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February 25, 2006

Impact of Katrina on African-American Dentists

The following news article describes the impact, plans, and conditions of life for several of the New Orleans dentists who were leaders in the local African American community.

Cass, Julia. Notable Mardi Gras Abscences Reflect Loss of Black Middle Class (Saturday, 25 February 2006): http://www.amhersttimes.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=841&Itemid=27

EXCERPT:
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"The impression is that just poor people were displaced, but Katrina has had a devastating effect on the black middle class, too," said Willard Dumas, a dentist who serves as the Bunch Club's recording secretary and now lives in Baton Rouge. "You spend 45 years building a life and then it's gone. Your home was flooded; your business was flooded. And this happened not only to you but to practically everyone you know, so your patients or clients are gone, your friends are scattered, and your relatives are somewhere else." ... Those black professionals are scattered across the South, finding new jobs, establishing new medical and legal practices and businesses. The longer they are gone, the greater the worry that they will not come back -- leaving New Orleans, a majority-black city before Katrina, without a core of African American leadership.
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For more information on this topic, please see:

National Dental Association (NDA): Katrina State of Emergency : NDA Disaster Relief Efforts: http://www.ndaonline.org/katrinainfo.asp

Posted by pfa at 01:16 PM | Comments (0)

February 24, 2006

Upcoming Non-NIH Grant Opportunites

Please note the following upcoming grant opportunities.

Posted by pfa at 09:08 PM | Comments (0)

February 23, 2006

National Practitioner Data Bank

The National Practitioner Data Bank is a resource perhaps best known for its provision of aggregate data on trends in malpractice suits by state and profession. Another common use of the database is to ask for copies of reports on yourself (for practitioners), rather like asking for a copy of your credit report.

This resource is about to change location. It is currently available at:

National Practitioner Data Bank: http://www.npdb-hipdb.com/

"Beginning on May 8, 2006, the Data Bank Web site will be located at www.npdb-hipdb.hrsa.gov. The Data Banks are moving to a .gov domain name to help prevent fraud by showing Data Bank users that the NPDB-HIPDB Web site is under the Government-run domain."

Posted by pfa at 10:42 PM | Comments (0)

February 20, 2006

Dental Historic Collection: Taft and Ramfjord and More

The Digital Library Production Service (DLPS), in conjunction with the Dentistry Library, is pleased to announce the availability of the Dental Historic Collection at

http://www.hti.umich.edu/d/dentalj

This collection of important and unusual dental publications is comprised of both books and journals. Titles included have been selected for reasons of historical interest, value to the profession, rarity, or a need for preservation of the physical items. Highlights of the collection include such titles as A Practical Treatise on Operative Dentistry by Jonathan Taft, the masters thesis of Sigurd Ramfjord, and the Transactions of the American Dental Association.

While much of Dental Historical Collection is available to the public, those portions restricted to UM campus-use are noted as such.

Posted by pfa at 12:17 PM | Comments (0)

February 19, 2006

SPIRAL: Selected Patient Information in Asian Languages

SPIRAL is a resource developed jointly by the South Cove Community Health Center and Tufts University Hirsh Health Sciences Library. It includes patient information in Cambodian/Khmer, Chinese, Hmong, Korean, Lao, Thai, and Vietnamese. It includes information for patients on many diseases or areas of the body, including dental health. The types of guides available for Asian patients in the area of dental health range from hygiene, diseases, treatments, pregnancy, anatomy, infant oral health care, and concerns about dental bills or insurance.

SPIRAL: Selected Patient Information in Asian Languages: http://spiral.tufts.edu/

Posted by pfa at 05:40 PM | Comments (0)

Drug Information for Patients

The Dentistry Library Drug Information Guide has quite a bit of information for patients and practitioners about medications, and links to many resources to learn more about them. The following resource, TalkRX from NCPIE, tends to have a different kind of information -- how to ask questions about drugs, what questions to ask, and how to communicate with your health care team about your medication questions and concerns. A different type of resource, and one you might want to consider recommending to your patients.

