===================================================================== AMERICAN VETERINARY COMPUTER SOCIETY NEWSLETTER January - February, 1994 ===================================================================== Richard B. Talbot (Virginia Tech) - President; James T. Case (UC-Davis) - Secretary Treasurer; Robert Featherston (Tulsa, OK) - President elect; Ronald D. Smith (Illinois) - Newsletter Editor. ===================================================================== IN THIS ISSUE SOCIETY NEWS A Message from the Secretary/Treasurer How to Contact AVCS LETTERS TO THE EDITOR JVME Electronic Electronic Medical Dictionary SAYING WHAT WE MEAN AND MEANING WHAT WE SAY PRODUCT AVAILABILITY/REVIEWS/COMPARISONS HEALTHMATRIX - Hypertext Internet Health Resources The Dairy Debate NEWS AND COMMENTARY Robots Dispense Drugs Veterinary Immunology Discussion Group Byte Animal Clinic Veterinary Forum Computer Q & A Virtual Reality Ride Tours Human Digestive System Apple's On-Line Village MEETINGS AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES Artificial Intel. in Med. - Interpreting Clin. Data, Stanford, CA. First World Cong. on Computational Med. & Public Health, Austin, TX Computers In Healthcare Education Symposium, Philadelphia, PA Workshop on Information Retrieval and Genomics, Bethesda, MD Am. Med. Informatics Assoc. (AMIA) Spring Congress, San Fancisco, CA 1994 National Extension Technology Conference, Lexington, KY The 7th IEEE Symp. on Computer-Based Med. Systems, Winston-Salem, NC 12th Conf. for Computer Applications in Radiology, Winston-Salem, NC ED-MEDIA 94 - World Conf. Educ. Multimedia and Hypermedia, Vancouver, CA World Cong. on Med. Physics and Biomed. Engineering, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Int'l Conf on Neural Networks & Expert Systems in Med. & Healthcare, Plymouth, England ITCH '94 - Info. Technology in Community Health, Victoria, B.C., Canada Itch'94 - Information Tech. In Community Health Victoria, B.C. Canada 18th Annual Symp. On Computer Applications In Med. Care, Washington, DC International Congress on Medical Informatics, Havana, Cuba MEDINFO'95 - 8th World Congress on Medical Informatics, Sao Paulo, Brazil Training Program in Medical Informatics - Columbia University SUGGESTED READING CLOSING BITS ===================================================================== SOCIETY NEWS ===================================================================== A MESSAGE FROM THE SECRETARY/TREASURER I hope that you enjoy the Newsletter over this year. The AVCS is in the process of reengineering itself to meet the growing needs of the veterinary community in the area of information technology. We will also provide information about some of the new technologies and services which will be available soon, such as the AVMA's Network of Animal Health, NOAH, which is in the formative stages. If there are areas that you would like to see addressed in the Newsletter, or other services you would like to see the AVCS provide, please write to any of the officers listed below. Please consider the AVCS and its offiers as a resource and feel free to use us in that capacity. We appreciate your renewal in the AVCS and look forward to providing you with useful information and services in the coming year. ===================================================================== HOW TO CONTACT AVCS Applications for membership, accompanied by a check for $20 payable to the AVCS, should be sent to Dr. James T. Case; AVCS Secretary Treasurer; School of Veterinary Medicine; University of California; P.O. Box 1770; Davis, CA 95617 (Phone: 916/752-4408; FAX: 916/752-5680; e-mail: jcase@ucdcvdls.bitnet). Dr. Case is responsible for distribution of the hardcopy version of the AVCS Newsletter. Newsletter items can be sent to Dr. Ronald D. Smith, AVCS Newsletter Editor; UI College of Veterinary Medicine; 2001 South Lincoln; Urbana, IL 61801. Telephone: 217/333-2449; FAX: 217/333-4628; AOL: RDSmith; Internet: r-smith19@uiuc.edu If you would like to be on the AVCS Newsletter electronic distribution list, send an e-mail message to the Newsletter Editor. Although the electronic version is only an ASCII (text) file, it's faster, searchable, easier to store and retrieve, and environmentally friendly. Current and past issues of the Newsletter can also be downloaded from the Associations and Foundations Library of America Online's Veterinary Information Network. Issues remain there for one year. ===================================================================== LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ===================================================================== JVME ELECTRONIC Posted to Veterinary Medicine Library issues and information By: dcanderson@UCDAVIS.EDU The Fall 1993 issue of the Journal of Veterinary Medical Education is vol.20(2). Vol.20(3) is being