[Web4lib] Duplicating/overlapping resources for Katrina

[John Fereira]

At 12:14 PM 9/7/2005, Patricia F Anderson wrote:
>Karen,
>
>Thank you for the excellent thought to use lessons learned from Katrina to 
>inform discussions and planning for both archiving and disaster/homeland 
>security/preparedness discussions. I have seen similar discussions come 
>forth on other library lists.
>
>Some of the lessons I've noted are these.
>
>  - Doctors in shelters may not have access to online resources. There 
> needs to be identified a core set of print reference materials that 
> medical and public libraries keep print duplicates of to distribute at 
> times like these. The Govt could develop a set of core information 
> resources to keep in print, and ensure that a copy is in every library in 
> the country as print and CD, as well as online..

Which Govt should that be?  Doctors treating people in shelters in 
Indonesia after the tsunami had the same needs for online resources as 
those treating people in shelters as a result of a hurricane that happened 
to hit U.S. soil.  Fortunately, someone *has* developed a list of core 
resources.  The World Health Organization maintains a site called Hinari 
(Health Internetwork Access to Research Initiative).  Essentially, many of 
the major journal publishers (the list is quite long) have provided access 
to their subscription based services for online journals for use by 
developing countries.  In this case, Doctors working in a shelter are 
likely working under similar conditions than doctors working in many of 
these countries every day.  The system has an authentication/authorization 
mechanism which restricts access to these journal subscriptions only to 
institition in eligible countries.  It would be nice to be able to 
temporarily grant access to the collection based on emergency needs but I 
am aware that the system doesn't currently support that.  However, as I 
know who the project managers are for the system I can make an enhancement 
recommendation.  The Hinari site can be found at: http://www.who.int/hinari/en/

If you visit the site you'll find a like to the Agora program, a sister 
site which provides Agriculture related information to developing 
countries.  I was the initial system architect/programmer for the Agora 
programme.

Compiling a collection of online resources for medical or agricultural use 
is only useful if it is accessible.  In the case of developing countries 
just obtaining reliable internet access is a huge issue.  I've heard 
stories of it taking 3 years just to the a land phone line in many 
not-so-small cities in African countries.  Even if a collection of online 
resources were available getting internet access into the facilities where 
those in need of the information may be more problematic.  As far as I know 
the astrodome hasn't been set up as a wireless hotspot (let's give those 
geek squad dudes a real challenge).  In many developing countries with 
marginal infrastructure to support internet access the use of web 
accessible cell phones has increased faster than computers with dialup 
connections.  Maybe it's time that the use of satellite Internet service be 
revisited.