Goal 1: Professional Development

d. Develops and promulgates standards and educational policies

for health sciences library and information professionals;

____________________________________________________________________

The Standards Committee completed a survey of the sections and updated the Directory of Sections’ Standards
Activities. A roster of experts has been developed, to provide editorial advice on standards documents, and this
list has been included in the Directory. A bibliography has also been created to serve as a resource list for MLA
members engaged in standards development and following final approval by the Council, the bibliography will
be mounted on the Council Web site. The “Organization of Standards Activities in the Medical Libraries
Association” document has been added to the Section Council web site.

______________________________________________________________________

Goal 2: Advocacy

d. recruits qualified individuals into the profession;

____________________________________________________________________

The Council Chair appointed a Section Council representative to the Core MLA Membership Committee, to
assist in the planning and development of MLA Association recruitment programs.

The Communications Committee has completed work on several marketing strategies to promote the value of
section membership, including the development of a Section Council logo used to create a bookmark that will
be distributed at the New Leaders Tea, and the design is also to be used as a centerpiece in the “Mosaic/Quilt
Square Project.” Quilt square stickers, representing individual sections, have also been produced for distribution
at the Section Council table at the annual meeting in Dallas. The Communications Committee also sent out
a call for additional contributions to the Section Council “Mosaic/Quilt Project.”

___________________________________________________________________

Goal 3: Organization

d. Develops, evaluates, and enhances programs and services responsive to members' needs.

______________________________________________________________________

The last phase of the implementation of the new Section Council structure has been completed with the 2002
section election process.

The Chair of the MLA By-Laws Committee and the Council Chair have encouraged sections to complete
by-laws changes through e-mail reminders, and questions have been answered related to by-laws wording
and official procedures for implementing these changes. Several sections have completed drafts for by-laws
changes and section members will be voting on the changes at section business meetings in Dallas.

The Communications Committee Chair has contacted the MLA Awards Committee Chair to investigate
the processes involved in creating a “Section of the Year” award. Recommendations will be discussed at
the Section Council business meeting.

The section programming process for the 2002 Annual Meeting has been challenging this year due to the
integration of a new software package to manage abstract submission and to the changing roles of the
people involved in the programming processes. The section programming for the 2002 Annual Meeting
has been identified and submitted for the final program. The NPC/ Section Council Liaison strongly
recommends that a systematic review of the various roles of the NPC players and a
comprehensive review of the structure for NPC planning, take place in the near future.

An MLA Committee to Review the Annual Meeting Fixed Program Schedule and other issues related to
programming has been established and includes representation from Section Council.

The Section/SIG Review Committee Chair has been in contact with the Corporate Information Services
Section leadership to review the requirements for full section status. The Corporate Section was granted
provisional status last year.

Communication with sections and SIGS regarding the processes required for petitioning Section Council
for the approval of a name change have taken place. The Council approved a name change for the
Medical Society Libraries Section to the Health Associations Libraries Section. Council approved a name
change for the Complementary Medicine SIG to the Complementary and Alternative Medicine SIG; and
Council approved a name change for the Clinical Librarians SIG to the Clinical Librarians and Evidence-based
Health Care SIG.

Discussions regarding the sponsorship of a joint program on mentoring by the Section and Chapter
Councils at the 2003 Annual Meeting have been ongoing and a joint committee has been appointed
to develop the programming. The NPC 2003 Joint Program Committee on Mentoring has been
communicating on a regular basis, has developed a program theme/title and will be meeting in
Dallas to discuss further planning issues.

Goal 3: Organization

e. Fosters effective communication within the association and with external constituencies.

______________________________________________________________________

Communication with Council members, Sections and the MLA Board has been through listservs, two
Council mailings (completed electronically), sent out in September and April. Updates to the
Section Council web site have been completed on a regular basis.

The Council Chair has been involved in ongoing communication with the MLA Board and International
Cooperation Section leadership related to the MLA/ICS Sister Library Pilot Project. The MLA Board
approved an extension of the pilot project to 2003.

_____________________________________________________________________

Goal 6: Information Technology

a. Uses technology to improve communication among members and to enhance remote
access to association services and programs:

_____________________________________________________________________

The transition of the Section Council Web Site responsibilities to a new Webmaster was
successfully accomplished last summer. The Webmaster has completed numerous updates
to the Council web pages. A calendar mapping the update processes and time investment
has been created to serve as a guide for future Webmasters.

The Webmaster serves in a dual appointment role, as both Webmaster and Section Council Liaison
to the MLANet Editorial Board (MEB). The MEB did not have a mid-winter meeting, but members
have been communicating through e-mail and several teleconferences.

The Council Chair and the Webmaster have completed revisions to the Section Council’s Web
version of the Procedure Manual.

A proposal to waive section host fees was brought before the MLA Board. The motion was not approved,
but a taskforce will be established to examine the issue further and provide feedback to the Board.

This report is informational and requires no action by the Board of Directors.

Nancy I. Henry

Section Council Chair

April 12, 2002

Section Council Members

Section	Representative	Rep Elect / Alternate
Cancer Librarians	Annelie Sober
Chiropractic Libraries	Marcia Thomas
Collection Development	Jett McCann
Consumer and Patient Health Information	Gail Hendler	Sharon Lazotte
Corporate Information Services	Tovah Reis
Dental	Leah Krevit
Educational Media and Technologies	Norma F. Funkhouser	Melissa D. Santis
Federal Libraries	Mary E. Aldous
Health Association Libraries	Susan Bolda Marshall
History of the Health Sciences	Stephen Greenberg
Hospital Libraries	Kathleen Murray
International Cooperation	Thomas Williams
Leadership and Management	Carolyn Anne Reid
Medical Informatics	Elizabeth Connor
Medical Library Education	Gail Dutcher
Nursing and Allied Health	Janet Schnall
Pharmacy and Drug Information	Peg Hewitt
Public Health/Health Administration Libraries	Beverlee R. Hall
Public Services	Barbara W. Francis
Relevant Issues	Catherine Wolfson
Research	Dixie A. Jones
Technical Services	Pat Rodgers	Mary L. Holcomb
Veterinary Medical Libraries	Jill Crawley-Low