Informationists

A special liaison or librarian-in-context program that augments your information resources, saves you and your staff time, and most importantly, enhances the quality of research and patient care. The informationist provides personalized, on-site information services for your team.

For more information contact Terrie Wheeler at 301-496-1157 or by email.

Look for existing groups working with Informationists.

Publications on the Informationist Program

Medha Bhagwat 301.496.2185 bhagwat@mail.nih.gov	Medha Bhagwat earned her PhD in biochemistry in December 1994 from the University of Maryland at College Park. Medha did her postdoctoral training at NIDDK, NIH on the structure-function studies of bacteriophage T4 RNase H. Medha joined National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) in the National Library of Medicine (NLM) in 1998 in the GenBank database. From 2000 to 2008, she offered a variety of bioinformatics training at NCBI. She taught at the NCBI Core-Bioinformatics Facility, which trains the representatives from the NIH institutes in the use of the NCBI bioinformatics tools in 9-week sessions. Medha also developed and taught several 2 hour mini-courses which describe the effective usage of a set of bioinformatics tools. The courses were taught more than 400 times to about 12,000 participants. She has published several articles on her research and book chapters on bioinformatics classes/protocols. Medha joined the NIH Library in February 2009 to develop the bioinformatics support program for NIH staff. Medha's diverse background and strong experience in biochemistry, molecular biology and bioinformatics is ideal for both basic and translational research.
Barbara Brandys 301.594.6203 brandysb@nihrrlib.ncrr.nih.gov	Barbara Brandys joined the NIH Library in 1997 and became an informationist in 2004. She provides information services to NHLBI Imaging Probe Development Center CC Pharmacy Department NCI Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis, Project Management Office NICHD Obstetric and Pediatric Pharmacology Branch/Center for Research for Mothers and Children NIH Chemists and Toxicologists NICHD Section on Bacterial Disease Pathogenesis and Immunity Barbara has an undergraduate degree in chemistry and has worked as a chemist at W.R. Grace and has worked as a science teacher. Barbara speaks several languages including English, Hebrew, and Polish and works as a volunteer translator in the Clinical Center.
Diane Cooper 301.594.2449 cooperd@mail.nih.gov	Diane Cooper has a Master's Degree in Library Science from the University of Kentucky, and a BA degree in English from Kentucky Wesleyan College. She is certified by the Medical Library Association at the Distinguished Level. Diane has extensive experience in the corporate environment. She has worked for United HealthCare, Magellan Health Services,and Parexel Inc., a global bio/pharmaceutical services organization. She also has medical center experience, having worked in a Veterans Administration Medical Center and at the University of California, Davis medical library. In addition, she was librarian for the research laboratory of the National Institutes of Drug Abuse and Addiction, Addiction Research Center, at Lexington, Kentucky. She joined the NIH library July, 2003. As an Informationist, Diane works with Endocrinology services of the National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development and the National Institutes of Kidney and Digestive Diseases; Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Branch, Center for Developmental Biology and Perinatal Medicine in the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development; and the Indian Health Service headquarters and clinics and health care providers across the US.
Josh Duberman 301.594.6200 dubermaj@ors.od.nih.gov	Josh Duberman has been an Informationist/Research Librarian at the NIH Library since May 2005. He has a Masters in Library Studies and a bachelor's degree in chemistry, with 18 years of information research experience at Applied Biosystems Inc. (ABI), SRI International, and as a consultant. Previously, he was a scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and at Chevron Research. He has several patents, and has written numerous articles for professional publications about the information industry, searching techniques and information resources. His areas of expertise and research include intellectual property, chemistry, biotechnology, pharmaceutics, engineering, competitive intelligence and technology transfer resources, and information retrieval issues.
Janet Heekin 301.594.6201 heekin@nih.gov	Janet Heekin joined the NIH Library in April 1998, and is currently employed as a Biomedical Librarian/Informationist. She received a Masters of Library Science from Indiana University in August, 1989, holds a bachelor's degree in sociology from the University of Cincinnati; and fieldwork in mental health and substance abuse counseling. Prior to coming to the NIH Library, she held positions as a clinical librarian at the University of Pittsburgh, and medical library intern at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Ms. Heekin currently works with research administrators at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), the Office of the Clinical Director, National Institute on Mental Health (NIMH), and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), where she provides expert search services in support of evidence-based health practice.
