Southeastern News Online July, 2004 Vol. 2  No. 2

Spotlight on Hospital Libraries

Hospitals in the region are facing enormous changes and challenges as so are their libraries. The Kingston Hospital was fortunate to find Margaret Cirillo ready to step in when Ann Blish took an early retirement in late January. Margaret, who credits Mary Jo Russell for providing her with invaluable experience and expert mentoring, began to learn the intricacies of hospital librarianship while working with Mary Jo as a volunteer at Vassar Brothers Medical Center. Kingston is one of the busiest of hospital libraries. Thanks to the presence of medical students from Albany Medical College and the NY College of Osteopathic Medicine, BOCES students in the New Visions Program, physicians in the Mid-Hudson Family Practice Residency Program as well as the many Kingston Hospital staff who relied on the exceptional service given by Ann Blish for 16 years, Margaret is on call at all times. While a new medical librarian, Margaret had lots of library experience prior to earning her MLS from Palmer Library School: government documents at USMA West Point for ten years and an internship and cataloging work at Marist College. Margaret counts herself fortunate as Ann Blish is just a phone call or email away and has even appeared recently to volunteer in the library. Margaret has also joined the Hospital Library Services Program Advisory Committee and we look forward to her continuing participation in SENYLRC activities while establishing her own mark at The Kingston Hospital.

Margaret Cirillo, Medical Librarian, The Kingston Hospital	Celine Mathew, 3rd year medical student at NYCOM and Dr. Zubair Sved, 3rd year resident at The Kingston Hospital in the Library

Catskill Regional Medical Center is featured now with a BEFORE the renovations view and will appear again in a later issue. Long interested in developing a consumer health library for the community as well as expanding resources available to patients and families,Maryallison Farley was successful in being awarded grant funding from the National Library of Medicine through the support of Mary Mylenki at the New York Academy of Medicine. The $36,000 grant will assist CRMC in setting up a consumer health information center for Sullivan County residents. The new health information center will be added on to the existing medical library which currently serves the staff of both the hospital in Harris and the critical access center in Callicoon.

Now in the midst of consultations with architects, engineers, and furnishing designers, CRMC will open the enlarged and expanded Health Resource Center later this year. Continuing education courses and consumer health activities during the national MLA Conference in May helped form her ideas. A combination of hospital support, targeted gifts, foundation bequests, and federal grant funding will support the space renovation, new equipment and replacement, and the addition of consumer journals and book collections. Most important is the change adding two additional days of librarian service. Maryallison who received her MSIS from SUNY Albany’s School of Information Science and Policy in May to complement her existing MA in American Studies from the University of Iowa, will become fulltime when the new facility opens. She is also the new chair of the Hospital Library Services Program Advisory Committee. Congratulations!

Existing reference area in the CRMC library	MaryAllison Farley and an office furnishings representative review the plans

By Patricia Carroll-Mathes, Hospital Libraries Services Manager

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