National Council on Patient Information and Education (NCPIE): http://www.talkaboutrx.org/

Posted by pfa at 05:34 PM | Comments (0)

February 17, 2006

For Alumni and other Dental Professionals: Getting Journal Articles

The phone rings. "Hello? May I speak to the librarian? I'm trying to find out how to get a copy of an article that is in your library. I'm sorry to impose, but can you fax me a copy?"

This is a common scenario at the Dentistry Library Circulation Desk. Luckily for all of us, there are good solutions in place for meeting this need.

Solution #1:

The first thing you might want to try would be to go to the Taubman Library's collection of UM or free resources available to alumni and the general public.

Taubman Medical Library: Resources for Alums and Non - UM Health Care Professionals: http://www.lib.umich.edu/taubman/visitor.html

This list includes information about what journals are available free and how to find them, as well as much much more.

Solution #2:

University of Michigan: Michigan Information Transfer Source (MITS): http://www.lib.umich.edu/mits/

MITS can make copies of articles and deliver them in paper or online from any of the University of Michigan Libraries. This service does cost money, and the price goes up if you need it rapidly.

Solution #3:

For healthcare providers, you may also want to consider using the Loansome Doc service from the National Library of Medicine. They have a very helpful guide about how to use the various Interlibrary Loan options that NLM has available.

NLM: Fact Sheet: Interlibrary Loan: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/factsheets/ill.html

NLM: Fact Sheet: Loansome Doc: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/factsheets/loansome_doc.html

You can also go to Loansome Doc directly:

Loansome Doc: https://docline.gov/loansome/login.cfm

... or from Pubmed. In Pubmed, go to the blue navigation bar on the left side of the screen, scroll towards the bottom to "Related Resources", and then click on "Order Documents."

Loansome Doc Ordering System: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/loansomedoc/loansome_home.html

Have fun!

Posted by pfa at 10:45 AM | Comments (0)

February 16, 2006

New from Cochrane Oral Health Group

Want a quick snapshot of the state of the art in dental clinical care? Try browsing the Abstracts of the Cochrane Oral Health Group, available free online.

Cochrane Oral Health Group Abstracts:
http://www.cochrane.org/cochrane/revabstr/ORALAbstractIndex.htm

New in this series are:

Posted by pfa at 09:07 PM | Comments (0)

February 14, 2006

Fundamental Research in Materials Science

If you haven't already seen it, the following online book on materials sciences is an impressive overview of the current state of the art. The original publication date was 2001, but most if not all of the content is still of interest.

Max Planck Institutes: European White Book on Fundamental Research in Materials Science: http://www.mpg.de/english/illustrationsDocumentation/documentation/europWhiteBook/index.html

Posted by pfa at 04:01 PM | Comments (0)

February 13, 2006

NIDCR: Updated Strategic Plan

NIDCR: Implementation Plan for the Updated Strategic Plan 2003-2008: http://www.nidcr.nih.gov/AboutNIDCR/StrategicPlan/ImplementationPlan.htm

In addition to research funding priorities, key areas of emphasis included clinician-patient communication and health disparities. Key words for research funding included these.

Posted by pfa at 04:09 PM | Comments (0)

The Dentist of Auschwitz

Looking for a good read?

The book, The Dentist of Auschwitz, is available in the library at call number D 804.3 .J321 1995. It is also available online, with free fulltext.

The Dentisty of Auschwitz, by Benjamin Jacobs: http://www.nizkor.org/features/dentist/

The book begins:

"On the morning of May 5, 1941, three ancient trucks labored along a Polish country road, carrying 167 Jews from Dobra, a village in the Warthegau region of Poland, to a destination known only to their captors. It was spring, but the fields, which were full of colorful budding flowers, seemed lifeless on that gloomy morning. The songbirds, whose melodies usually filled the country air in May, were strangely quiet.

This was a dark day in our village. The Jewish Council, by decree of Herr Schweikert, the Nazi governor of the region, had delivered for deportation to a labor camp all Jewish men between the ages of sixteen and sixty, with the exception of one male per family. My father wanted to leave, and I volunteered to go with him, since my older brother was susceptible to ailments. So my brother stayed with my mother and my sister in the ghetto. My father and I were each allowed to take two bundles. My mother insisted that I take the few dental tools I had from my first year of dental training, along with my necessities. Little did I know then that those tools would save my life."

