New Disaster Information Management Research Center at the National Library of Medicine: Update for public health workers

The National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health, has announced a new effort to create a Disaster Information Management Research Center as part of the federal effort to prevent, respond to, and reduce the adverse health effects of disasters in partnership with local communities. “Disaster” includes public health emergencies, man-made disasters including chemical, biological or radiation events, and natural disasters such as pandemic influenza and catastrophic storms. The Center's informatics research agenda will include “real time” surveillance technologies to alert appropriate responders to cluster biological events and information to support Continuity of Operations (COOP) programs. The Center will research communication technologies for access to health information when electrical power, the Internet, and other forms of communications are affected. This research will help ensure timely, continuous access to critical health information needed by first responders, public health workers, clinicians, and patients.

Research on disaster health information will identify health topics and information resources essential for all-hazards preparedness, response, and recovery. This research will focus on resources for online and offline health information about treatment of acute injuries and outbreaks as well as management of chronic illnesses, access to clinical consultations and expertise, and access to patient information.

As part of its nationwide disaster planning, NLM is also working with its National Network of Libraries of Medicine's eight regional libraries and 6000 member libraries to enhance the network's key role in emergency planning and providing disaster information at the local level.