Veterinary Medical Libraries in the 21st Century

The purpose of this volume is to present a picture of information access and delivery by United States and Canadian academic veterinary medical libraries (VMLs) to the veterinary community and others with interests in the profession. This is done by discussing the resources that are available, as well as methods of delivery of that information. Our discussion of these topics will not only point out the unique aspects of these collections and services, but will also illustrate much that is in common with all medical collections and library services. As with all libraries, the goal of VMLs is to provide high quality service while looking after the information needs of their clientele through selection, acquisition, cataloging, and dissemination of materials and familiarizing their users with these resources. In the past decade, new challenges and opportunities for information specialists stem from the impact of technology on VMLs. Our goal with this volume is to be concise, but thorough about all of these topics.

Illegitimate tasks associated with higher cortisol levels among male employees when subjective health is relatively low: an intra-individual analysis

Objectives Illegitimate tasks refer to tasks that do not conform to what can appropriately be expected from an employee. Violating role expectations, they constitute “identity-stressors”, as one’s professional role tends to become part of one’s identity. The current study investigated the impact of illegitimate tasks on salivary cortisol. We analyzed data on an intra-individual level, that is, by examining fluctuations in illegitimate tasks and cortisol within individuals. Furthermore, we investigated the moderating role of perceived health, expecting that illegitimate tasks evoke stronger reactions when perceived health is relatively poor. Methods Illegitimate tasks, salivary cortisol, and perceived health were assessed in each of three waves (time lag: 6 months) in a sample of 104 male employees. Data were analyzed by multilevel analysis using group mean centering. Results Controlling for social stressors, work interruptions, and emotional stability, the experience of more illegitimate tasks was associated with increased cortisol release if personal health resources were low compared to one’s mean value of perceived health. Results cannot be explained by inter-individual differences. Conclusions This is the first study showing that illegitimate tasks predict a biological indicator of stress, thus confirming and extending previous research on illegitimate tasks. The moderating role of perceived health confirms its importance as a personal resource, implying augmented vulnerability when perceived health is below its usual value. It is plausible to assume that increased stress reactions due to relatively poor health may further weaken available personal resources. Both avoiding illegitimate tasks and restoring personal health seem to be crucial.

Friends of the library groups in health sciences libraries.

The Houston Academy of Medicine--Texas Medical Center (HAM--TMC) Library collected data on friends of the library groups from 103 health sciences libraries, using a mail questionnaire. Sixteen of the responding libraries had independent friends groups; seven had friends groups that were subordinate to a university group. The sixteen independent groups gave as their major purposes (1) to raise money for their associated library and (2) to develop support for their library. These groups contributed an average of $4,870 a year to their libraries, the money being used primarily to purchase rare books and working-collection books and to sponsor social events. The subordinate groups contributed relatively little money to the health sciences libraries responding to the survey.

Primary care at Swiss universities - current state and perspective

Background There is increasing evidence that a strong primary care is a cornerstone of an efficient health care system. But Switzerland is facing a shortage of primary care physicians (PCPs). This pushed the Federal Council of Switzerland to introduce a multifaceted political programme to strengthen the position of primary care, including its academic role. The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive overview of the situation of academic primary care at the five Swiss universities by the end of year 2012. Results Although primary care teaching activities have a long tradition at the five Swiss universities with activities starting in the beginning of the 1980ies; the academic institutes of primary care were only established in recent years (2005 – 2009). Only one of them has an established chair. Human and financial resources vary substantially. At all universities a broad variety of courses and lectures are offered, including teaching in private primary care practices with 1331 PCPs involved. Regarding research, differences among the institutes are tremendous, mainly caused by entirely different human resources and skills. Conclusion So far, the activities of the existing institutes at the Swiss Universities are mainly focused on teaching. However, for a complete academic institutionalization as well as an increased acceptance and attractiveness, more research activities are needed. In addition to an adequate basic funding of research positions, competitive research grants have to be created to establish a specialty-specific research culture.

Professors of German Universities (e.g. Cologne, Heidelberg) in Italy (1400-1550) and the Repertorium Academicum Germanicum (RAG)

The RAG’s task is to collect biographical and social data on those Theologians, Jurists, Physicians, and Masters of Arts, who studied at a university between 1250 and 1550. The information is entered into a prosopographic database that will finally cover the entire territory of the Holy Roman Empire. Non-graduated noble visitors of universities are also taken into account. The RAG, which in the end will be a “who is who” of the scholars of the Old Empire, offers divers new and interdisciplinary perspectives due to its vast collection of data. Qualitative and quantitative statements on the intellectual elite of the Empire, their European networks, as well as institutional and territorial comparisons will be possible. Thus the scholars' role in pre-modern society can be described on a firm empirical basis and explained within the framework of modern educational research, with special reference to social, cultural, and scientific history. Up to 50,000 scholars are to be expected.

Taking Root in the Silicon Forest: High-technology Firms as Surrogate Universities in Portland, Oregon

Most case studies of successful high-technology industry regions highlight the role of research universities in fostering regional economic development. The Portland, Oregon, region managed to root a thriving high-tech industry in the absence of this critical factor. In this article, I present a case study of the evolution of Portland's high-tech industry and propose that high-tech firms can act as surrogate universities that attract and develop labor, create knowledge, and function as incubators for startups. I conclude that planners working to develop high-tech industries in regions without major research universities should attract R&D-intensive firms, maintain information on key busineses and entrepreneurial ventures, support an innovation milieu, and set realistic goals.