results of the focus group indicate that SLML’s first priority should be to offer more continuing education. Also, that the librarians need to show, not tell physicians, administrators, and the public what value librarians bring to the information management field. The group recommended keeping the following Advocacy/Public Relations strategies: E.1. Develop a plan to promote SLML services, products, members, and concerns. E.5 Establish linkages to other library and information provider organizations, commercial or non-profit. E.6. Establish linkages to other health care professions. The group recommended deleting the following Advocacy/Public Relations strategies: E.4 Monitor influence of hospital mergers on their libraries' status through contact with MLA. E.2. Continue to define changing roles for librarians and libraries in health care information management for members and the local health care community E.3. Evaluate information needs of health care organizations and develop and information needs assessment model. Based on the focus group, the following Advocacy Plan is recommended: Educate physicians, hospital administrators, and other health care professionals as well as the public, about the value of librarians through:
F. GOVERNANCE To support its mission, SLML governance will enhance the effectiveness and responsiveness of the organization. The Governance Committee reviewed, discussed, and prepared proposed revisions to the Bylaws. The document was submitted to the Board and received permission to present it to the membership. It was distributed by mail, the Web Page, and by the SLML-L mailing list. At the Annual Awards Luncheon, a vote was taken and the revisions were approved. A copy of the new Bylaws will be mailed to all members and posted on the organization’s web page. The committee has not received any suggestions concerning the Procedure Manual. The committee hopes that the member will suggest changes or offer comments on the Procedure Manual. Some editing changes will be made so that the manual conforms to the new Bylaws. G. ARCHIVES To provide continuity to the organization and to preserve its records, SLML will establish and maintain an archive. The Committee's activities are ongoing. Respectively submitted, Russ Monika, President-Elect June 5, 1997 |