Are you an investigator preparing a research protocol submission to the IRB? This service may be of interest!

HS/HSL librarians serving on the UMB Institutional Review Board have noticed that many research consent forms are written above the recommended reading level for patients and are often confusing and difficult to understand. The Reference Department offers a service to review your consent form before it is submitted with your protocol. We will offer suggestions for simplified language and note key sections that need revision or are likely to be confusing for patients. We will return the form to you with these suggestions within three business days. You can submit your consent forms on the HS/HSL website (in the Assistance section).

If you have any questions, please contact the Reference Desk at 410-706-7995, hshsl@umaryland.edu.

The National Library of Medicine announces the activation of the Emergency Access Initiative in support of medical efforts in the Philippines and surrounding areas following the devastating typhoon. The Emergency Access Initiative is a collaborative partnership between NLM and participating publishers to provide free access to full-text articles from over 650 biomedical serial titles and over 4,000 reference books and online databases to healthcare professionals and libraries affected by disasters.
 
The Emergency Access Initiative serves as a temporary collection replacement and/or supplement for libraries affected by disasters that need to continue to serve medical staff and affiliated users.  It is also intended for medical personnel responding to the specified disaster.
 
EAI is not an open access collection – it is only intended for those affected by the disaster or assisting the affected population.  If your library is working with a library or organization involved in relief efforts in the Philippines or other affected areas, please let them know of this service.

Emergency Access Initiative:  http://eai.nlm.nih.gov