published electronically, and will consist of page 65 past 175. There is an interesting editorial in page 65 [inside back cover of vol.20(2)] regarding the electronic version; issue no.3 will be sent to all schools as "an inexpensive application program plus data files on a 3 1/2" disk...". ===================================================================== ELECTRONIC MEDICAL DICTIONARY Question (posted to VETLIB-L): A student is looking for a PC-compatible medical (not veterinary medical) dictionary on CD-ROM or for installation on a hard drive. Can anyone suggest one? RD Smith Responses: I don't know if this will be what the user is looking for but Williams & Wilkins has Stedman's Definitions for $89.95 (single user) that works with most DOS word processors and Stedman's/25 Plus Spell Checker "compatible with Word Perfect or Microsoft Word, this powerfulmedical and pharmaceutical..." $59.95 (single user). Livija Carlson Ron, the Stedman's Medical Dictionary is available in two types: definitions and spell check. I assume the student wants the definition, which is $149. The ISBN number is 0683-17577-7. It is available for DOS only and requires 3M on the hard disc and 4K RAM. For more info, call Williams & Wilkins, Lea & Febiger at 1-800-638-0672. Ask for the Electronic Media Department. Mitzi=Williams%LIB%CVM@vetmed.cvm.uiuc.edu Stedman's Medical Dictionary is available. It's published by William & Wilkins Electronic Media. The phone number is 800-527-5597. Charlotte Means, DVM ===================================================================== SAYING WHAT WE MEAN AND MEANING WHAT WE SAY: STANDARDIZED NOMENCLATURE Feature Article by Dr. Richard B. Talbot, Editor Journal of Veterinary Medical Education VA-MD Regional College of Veterinary Medicine Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA 24061 USA 703/552.4701; rtalbot@mail.vt.edu (From JVME 20:(2). Fall, 1993) ===================================================================== All of us in academic veterinary medicine recognize the need for standards in our professional activities. We have accreditation standards that must be met for national accreditation. We have promotion and tenure standards that must be adhered to within our own universities and we have other standards such as those for admissions and curriculum within each of our Colleges. These standards have helped elevate our schools and our profession to the stature we enjoy today. One of the areas in which we have not done well is in standardizing the medical nomenclature we use. We have tried valiantly from the days of SNVDO's origin at Michigan State, but frankly, the tools have just not been available to help us be successful. Some have said "Why be concerned about standards? You call it Gentocin=AE an= d I'll call it gentamycin; we both know it is the same thing." The fallacy of that is that we both may know but other persons or machines with responsibility for other uses of the data may not know they are the same. It will do an academic clinician little good when attempting to retrieve all the psittacosis diagnoses from hospital records if the medical records department has coded them all as ornithosis. Veterinary medical informatics is beginning to play a vital role in addressing many of the problems in management of veterinary information. Computers play a vital role as tools in information management because they collect, process and deliver information in an organized fashion. And thankfully, another resource has recently become available to assist in coupling medical terminology and knowledge. This is SNOMED International, a structured nomenclature and classification of the terms and concepts used in medicine and veterinary medicine. The third edition, just released, has been developed by the College of American Pathologists with input and support by the AVMA. SNOMED International offers a predefined structured vocabulary which was considered only a few years ago an unobtainable goal. It's comprehensive nomenclature now can serve as the nucleus and the infrastructure for computerizing patient medical records. Other tools are definitely necessary to help the clinician and medical informatics specialists in using the rich language and particularly in encoding it electronically into the medical record. But, the basic lexicon is now available for use in building appropriate systems. During the past year there have been efforts by some of our colleges to work together to develop common database elements for medical records. This cooperative spirit should be applauded and encouraged to continue. With modern database management software, transferability of data between various database structures is not a problem today thereby allowing each school or each commercial hospital management system the flexibility of developing database structures that