Alicia Livinski 301.594.6423 livinska@od.nih.gov	Alicia Livinski joined the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Library in 2007. Alicia supports the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) and the Office of Global Health Affairs (OGHA) within the Office of the Secretary in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). At NIH, she works with the Division of International Epidemiology and Population Studies in the Fogarty International Center. She provides a variety of information management and research services. Prior to joining NIH, she worked for 5 years as the Information and Communications Advisor with the White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood on international maternal health and advocacy programs. Alicia has a MA in Library & Information Science from the University of South Florida in Tampa; Masters in Public Health (MPH) from the Tulane University School of Public Health & Tropical Medicine with a focus in food security and humanitarian crisis management; and a bachelor's degree from Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, FL in international relations. Her professional interests include: use of social technologies in libraries and public health; health information access; international health; and access to research by developing country healthcare providers and researchers.
Susan M. Pilch 301.594.6275 pilchs@ors.od.nih.gov	Susan M. Pilch joined the NIH Library in January 2001, and is currently employed as a Biomedical Librarian/Informationist. She received a Masters of Library Science from the University of Maryland in December, 2001, and holds a PhD in nutritional biochemistry from Cornell University and a bachelor's degree in biology and chemistry from the University of Virginia. Prior to moving into the field of information science, she held positions at the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, the NIH Office of the Director, the National Cancer Institute, and the Food and Drug Administration, with varied responsibilities including scientific writing, editing, and review; nutrition research policy and coordination; research program management in diet and cancer; and regulation of health claims and dietary supplements.
Rex Robison 301.594.6283 robisonr@mail.nih.gov	Rex Robison joined the NIH Library in 2006 and works mainly with groups involved in neuroscience and psychology research. Some of the groups he has supported at NIH include the NIMH Office of Science Policy, Planning, and Communications; the NIMH Office of Autism Research Coordination; the NIDA Intramural Research Program; the NIA Office of Planning, Analysis, & Evaluation; and the Trans-NIH Down Syndrome Working Group. His work at NIH has included searching the literature, coordinating the construction of databases and websites, conducting library research, and training and troubleshooting. He is also active on the library's instruction, emerging technologies, and Web teams. Since November 2010 he has been chair of the Steering Committee for the HHS Library Consortium. Rex has a PhD in biological psychology from Stanford University and a Masters of Library Science from the University of Maryland. He has published in both disciplines. His undergraduate education was in mathematics and psychology at Purdue University. Prior to working at NIH, Rex's employment included reviewing scientific and medical issues in product liability lawsuits and teaching at a community college in Hawaii.
Mary Ryan 301.451.5861 ryanm@mail.nih.gov	Mary E. Ryan joined the NIH Library as a Biomedical Librarian/Informationist in December, 2002. Before coming to the NIH Library, she worked for over three years at the National Center for Health Services Research (NICHSR), National Library of Medicine, where she provided research and database development and support for public and private organizations in the areas of public health and health services research. Prior library experience includes five years as a clinical medical librarian at the Washington Hospital Center, followed by nine years as a clinical librarian and instructor at the George Washington University Medical Center. In addition to a Masters Degree in Library Science (MLS), Ms. Ryan holds undergraduate degrees in education and political science, and earlier work experience includes a U.S. Senate staff position.
Pam Sieving 301.451.5862 sievingp@ors.od.nih.gov	Pamela C. Sieving came to NIH in 2001 from the University of Michigan, where she was Director of Library Services for the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences. Her master's degree in library science is from Southern Connecticut State University; she also holds a BA from Valparaiso University, and an MA in English literature and linguistics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has also worked at the Yale University Graduate Library, the University of Illinois/Chicago, the Chicago legal office of Kirkland & Ellis, and the graduate library of the University of Michigan. Pam's interests include open access and changes in scholarly communication, how physicians find and incorporate new evidence into their clinical decision-making, epidemiology and evidence-based medicine, and access to information in developing countries. Her responsibilities at NIH include informationist positions for the National Eye Institute and the Clinical Center's tracheotomy care team. She is active in the American Library Association, the Medical Library Association, teaches with the US Cochrane Center, and served as chair of the Association of Vision Science Librarians (2005-2007). She is fluent in several languages, including German and Swedish.