Posted by pfa at 03:25 PM | Comments (0)

February 10, 2006

National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center

National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC),
Georgetown University:
http://www.mchoralhealth.org/

Released just in time for Children's Dental Health Month in February, OHRC's newest resource collection is for the public.

OHRC: Knowledge Path: Oral Health and Children and Adolescents: http://www.mchoralhealth.org/knwpathoralhealth.html

Knowledge Path contains a wide variety of critically selected links for consumer health information for parents and families. Also for families, their Bright Futures Toolbox contains more links and includes materials in languages other than English.

OHRC: Bright Futures Toolbox: http://www.mchoralhealth.org/Toolbox/families.html

Also of interest would be the resources for health professionals, including sections for medical clinicians who encounter dental concerns in their patients, distance learning resources, and a dental clinic manual.

Posted by pfa at 06:00 PM | Comments (0)

Hispanic Culture and Contributions in Dentistry

In keeping with our tradition of diversity-themed exhibits during February and March, the Dentistry Library is pleased to announce our newest exhibit:

     Hispanic Culture and Contributions in Dentistry

Find out more about dentists in the Cuban Ladder Conspiracy, the Brazilian dentist with his own national holiday, traditions of dental modifications then and now, and much more.

The exhibit is currently available in the Dentistry Library, and will be available through the end of April. The companion website will be available by the end of February at this URL:

http://www.lib.umich.edu/dentlib/about/exhibits/hispanic/

Currently available online, we have a PDF of the exhibit guide:

http://www.lib.umich.edu/dentlib/about/exhibits/hispanic/HispanicDentistryGd.pdf

Posted by pfa at 03:56 PM | Comments (0)

February 09, 2006

Two NIH Initiatives Launch Intensive Efforts to Determine Genetic and Environmental Roots of Common Diseases

NIH Press Release: http://www.nih.gov/news/pr/feb2006/nhgri-08.htm

"The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today announced the creation of two new, closely related initiatives to speed up research on the causes of common diseases such as asthma, arthritis and Alzheimer’s disease.

One initiative boosts funding at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for a multi-institute effort to identify the genetic and environmental underpinnings of common illnesses. The other initiative launches a public-private partnership between NIH, the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH) and major pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, especially Pfizer Global Research & Development of New London, Conn.; and Affymetrix Inc. of Santa Clara, Calif., to accelerate genome association studies to find the genetic roots of widespread sicknesses. The genetic analysis component of the two initiatives is highly complementary."

For more information, see the press release link above, or:

Foundation for the National Institutes of Health: Genetic Association Information Network Launched: Novel Public-Private Partnership Created to Unravel the Genetics Of Common Disease Through Whole Genome Association Studies: http://www.fnih.org/GAIN/gain_press_release.shtml

Posted by pfa at 04:28 PM | Comments (0)

February 08, 2006

Solution for Problems with JADA Online

We've had a report of problems accessing the online version of the Journal of the American Dental Association. While we are correcting the problem with the library's online subscription, we recommend using the free trial version currently available at this URL:

http://jada.ada.org/

Posted by pfa at 09:49 PM | Comments (0)

News: CIGNA Treatment Cost Estimator

In a socialized system of care, like in the UK, it is fairly straightforward to discover how much a dental treatment will cost, but here in the USA it is much more challenging. There are a few publically available online cost estimators, but even the best of those acknowledge that prices can vary from state to state and practitioner to practitioner. For the first time, CIGNA has just made an online costing tool available for members of its dental insurance program.

Online Tool Giving Consumers Easy Personalized Information About Dental Treatment Costs

"CIGNA Dental has taken the guesswork out of planning for costs associated with dental treatment by launching a first-of-its kind Dental Treatment Cost Estimator."