fit their needs. The place where we must all rally around a common set of standards though is nomenclature. Accurate, quantitative scientific communication requires well-defined technical terms. Unambiguous crisp terminology is even more important when machines are used to store, analyze and retrieve data for us. As James Cimino, MD, assistant professor of medicine in the Center for Medical Informatics at Columbia University, recently pointed out (Acad. Med. 68:257-260, 1993), our current challenge "can be exemplified by the Chinese saying: the beginning of wisdom is getting things by their right name." "Medical informatics research is moving to meet this challenge with the development of knowledge-based approaches to medical terminology that will give us the flexibility to say what we mean and a scientific basis on which to verify that we mean what we say." A tremendous amount of effort has gone into development of the new edition of SNOMED and it offers the best detailed integrated and structured vocabulary for veterinary medicine today. It has had extensive veterinary input and this new edition represents almost 30 years of cogitation and testing since its original publication in 1965. I suggest it should be the standard accepted by all colleges of veterinary medicine, state diagnostic laboratories and other organizations collecting and managing veterinary medical data and that collectively we learn to use it effectively to "say what we mean and mean what we say." EDITOR'S NOTE: This volume (20) of the JOURNAL will be published in two issues Spring and Fall, plus an electronic version. The electronic version contains all the contents of issues one and two plus other refereed articles. ===================================================================== PRODUCT AVAILABILITY/REVIEWS/COMPARISONS ===================================================================== HEALTHMATRIX - HYPERTEXT INTERNET HEALTH RESOURCES From: Ken Boschert Healthtel announces a windows hypertext presentation of Internet health resources-Healthmatrix! The program is available as: matrix.zip (Ftp this file from the ftp site ftp.gac.edu in the submissions directory). The hypertext format allows easy browsing of medical libraries, listservs, newsgroups, data archives, gophers, institutions, and wais based information concerned about health. Healthmatrix gives in depth instructions to telnet medical libraries, retrieve files from data archives, and subscribe to newsletters and electronic journals. It describes the character and volume of participation of health mailing lists and newsgroups. Healthmatrix should be of value to medical librarians who access Internet resources. It can be windowed to serve as a database of addresses and commands while on line. Healthmatrix was developed to serve as an introduction and database for the Internet community to access health information. The program introduces Healthtel's communication and librarian services. Healthmatrix is appropriate for distribution to library patrons interested in access to health information over Internet. HEALTHMATRIX- Authors Lee Hancock, Healthtel Corp. ===================================================================== THE DAIRY DEBATE Posted to: VETCAI-L@ksuvm.bitnet By: Robert Zomer The Dairy Debate: Consequences of Bovine Growth Hormone ... An interactive educational info-stack, "The Dairy Debate", has been developed by the University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (SAREP), in conjunction with their recent publication of the book: The Dairy Debate: Consequences of Bovine Growth Hormone and Rotational Grazing Technologies, Edited by William C. Liebhardt, University of California Sustainable Agriculture Education and Research Program, 1993. "The Dairy Debate" info-stack (for use with Apple Macintosh computers) is an educational tool for exploring the questions posed by the recent approval by the FDA of genetically engineered bovine growth hormone (bGH) for use in the U.S dairy industry. Is bGH safe? How will the product affect humans, cows, and dairy farmers? Are the genetically engineered formulations of the hormone identical to naturally occurring bGH? How much extra milk already exists in the U.S.? How much more milk is the use of bGH expected to add to the surplus taxpayers already pay to stockpile? The "Dairy Debate" info-stack considers the implications of recombinant bGH for animal health, consumers, the environment, farm economics, and rural communities. Rotational grazing is compared and contrasted as an alternative sustainable technology. The purpose of both the "Dairy Debate" info-stack and the book is to broaden and inform the public debate over dairy technology by assessing the full range of benefits and risks. The "Dairy Debate" info-stack is provided as freeware and is available on the Internet by "anonymous