Since the 2012/2013 academic year, the Health Sciences Library at Louisiana State University has been involved in 14 funded projects from government and non-profit agencies, providing more than $188,000 to improve healthcare within the community. These grants have been partnerships with public libraries, school systems, fitness centers, state agencies, state and federal emergency services, and other not-for-profit organizations. Within these various organizations, projects have involved education, arts and humanities, science, information literacy, and health and behavior issues. Many of these community-based projects received funding for one year, but developed into long-term initiatives. In a majority of these projects the partnerships have involved the funded organization with the community partners providing significant specialized skills in order to create educational products with long-term success. Using the project segments of development, project management and outcomes, this chapter will utilize vignettes to illustrate the trials and triumphs of each project within the scope of those segments. The chapter will discuss the experience of facing those trials, celebrating the success of a project and pushing that success and network connections to the next opportunity.

OBJECTIVE:The research sought to determine whether case discussion at residents' morning report (MR), accompanied by a computerized literature search and librarian support, affects hospital charges, length of stay (LOS), and thirty-day readmission rate.METHODS:This case-control study, conducted from August 2004 to March 2005, compared outcomes for 105 cases presented at MR within 24 hours of admission to 19,210 potential matches, including cases presented at MR and cases not presented at MR. With matching criteria of patient age (+/- 5 years), identical primary diagnosis, and secondary diagnoses (within 3 additional diagnoses) using International Classification of Diseases (ICD-9) codes, 55 cases were matched to 136 controls. Statistical analyses included Student's t tests, chi-squared tests, and nonparametric methods.RESULTS:LOS differed significantly between matched MR cases and controls (3 days vs. 5 days, P < 0.024). Median total hospital charges were $7,045 for the MR group and $10,663 for the control group. There was no difference in 30-day readmission rate between the 2 groups.DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION:Presentation of a case at MR, followed by the timely dissemination of the results of an online literature review, resulted in a shortened LOS and lower hospital charges compared with controls. MR, in association with a computerized literature search guided by the librarians, was an effective means for introducing evidence-based medicine into patient care practices.

Crime is a part of life that has become more evident in libraries through reports in journals, newspapers, television, and other media. As the result of a sharing session, a survey was conducted of the libraries composing the South Central Chapter of the Medical Library Association. This survey looked at the incidence of major and minor crimes in the libraries and their institutions; security measures, regulations, or policies that were in effect prior to these or having been initiated since; and the effect the crimes and/or security measures have had on the institution and its employees.

The current mission statement of the Medical Library Association states that it is "dedicated to improving health through professional excellence and leadership of its members in the ... provision of information services and educational programs ..." With this goal in mind, retractions offer medical librarians a professional challenge to become involved in the scientific process. Through results of a survey conducted among the consortium of South Central Academic Medical Libraries (SCAMeL), this paper reveals opinions on the importance of retraction awareness and who is responsible for disseminating this knowledge. The paper also reports what the Louisiana State University Medical Center at Shreveport Library and other SCAMeL member libraries are doing to promote awareness.