Eccles Health Sciences Library

InfoFair 2008

Abstracts

Keynote Address - The Air We Breathe

When Smoke Ran Like Water (2002, Basic Books) has been described by the Toronto Globe & Mail as "the most readable exposé of the hidden costs of pollution since Silent Spring." In it, Dr. Devra Lee Davis confronts both public triumphs and private failures in the battle against environmental pollution. She reports on the deadly London smog of 1952 (when deaths were falsely attributed to influenza); behind-the-scenes machinations by oil companies and auto manufacturers to keep lead in gasoline; and the pollution that killed many in her own family and forced others - survivors of the 1948 smog emergency in Donora, Pennsylvania - to live out their lives with damaged health. Dr. Davis was a National Book Awards finalist for When Smoke Ran Like Water and is also the author of The Secret History of the War on Cancer (2007, Basic Books).

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Tribute to Nina E. Dougherty, M.A.

Presenter: Mary E. Youngkin, M.L.S.

Nina E. Dougherty,
M.A.

Nina E. Dougherty, M.A. served on the faculty of the Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library from September 1974 until her retirement in January 1999. During her 25 years at the Eccles Library, Nina was instrumental in establishing innovative reference services and mediated user searching. In addition, Nina developed an expertise in the use of online environmental health and toxicology databases and resources that were developed by Specialized Information Services at the National Library of Medicine.

Nina originated the InfoFair concept in 1983. The first annual InfoFair focused on "personal computer access to health related databases." Her vision and foresight were important motivators for educating faculty, staff, students and the public about accessing and using online information resources and databases. Now in its 26th year, InfoFair 2008 continues the tradition started by Nina to inform and educate the user.

In her private life, Nina continues her crusade as an environmental champion; she has volunteered for a variety of state and national governmental agencies and organizations, including the Utah Chapter Sierra Club, Utahns for Better Transportation, the Western Regional Air Partnership, and the American Lung Association of Utah.

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Meet the Experts - Panel Discussion

Panelists will respond to remarks made by Dr. Davis and discuss issues related to clean air in Utah. Participating panelists are currently involved with organizations that have a focus on protecting the health and well-being of citizens by promoting science-based education and interventions that result in progressive, measurable improvements to the environment. Of equal importance, panelists will review strategies used to educate and increase public awareness of the health effects of air pollution.

Panel moderator is Joan M. Gregory,; panelists include Devra Lee Davis , Craig B. Forster (University of Utah's Office of Sustainability), Brian J. Moench (Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment), and John M. Veranth (College of Pharmacy).

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Effectively Searching the Environmental Literature:
a Conversation

The focus of this session is to engage Dr. Devra Lee Davis in a conversation about strategies she has found to be effective for finding information, searching the environmental and public health literature, keeping up-to-date, and assessing and evaluating the evidence.

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Invited Exhibits and Demonstrations

InfoFair 2008 hosts exhibits and demonstrations from 11:45 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the atrium on the 2nd floor of the Spencer F. and Cleone P. Eccles Health Sciences Education Building. Exhibits include the Utah Department of Health, local advocacy groups, the Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library, the MidContinental Regional Medical Library and Utahealthnet. Stop by the exhibits to find out more about local efforts to improve air quality, what you can do to help and how to search the Web for quality evidence-based information. Light refreshments will be served.

• American Lung Association of Utah
  The American Lung Association is committed to preventing lung disease and promoting lung health through education, research, and advocacy. We offer practical help to people living with asthma, emphysema and other lung diseases. We also confront lung disease at the root level, educating kids about the dangers of smoking, pushing for more smoke-free workplaces and even working to reduce air pollution.
• Environmental Epidemiology, Utah Department of Health
• National Network of Libraries of Medicine MidContinental Region
  The mission of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM) MidContinental Region (MCR) is to advance the progress of medicine and improve the public health by: 1) providing all U.S. health professionals with equal access to biomedical information; and, 2) improving the public's access to information to enable them to make informed decisions about their health. The Program is coordinated by the National Library of Medicine and carried out through a nationwide network of health science libraries and information centers.
• Office of Sustainability, University of Utah
  The Office of Sustainability is committed to establishing the University of Utah as a leader in working towards a more sustainable future for the University campus and the broader Utah community.
• Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library
  The Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library serves the educational, research, and clinical needs of health professionals, students and researchers at the University of Utah Health Sciences Center and through-out the Intermountain region. Eccles Health Sciences Library is a Regional Medical Library (RML) for the MidContinental Region in the National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM) awarded by the National Library of Medicine.
• University of Utah Health Sciences Bookstore
  • Devra Lee Davis will be signing copies of her books which will be available for purchase at the Bookstore booth
• Utah Chapter Sierra Club
  Members and volunteer activists are dedicated to preserving and enjoying the land and quality of life in Utah and the West.
• University of Utah Student Physicians for Social Responsibility
• Utah Clean Energy
  Utah Clean Energy works to speed the transition to a cleaner, safer, more sustainable energy future. Through advocacy, education, and diverse partnerships, we advance renewable energy and energy efficiency.
• Utah Division of Air Quality
  The mission of the Department of Environmental Quality is to safeguard human health and quality of life by protecting and enhancing the environment.
• Utah Moms For Clean Air
  We are using the power of moms to clean up Utah's dirty air.
• Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment
  The Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment is a small group of health professionals with concerns about health risks currently present in our environment. This is based on recent articles and convincing evidence in the medical literature showing that more people have coronary and cerebrovascular (heart attacks and strokes) events when air particulates (one form of air pollution) are high.
• Utahealthnet
  Utahealthnet is a statewide consumer health information infrastructure project sponsored by the Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library at the University of Utah. Funded by a grant from the National Library of Medicine/National Institutes of Health, Utahealthnet is developing statewide collaborations and communication pathways with an emphasis on the human connection. The goal of Utahealthnet is to increase access to high quality health information, resources, services and programs in order to increase the quality of life for all Utah residents and visitors.

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