ftp" or Gopher at: sumex-aim.stanford.edu; /info-mac/info/nms/ mac.archive.umich.edu; /mac/hypercard/science/ It is also available on: America-on-Line Compuserve (HyperText Forum) Those interested in receiving the Dairy Debate Diskette, can send a check or money order for $5.00, payable to "UC Regents", requesting the "Dairy Debate" info-stack (or send a blank 3 1/2" disk and a return label), to the address below: Dairy Diskette; SAREP; University of California; Davis, CA 95616 For more information, write: Robert Zomer; SAREP; University of California; Davis, CA. 95616, or E-Mail: rjzomer@ucdavis.edu ===================================================================== NEWS AND COMMENTARY ===================================================================== ROBOTS DISPENSE DRUGS From: EDUPAGE Hospitals are finding that using robots to dispense drugs frees pharmacists to spend "more time monitoring patient therapy and teaching [patients] how to take medication," according to a doctor at the University of Wisconsin Hospital & Clinics. Meanwhile, nurses at the University of California San Diego Medical Center use an ATM-like machine that issues drugs for patients when the correct personal code is punched in. (Wall Street Journal 11/4/93 A1) ===================================================================== VETERINARY IMMUNOLOGY DISCUSSION GROUP Posted to: VETINFO@ucdcvdls.bitnet By: "Robert A. Holmes, Dvm, Phd" There is a discussion group on the network you might want to contact that deals with veterinary immunology.vetimm-l@ucdcvdls.bitnet or on internet at vetimm-l@cvdls.ucdavis.edu ===================================================================== BYTE ANIMAL CLINIC From: aa266@cleveland.freenet.edu (D.B. Cameron, DVM) In the mid 80's the medical staff of the University Hospitals of Case-Western University began a public medical bulletin board they called St. Silicon's. This worked so well that Case-Western, in conjunction with AT&T, Ohio Bell and others were convinced to sponsor a municipal BBS they called the Cleveland Freenet. Their vision was, and is, an electronic city with all the services available free to anyone with a computer and a modem. They saw computer networks as an opportunity for the people to gain control of the medium before it could become hopelessly commercialized. The format was to get a few hundred volunteers to provide free expert advice and counseling on a very broad front that would mimic a city. So far we have done very well. We offer experts in most medical areas, the law, computers and electronics, and a variety of other areas. Also, there are SIGs in endless areas including hunting and the outdoors, gaming, chefing, drama, and on and on. One can contact the County auditor and a variety of other government offices. It is huge. The local veterinary association, the Cleveland Academy of Veterinary Medicine, was approached to provide service and that is how I got involved. I am the prime sysop and am assisted by Dr. Jos. Cross in the small animal area and Dr. Art Segedy in the equine area. We offer basic information on standard subjects in the Information area of the Byte Animal Clinic. There is a "What's New in Vet Med." that gets some activity. But the main, most active area of the clinic is the Q & A section. In about 5 years of operation we have answered 1300+ questions about all areas of vet med. The largest single area is behavior problems, but that bias may reflect my own practice which is limited to behavior problems only. For further info. just dial 216/388-3888 to access the Cleveland Freenet. To get into the clinic on internet, the address is med.vet.questions@cleveland.freenet.edu. ===================================================================== VETERINARY FORUM COMPUTER Q & A By R.D. Smith, Newsletter Editor The November, 1993 issue of Veterinary Forum (page 38) includes a new monthly computer Q&A column featuring questions from readers and answers from members of the Veterinary Forum Computer Advisory Board. If you would like to submit a computer-related question, write to Veterinary Forum, 5460 Buena Vista, Fairway, KS 66205, Attn, Candice Millard. This month's questions were: How often should you clean out inactive client and patient records? What should I do about hardware maintenance? How can my computer help implement an incentive plan based on actual money received? How often should I backup? What's a good but realistic response rate for my reminders? How can I reduce the time required to do backups? ===================================================================== VIRTUAL REALITY RIDE TOURS HUMAN DIGESTIVE SYSTEM From: Terry Cosgrove 01/04/94 LEAGUE CITY, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 4 (NB) -- Want to know exactly how the human digestive system works. If you live in, or are planning a trip to Oklahoma City later this year, you are in luck, because a League City, Texas-based software company is developing a virtual reality program for the Omniplex Science Museum of Oklahoma City that will take you on a close up tour from input of the food to output of the leftover material. Avian Graphics Limited spokesperson Sharon Goza told Newsbytes that Avian Vice President Mike Goza has lots of experience developing virtual reality programs. Goza works for NASA's Johnson Space Center and is currently in charge of the center's virtual reality lab where Hubbell mission programs were developed so astronauts could evaluate the technology as a possible training tool for the future. Virtual reality systems use a helmet worn by the user to place you right in the environment you choose, such as the digestive tract or the cockpit of a supersonic fighter. As the user turns their head the view changes to accommodate that changed perspective. In the Avian Graphics production the program's audio track is keyed to your current location in the digestive tract. You start your tour viewing the tract from the outside, then shrink down and find yourself in the mouth watching food being chewed. The user then moves down to the stomach, seeing how food is processed there, and finishes the trip by moving through the colon and leaving the body. The program runs on a Silicon Graphics Indigo 2 platform. The system is scheduled for delivery in February 1994, with the first visitor expected in early March 1994. (Jim Mallory/19940104/Press Contact: Fred Grisson, Avian Graphics, 713-486-8719; Reader Contact: Avian Graphics, 713-554-4066)Transmitted: 94-01-04 17:35:51 EST ===================================================================== APPLE'S ON-LINE VILLAGE Apple is planning to offer a new on-line information service called eWorld, which will use a village as its metaphor for information services (with individual buildings in the village designating particular categories of information, such as business news, entertainment, etc.). eWorld will be competing with such services as America Online, GEnie, Prodigy and CompuServe, as well as with new services expected to be offered this year by AT&T and perhaps Microsoft. (Atlanta Constitution 1/4/94 D5) ===================================================================== MEETINGS AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES ===================================================================== March 21-23, 1994 Artificial Intelligence in Medicine - Interpreting Clinical Data, Stanford, CA. (See the Sep-Oct 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) ===================================================================== April 24-28, 1994 First World Congress on Computational Medicine & Public Health, Austin, TX (See the May-June 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) ===================================================================== April 27-29, 1994 Computers In Healthcare Education Symposium, Philadelphia, PA (See the Sep-Oct 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) The full online brochure for the Computers In Healthcare Education Symposium is now available. The Symposium will be held April 27-29, 1994 at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. The full online brochure can be FTP'd from HSLC.ORG (login as anonymous). It is located in the SYM94 directory and the document is titled SYM94.BROCHURE. If you do not have FTP capability, you may request a copy sent to you in e-mail by sending an e-mail message to fileserv@hslc.org. In the body of the message type SENDME SYM94.BROCHURE The printed version of the brochure will be mailed in early March. Please send your mailing address if you would like to receive a copy to: Jerilyn Garofalo; User Support Specialist; Health Sciences Libraries Consortium; 3600 Market St., Suite 550; H S L C Philadelphia, PA 19104-2646 Voice: (215) 222-1532; Fax: (215) 222-0416; Garofalo@hslc.org ===================================================================== May 2-4, 1994 Workshop on Information Retrieval and Genomics, Bethesda, MD This workshop, to be held at the Lister Hill Center Auditorium, National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD brings together researchers and developers in information retrieval (IR) technologies with scientists who are actively involved with research in genomics (genetics, molecular biology, and allied fields). People involved in informatics efforts that support these activities are especially encouraged to participate. For further information contact John Guidi; The Jackson Laboratory; 600 Main Street; Bar Harbor, ME 04609-1500; phone: (207)288-3371 X-1391; fax: (207)288-5079; email: jng@jax.org ===================================================================== May 4-7, 1994 American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) Spring