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Librarians learn to diagnose Net Training helps them judge health sites By KELLY STEWART Wading through health-related sites on the Internet can be mind-boggling. Of the thousands of sites available, it can be difficult to determine which can be trusted. With the help of a federal grant administered by Oregon Health Sciences University, reference librarians throughout the state will receive additional training on how to keep up with the deluge of health-related information available over the Internet and in print. The Oregon grant totaled $56,433, according to Mary Ginnane, group leader for library development at the State Library in Salem. "Federal and state governments want to make accurate health information available for everyone," said Margaret Connors, developer of this project. In a two-day training session that ends Friday, nearly 40 librarians and health care representatives in Southern Oregon will learn how to evaluate health reference sites for legitimacy and how to use sites for reliable health information. About 30 percent of questions directed to reference librarians are about health, said Connors, manager of special projects for OHSU. "One of the purposes of the grant is to remind people in the community that libraries are good sources for medical health information," Connors said. The training will give librarians a better idea of what sites are on the Internet, said Amy Kinard, reference librarian at the Medford branch. Much of the health information available to people is difficult to use, Kinard said. Some sites oversimplify problems; others use complicated medical language. The problem with using the Internet as a source for health care is that people often do not know where the information is coming from, Kinard said. A Web site about vitamins that is posted by a vitamin company, for instance, may not be the best place to find accurate information. Jackson County librarians periodically take part in training, but this is the first time the training will focus on finding current, accurate health care information on the Internet. People often come into the library with questions about their health after they have seen a doctor, Kinard said. Curious about the definitions of medical words, diagnoses, surgical procedures and medical alternatives, people ask reference librarians for help. "A person sometimes doesn't think of questions right there at the doctor's office," Kinard said. "We want to put them at reliable sources." Reference librarians may become more efficient in helping patrons find health information, Kinard said. "It might enable us to help patrons help themselves," she said. Each Jackson County branch library owns at least one computer for accessing the Internet. Representatives from Asante, the Veterans Affairs Domiciliary in White City, Southern Oregon University and Rogue Community College also took part in the training sessions. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA