VHL News Network

Cartagena de Índias hosts the CRICS8 in 2007

The CRICS 8 and the Coordination Meetings of the VHL, SciELO and ScienTI Networks will be held in Cartagena de Indias, in the week 12-18 August, 2007. The event represents the most important international forum in scientific and technical information in Latin America and the Caribbean. As the host country, Colombia will have the opportunity to update national communities of researchers, information professionals and students, to give visibility to national policies, programs and advances, and to disseminate its science, culture and arts. The Colombian institutions of the VHL Advisory Committee, in collaboration with the PAHO, through the BIREME/PAHO/WHO and its Representative in Colombia, are organizing the events
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COLCIENCIAS takes over the Executive Secretariat of ScienTI Network

The Instituto Colombiano para el Desarrollo de la Ciencia y la Tecnología, Francisco José de Caldas - COLCIENCIAS, took over the responsibility for the Executive Secretariat of ScienTI Network, according to a decision made at the 5th Regional Coordination Meeting of the network, held in Cartagena de Indias, in July 2006. The Secretariat was previously run under BIREME/PAHO/WHO responsibility and was formally transferred during a meeting held at the Institute headquarter in Bogotá, on October 18. The transfer ceremony was characterized by the delivery of a letter from the Director of BIREME, Abel L. Packer, to COLCIENCIAS General Director Felipe García Vallejo, in addition to the documents that record ScienTI Network evolution
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Dublin Core 2006 is held in Mexico

The last edition of the traditional conference on metadata was held in Manzanillo, Colima, Mexico, from October 3rd to 6, 2006. The event is held every year by the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative (DCMI). The event took place in Latin America for the first time and was organized by the Universidade de Colima (UdeC), with the support of national and international partners. It had approximately 255 participants. Lourdes Feria Basurto, UdeC Coordinator, Javier Solorio Lagunas, President of the Congress and Makx Dekkers, President of DCMI, coordinated the effort that aimed to discuss the Dublin Core system, an information standardization language that intends to be a common denominator among all other proposals. Abel Packer, Director of BIREME, gave a lecture entitled "Shared management of networks of sources and flows of information"
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PubMed® celebrates its 10th anniversary

With over 3 million searches per day, the most important source of scientific information in Health Sciences, PubMED®, celebrates 10 years of operation. Launched in January 1996 as an experimental database with access to the bases MEDLINE® and PREMEDLINE, it became public in 1997. PubMed gathers several databases run by the NLM of the United States, such as OLDMEDLINE (with records prior to 1966), Serials Database (about indexed journals), NLM Catalog and MEDLINE (as from 1996). Its evolution in the last decade and future developments are highlighted in an article published in the NLM Technical Bulletin 352, of September/October 2006. MEDLINE is also operated in the network of soureces of information of the VHL
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Recife and Sergipe receive VHL Stations

Two more Brazilian States received their VHL Stations in October, amounting to 19 Stations in the country. The initiative is headed by the Ministry of Health together with the State Secretariats of Health in Brazil and PAHO, through the BIREME/PAHO/WHO. Its aim is to expand the access to scientific and technical information available at the VHL, and particularly to promote information inclusion of health communities with restricted access to the Internet. The opening of the VHL Station in Recife took place on October 6th, and Sergipe opened its 2nd VHL Station on October 11th, 2006. Representatives of leading institutions and local authorities took part in the events
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CICT | FIOCRUZ makes publication available in electronic format

The Revista do CICT (FIOCRUZ, Brazilian Ministry of Health) is available in electronic format. Its first issue was published in 2005, only in printed format. Available at the CICT/FIOCRUZ portal, the Revista is divided into three blocks - research, teaching and service, highlights the new tendencies in S&T communication and information studies in the field of health in Brazil, and emphasizes the participation of health professionals in events. In electronic format, it expands its public and becomes an important source for dissemination of activities, products, services and events promoted and leaded by the CICT/FIOCRUZ, including the development of various thematic areas at the VHL in cooperation with the BIREME/PAHO/WHO, and other national, Latin American and Caribbean institutions
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