Karen G. Smith 301.594.6273 smithk@nihrrlib.ncrr.nih.gov	Karen Smith has been a biomedical librarian at NIH since 1994, and joined the Informationist program in 2003. She received her Masters of Library Science from the University of Alabama in 1985. As a Clinical Informationist, she works with the Pain & Palliative Care Consult Service, the NIAAA Laboratory of Clinical and Translational Studies, and several branches within the NHLBI intramural program.
Tina M. Stiller 301.594.6276 tstiller@nih.gov	Tina Stiller has been an Informationist with the NIH Library since May 2005. She received a Masters of Library & Information Science degree in 1998 from Wayne State University, and holds undergraduate degrees in Dental Hygiene and Health Studies. Tina was employed as a medical librarian at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine prior to coming to NIH. Tina is an experienced clinical dental hygienist and also has experience as a public dental health educator. As an Informationist at the NIH Library Tina works with the National Institute of Dental & Craniofacial Research.
Nancy Terry 301.594.6274 terryn@nih.gov	Nancy Terry began working in the NIH Library in 1995 as a Biomedical Librarian and joined the Informationist program in 2005. In addition to a Masters Degree in Library Science (MLS), Ms. Terry received a BA in psychology from the University of Maryland. Before coming to the NIH Library she worked for five years as a clinical medical librarian and instructor at the George Washington University Medical Center and for ten years as a clinical medical librarian at the Washington Hospital Center. As an Informationist for the NIH Library, Nancy works with the NHLBI Center for the Application of Research Discoveries, and for the Office of the Secretary, an HHS agency served by the NIH Library.
Judy Welsh 301.594.6211 welshju@ors.od.nih.gov	As an NIH Library informationist, Judith Welsh works with the Critical Care Medicine Department, Rehabilitation Medicine Department, DC Partnership for AIDS Progress, and Nursing and Patient Care Services. Prior to joining the NIH Library, Judy worked as an academic health sciences librarian at UC Davis where she served as liaison librarian to the Department of Internal Medicine and Coordinator of the HouseCalls Outreach Program. Judy also worked as a registered nurse in the field of pediatrics. Judy earned a Masters of Library Science degree from UC Los Angeles and BS degree from Cornell University-New York Hospital School of Nursing.
Anne White-Olson 301.451.5863 whiteols@mail.nih.gov	Anne White-Olson has been at the NIH since 1990, starting off her career here at the National Library of Medicine. Prior to that she worked as Product Manager for OCLC and a software development company, managing integrated library system development, maintenance and training. Anne has been at the NIH Library since 2006, as a Biomedical Librarian, where she worked on the Communications Team, Instruction Team, Information Services Team and the NIH Library Writing Center. As an Informationist, Anne worked with the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders Office of Science Policy and Planning Branch (NIDCD/SPPB) in the development and maintenance of a NIDCD-funded publications database and a Human Embryonic Stem Cell Database. She continues to work with: HHS/Administration for Children and Families (ACF) NIDCD Division of Scientific Programs NIDCD Office of Communications and Public Liaison NIDCD Science Policy and Planning Branch NIDA Intramural Program NCI Office of Science Policy HHS/Administration on Aging Prior to coming to the Library, Anne worked as a Program Analyst in the NIDCD/SPPB where she tracked Federal health legislation, provided support to, and outreach for, the NIH Stem Cell Task Force and contributed to many reports required by Congress. Anne has an MLS from the Syracuse University, School of Information Studies (iSchool). Her professional interests include: Writing and editing, Open Access, user search behavior, database development, open government, and health information, communications and health policy.
Lynn Young 301.594.6426 lynny@mail.nih.gov	Lynn Young has over twenty years of experience in the fields of computational biology and bioinformatics. She received her Ph.D. in physics from Purdue University where she studied vibrational modes of DNA. She worked in the field of structure-based drug design at NCI-Frederick and most recently worked in the Division of Computational Bioscience at the Center for Information Technology at NIH. There she analyzed microarray data; developed web applications; led the development of the genomics component of the National Database for Autism Research (NDAR); and coordinated ontology development for NDAR. Lynn joined the NIH Library in August of 2010 to provide bioinformatics training, consulting, and programming.