The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the National Library of Medicine (NLM) are working together to strengthen the capacity of PAHO documentation centers throughout the countries of Latin America. Through this project, PAHO librarians will be trained to use a wide variety of NLM databases and resources, including PubMed, MedlinePlus, ClinicalTrials.gov, and TOXNET. PAHO is the regional office for the Americas of the World Health Organization, whose mission is working to improve health in the Americas. PAHO maintains offices in each of the participating countries and most of these offices include a documentation center. The focus of the documentation centers is to collect, organize, and disseminate PAHO publications and other health information in the country. They also train other health information and health professionals in their countries to access health information.

In the Spring 2005, a needs assessment was conducted among the documentation center librarians. Based on the findings of the assessment, a one-day training course was taught prior to the International Congress on Medical Librarianship in Bahia, Brazil in September 2005. Over 25 participants from Latin America and the Caribbean attended the course. The course was taught in English and Spanish, using simultaneous translation. English and Spanish training materials were provided. Based on the assessments and the course evaluations, it is anticipated that additional training courses will be developed. These courses may focus on expert searching techniques or include in-depth training on specific NLM resources. The training materials used in this course (in English and Spanish) are available for downloading.

Training Materials