Mary L. Ryan, MLS, MPH, the Director of the UAMS Library, has been appointed by Kathleen Sebelius, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, to serve a four year term on the National Library of Medicine (NLM) Board of Regents. She is one of only two health sciences librarians currently serving on the Board. Eight other Board members were appointed from leaders in the fields of medicine, dentistry, public health, hospital administration, pharmacology, bioinformatics, etc. There are also nine ex officio Board members, including the Surgeon General and the Librarian of Congress.
The NLM Board of Regents meets three times per year to advise, consult with, and make recommendations to the HHS Secretary, the Director of the National Institutes of Health, and the Director of NLM on matters related to the Library. Policy matters may include the materials collected, the services provided, and the research conducted by the Library, including the research and development done at the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), which maintains PubMed, MedlinePlus, genome databases and many other resources used by scientists throughout the world on a daily basis. In addition, the Board reviews and makes recommendations about grant applications, bioinformatics training programs, and contracts funded by the Library, and advises the Library on the development of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, of which the UAMS Library is an active member. Ms. Ryan’s term on the NLM Board of Regents will expire in September of 2014.