Congress, San Fancisco, CA (See the Nov-Dec 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) ===================================================================== May 15-18, 1994 1994 National Extension Technology Conference, Lexington, KY (See the Nov-Dec 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) ===================================================================== June 10-11, 1994 The Seventh IEEE Symposium on Computer-Based Medical Systems, Winston-Salem, NC ===================================================================== June 13-15, 1994 12th Conference for Computer Applications in Radiology, Winston-Salem, NC ===================================================================== June 25-29, 1994 ED-MEDIA 94 - World Conf. Educ. Multimedia and Hypermedia, Vancouver, Canada (See the Jul-Aug 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) ===================================================================== August 21-26, 1994 World Congress on Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (See the Jan-Feb 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) ===================================================================== August 24-26, 1994 Int'l Conf on Neural Networks & Expert Systems in Med. & Healthcare, Plymouth, England (See the Nov-Dec 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) ===================================================================== October 16-19, 1994 ITCH '94 - Information Technology in Community Health, Victoria, B.C., Canada (See the Mar-Apr 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) ===================================================================== October 30 - November 3, 1994 ITCH'94 - Information Tech. In Community Health Victoria, B.C. Canada (See the Nov-Dec 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) ===================================================================== November 5, 1994 18th Annual Symposium On Computer Applications In Medical Care, Washington, DC The American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) solicits participation at its annual meeting, the Symposium on Computer Applications in Medical Care (SCAMC). This year's theme is "Transforming Information. Changing Health Care." SCAMC is the premier conference in medical informatics in the United States. It provides a forum where those interested in medical informatics can present research findings, discuss development efforts, demonstrate software, attend tutorials, and hear leading experts from a wide range of professional groups discuss the current development and future impact of biomedical information systems. The key deadline for submission of papers and proposals is May 10, 1994. A copy of the call for participation, submittal forms, and other information may be obtained from: American Medical Informatics Association; 4915 St. Elmo Avenue, Suite 302; Bethesda, Maryland 20814; Phone: 301-657-1291; E-mail: amia@camis.stanford.edu ===================================================================== November 8-11, 1994 International Congress on Medical Informatics, Havana, Cuba (See the Nov-Dec 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) ===================================================================== September 9-14, 1995 MEDINFO'95 - 8th World Congress on Medical Informatics, Sao Paulo, Brazil (See the Jan-Feb 1993 issue of the AVCS Newsletter for details) NOTE: THE CONFERENCE LOCATION IS CHANGED TO VANCOUVER, BC, CANADA ===================================================================== TRAINING PROGRAM IN MEDICAL INFORMATICS - COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY The Columbia University Center for Medical Informatics invites applications for fellowships in medical informatics starting in July, 1994. The goal of the program is to train medical informatics scientists for careers as productive researchers and teachers. The fellowship is funded by the National Library of Medicine, an agency of the National Institutes of Health, and is open to U.S. citizens or permanent residents with an M.D. or Ph.D. degree. The Center is located at the Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City. Columbia University is an equal opportunity employer and takes affirmative action. Women and minorities are especially encouraged to apply. The Center for Medical Informatics has fourteen faculty members with diverse backgrounds and an active research program. Areas of special interest include clinical information system development, clinical decision support, computer-based learning, database design, natural language processing, medical vocabularies, medical knowledge representation, information retrieval strategies, physician data entry, genome mapping, molecular modeling, and high performance computing and communication. The Center