Library of the future - the new UChicago library has a stunning design and functionality

The University of Chicago’s new Mansueto Library is a futuristic bubble of a building that uses an automated retrieval systems that holds the books in steel cases 50 feet below ground.

While many academic libraries are digitizing and moving holdings off site, Manseuto is the largest and latest of about 24 libraries that use the system.



The $81 million Mansueto library (Mr. Mansueto founded Morningstar stock info service) has capacity for 3.5 million volumes.

The Mansueto library is also focused on digitizing its collection and has a lab for both digitization and conservation:

- it mends paper and rebinds the university’s books — some of them papyrus
- it also scans books for its partner, Google Books

It takes 5 minutes for a student to get a book after the request is placed electronically:

- 5 cranes run along parallel tracks; one is activated and locates materials using bar codes

- the crane removes one of the 24,000 containers, each weighing up to 200 pounds and transports it to an elevator, which lifts it to a librarian's desk

Some students apparently like the new library so much that they record poetic videos of "Rain in the Mansueto": "A quick capture of what I think was the first rain storm for the new Mansueto Library at the University of Chicago. My phone's mic really couldn't do justice to the sound, but it was a pretty exciting deep almost-rumble. You also can't capture the immersive fish-bowl-ness of it; it really is all around you. I can't wait for a storm during the day... or a blizzard."



References:

The Bibliotech: Library of the Future, Now. NYTimes.

The Joe and Rika Mansueto Library

Building the Joe and Rika Mansueto Library (video)

The loss of the centuries-old idea of a library building as the place to go to read and to look for information. Johns Hopkins Medical Library Is Closing Its Doors to Patrons and Moving to Digital Model (http://goo.gl/BWjjO and http://goo.gl/KN55o). According to the article, Johns Hopkins will transition the current medical librarians to "informaticians" embedded with the clinical teams.

Disclaimer: I am an Allergist/Immunologist and Assistant Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics at the University of Chicago.

Comments from Twitter:

@aptronym: Very impressive but what happens if there's a power outage, eh?

@BiteTheDust: they provide long ladders?

@DrVes: power outage at University of Chicago's Mansueto Library: http://t.co/fHbuIf2A

@aptronym: Ha! Two weeks after opening and a power outage meant #nobooksforanyone. I always ponder the effects of outages.

1 in 5 Americans have trouble communicating with their doctor and 1 in 10 feel disrespected. How to help?

A 2001 survey by the Commonwealth Fund found that doctor-patient communication often fell short. One in 5 American adults had trouble communicating with their doctors, and 1 in 10 felt they had been treated disrespectfully during a recent health care visit.

Just funded through a generous $42-million grant, the University of Chicago aims to fix the communication errors and bring the patient-physician relationship back where it belongs.

Here is the example that started the whole process:

Kay Bucksbaum, whose husband made multi-billion fortune developing shopping centers around the world, said she was inspired by Dr. Mark Siegler, a medical ethicist at the University of Chicago who became the couple's internist when they moved to Chicago from Iowa 10 years ago.

In contrast, she recalled a doctor years ago who didn't listen to her when she told him what she thought was wrong with her -- and didn't apologize when she turned out to be right.

When her husband needed surgery, she said, Siegler "took my husband by the hand to meet the surgeon, introduced him, and told the surgeon something about my husband. He even scrubs up and watches his patients' surgeries when he can, she said. "And he encourages patients to call him "Mark."

The video below introduces the Bucksbaum Institute for Clinical Excellence which is funded through $42 million grant to the University of Chicago to create a unique initiative that aims to improve the doctor-patient relationship and communication in medicine:



Disclaimer: I am an Allergist/Immunologist and Assistant Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics at the University of Chicago.

NBC video:



References:

New Bucksbaum Institute fosters doctor-patient communication
Benefactor Gives U of Chicago $42 Million to Work on Bedside Manner
A $42 Million Gift Aims at Improving Bedside Manner
The first three Bucksbaum scholars at UChicago http://goo.gl/gR7Pj
Do 'Nice' Doctors Make Better Doctors? http://goo.gl/uUn7C -- The Downside of Doctors Who Feel Your Pain - NYTimes http://goo.gl/VdSev

iPad use by medical residents gets rave reviews, increases productivity

View more videos at: http://www.nbcchicago.com.

The Internal Medicine Residents at the University of Chicago Medical Center are now equipped with iPads as their primary device for clinical use.

In the summer of 2010, the Internal Medicine Residency (IMR) program began piloting a project to study the use of iPads on the inpatient wards. Initiated by the Chairman's Office, the project was intended to enhance efficiency of patient care activities on the wards with the goals of improved patient care and more robust conference attendance.

The pilot was overwhelmingly positive and has led to broader use of the devices for all IMR residents. The DOM Internal Medicine Residency program is the first training program in the country to utilize the device.

As an Assistant Professor at University of Chicago, I work with the residents on a daily basis and I can confirm that they love their iPads.

References:

University of Chicago Medical Center
iPads Helping Doctors. NBC.

Tablet computers in the hospital - ACP Hospitalist, August 2011 http://goo.gl/a9OND

Comments from Twitter:

@DrVes: Why are some doctors and nurses giving back their iPads? http://j.mp/Hq15aD - Easy: iPad works great for pt education, NOT for data entry. Only 10% of doctors currently use an iPad at work http://j.mp/Hq15aD - I use iPad daily to discuss these diagrams: http://j.mp/Hq1k5v

iPad is a great teaching tool @CraigCCRNCEN was able to explain to Vietnamese family AFib and clots by showing them animation from YouTube.

Brian S. McGowan PhD @BrianSMcGowan: so is the best option for docs still a touch screen laptop? teach w/ touch screen, work w/ full keyboard? #hcsm

@DrVes: iPad works well for discussing DDx, Tx options with pts. Much more portable than laptop. Full-keyboard COWs best for typing.

Jeff Bray @jeffkbray: I have been scanning all my medical reference books and store them on my iPad for quick use and no weight - great tool and mobile