JISC

The  Resource Discovery Network provides effective access to high quality Internet resources for the learning, teaching and research community. NMAP will enhance the the BIOME (Biomedical Sciences) subject hub of the RDN by extending its coverage of nursing, midwifery and other professions allied to medicine. Plans are for NMAP to develop in synergy with the National electronic Library for Health (NeLH) Virtual Branch Library for Nursing and professions allied to medicine.

Aims and Objectives

The overall aim of the project is to develop an Internet gateway providing easy and free access to high quality Internet resources for nursing, midwifery and allied health professions. The specific objectives are to:

• Launch the gateway with a substantial number of records by April 2001 reflecting sensitivity to the needs of the professions
• Identify, evaluate and incorporate records from Nursing and Health Care Resources on the Net (NHCON), Royal College of Nursing (RCN) databases and existing records within OMNI, the predecessor to BIOME; to identify, evaluate and incorporate records of new relevant resources
• Recruit and train content providers with suitable knowledge and skills, who will reflect the various professions in the audience scope for this gateway
• Develop systems for “Trusted Information Providers” (TIPs) and public submissions
• Integrate records enabling cross searching with OMNI and BIOME
• Create a robust system which is accessible and provides a rapid response to requests
• Contribute to the NeLH Virtual Branch Library for nursing and professions allied to medicine
• Obtain quantitative and qualitative data on users’ views of the service and improve it in line with user needs

Project design

Records which meet the selection criteria of BIOME will be entered into the database structure by content providers recruited to represent the various professional groups covered by the scope of this gateway. These include:

• Nursing – adult, child, mental health and learning disabilities
• Midwifery
• Health visiting
• Physiotherapy
• Occupational therapy
• Dietetics and nutritionists
• Speech and language therapists
• Operating theatre practitioners
• Radiography

Records will be indexed using terms from MESH and RCN Thesauri and classified using the NLM (National Library of Medicine) classification scheme. This will enable rapid searching and browsing using language familiar to the various target groups. The database will comply with the technical and interoperability standards of the RDN.

Outcomes

NMAP will develop an Internet gateway providing easy and free access to high quality Internet resources for nursing, midwifery and professions allied to medicine. The resource will support learning and teaching, research and management in these areas. The project addresses the interests and needs of healthcare staff and will enable them to obtain quality assured information quickly and easily to support their practice and enhance the quality of patient care.