Posted by pfa at 09:27 PM | Comments (0)

Promising Strategy for Artificial Bone

Nature Suggests a Promising Strategy for Artificial Bone

" Researchers supported by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR), part of the National Institutes of Health, report they have harnessed the unique physics of sea water as it freezes to guide the production of what could be a new generation of more biocompatible materials for artificial bone.

As published in the January 27 issue of the journal Science, the researchers used this novel technique to produce a thinly layered composite, or hybrid, structure that more closely mimics the natural scaffolding of bone. The scientists said their initial, proof-of-principle scaffolds are desirably ultra lightweight and up to four times stronger than current porous ceramic implant materials."

Posted by pfa at 09:20 PM | Comments (0)

More Podcasts: NIH, Science, and Health

We've added a handful of new podcast resources to our podcasting page:

http://www.lib.umich.edu/dentlib/resources/guides/podcast.html

Highlights of special interest to our community include:

Worth checking out!

Posted by pfa at 09:10 PM | Comments (0)

February 06, 2006

Smokefree.gov

Smokefree.gov is the highlighted website this month from NIH News in Health.

Smokefree.gov: http://smokefree.gov/

Smokefree includes information on quitting smoking (also known as smoking cessation) for both the general public and health professionals. Featured on the site is a list of cessation studies. Other interesting tidbits are news releases, "Do You Know" facts about smoking, and instand messaging support from National Cancer Institute experts.

Posted by pfa at 06:19 PM | Comments (0)

February 03, 2006

Diversity in Dentistry

Yesterday's entry highlighted resources about diversity in the general healthcare workforce. Today's entry lists resources relating specifically to what is happening regarding the same issues specifically in dentistry, from the association level to the voices of individual dentists with a passion for diversity.

Organizational Activity:

ADA.org: Institute for Diversity in Leadership (application deadline May 1, 2006):
http://www.ada.org/prof/events/featured/diversity.asp

ADEA: Strategies to Enhance Diversity (2005-2006): http://www.adea.org/ced/Docs/Strategies_ADEA.pdf

ADEA: Center for Equity and Diversity: http://www.adea.org/ced/

AMSA: Achieving Diversity in Dentistry and Medicine (ADDM):
http://www.amsa.org/addm/

Articles:

Dental Pipeline: Increase Student Diversity to Close Oral Health Gap:
http://www.dentalpipeline.org/home/670/student_recruitment-increase

A Dentist Views Diversity, by Lionel Traubman. Mercury (San Francisco Dental Society), February 1996:
http://traubman.igc.org/diversty.htmDiversity in Dentistry, by Jennifer Garvin. AGD Impact June 2004:
http://www.agd.org/library/2004/june/garvin.asp

Posted by pfa at 03:28 PM | Comments (0)

February 02, 2006

Diversity in the Healthcare Workforce

Two years ago this week, the Institute of Medicine released its highly regarded report on diversity in the healthcare workforce.

In the Nation's Compelling Interest: Ensuring Diversity in the Health Care Workforce
Committee on Institutional and Policy-Level Strategies for Increasing the Diversity of the U.S. Healthcare Workforce
http://darwin.nap.edu/books/030909125X/html
Dentistry Library: R 745 .I51 2004

The IOM report was a good beginning, but much has happened since then. Here are some examples of more recent work that has followed.

Kaiser Family Foundation: Minority Health: http://www.kff.org/minorityhealth/index.cfm

Includes reports on changes in drug benefits and their impact on special populations, a report on Hurricane Katrina refugees, and much more.

The Commonwealth Fund: Underserved Populations: Latest Publications:
http://www.cmwf.org/topics/topics.htm?attrib_id=12024

Includes reports on how to collect racial and ethnic data, and cultural competence in health care education, as well as reports on Medicaid reform.

Additional useful resources on healthcare workforce diversity initiatives and good practices:

Sullivan Commission: http://admissions.duhs.duke.edu/sullivancommission/index.cfm

National Business Group on Health: Health Disparities Initiative:
http://www.wbgh.org/prevention/disparities.cfm

National Center for Cultural Competence
http://gucchd.georgetown.edu//nccc/

Posted by pfa at 06:34 PM | Comments (0)