has close ties and joint appointments with the Departments of Computer Science, Biochemistry, Medicine, Radiology, and Pathology and the Schools of Dentistry, Nursing and Epidemiology. Opportunities also exist in the areas of computer applications in medical librarianship and computer aided learning. A particular strength of the Center is the ability to provide research opportunities in the context of working production systems. We are seeking applicants who want a "hands on" experience while carrying out innovative research and mastering a strong curriculum. Notable features of our environment include the Integrated Academic Information Management System (IAIMS) Phase III implementation funded by the National Library of Medicine, the full partnership of the Columbia University Health Sciences Library in IAIMS and in the Center for Medical Informatics, and close collaborative relationships with basic and clinical science departments. The training program includes a stipend and tuition support for course work in medical informatics, computer science, evaluation study design, and biostatistics. Educational programs will be individualized to address the needs and directions of each fellow. In addition, each fellow will be expected to develop, conduct, and report on an original research project. Opportunities exist for a masters and PhD degrees in Medical Informatics. Support for each fellow will be for three years in most cases. Stipends are available and are in keeping with NIH post-doctoral guidelines. Fellows who wish to maintain their clinical skills will be given opportunities to do so. Applicants should send a letter of not more than two pages describing their background, relevant experience, and motivation; transcripts from medical or graduate school and from college; and a curriculum vita. Letters of reference from three referees should be sent under separate cover. Application materials should be sent to James J. Cimino, M.D.; Atchley Pavilion 1310; 161 Fort Washington Avenue; New York, NY 10032. Additional information may be obtained by calling Dr. Cimino at 212- 305-8127 or by e- mail to ciminoj@cucis.cis.columbia.edu. ===================================================================== SUGGESTED READING ===================================================================== BOOKS DISTANCE LEARNING GUIDE. The Electronic University: A Guide to Distance Learning Programs is available from Peterson's Guides by calling (800) 338-3282. The guide compiles information on courses taught by satellite, computer networking and other technologies. (Chronicle of Higher Education 1/19/94 A23) ===================================================================== RISK ANALYSIS, ANIMAL HEALTH AND TRADE PUBLICATION From: rsmorley@attmail.com (Randall S. Morley) Risk analysis is a rapidly developing and relatively new science in which striking progress has been made in recent years. The value of this new science is becoming more apparent as the notion of free trade is being applied world-wide. An issue of the OIE Scientific and Technical review entitled "Risk Analysis, Animal Health and Trade" (Volume 12(4), 1993) has been recently released that offers a unique combination of eighteen papers on risk analysis as it relates to animal health and international trade. The objective of this issue is to present the definitions and methods currently used in animal health risk assessment with a view to stimulating interest, discussion and the further development of this tool. Although the international movement of animals and animal products represents the main theme, this issue will interest not only import regulatory officers but also anyone involved in decision-making in animal health and international trade. Appropriately, the preface and introduction present the impetus and rationale for the use of risk assessment in animal health. One article is devoted to definitions and, for comparison, another article elaborates the definitions and use of risk assessment in meat hygiene. A third article summarises the historical relationship between risk assessment and international trade. Twelve papers present quantitative and qualitative methods. Most of the methods are illustrated with examples of animal health activities, particularly concerning the movement of animals and animal products. In addition, papers are included on two necessary inputs to any risk assessment: the assessment of surveillance and animal health monitoring systems, and the assessment of Veterinary Services. This issue is being presented at the exciting developmental phase of risk assessment in animal health. It is expected to make a dramatic contribution. ISSN 0253-1933 ISBN 92-9044-341-3 448 pp Vol. 12 (4): Price FrF200 or US$40 (Airmail postage included for all countries) Office International des Epizooties (OIE) 12, rue de Prony 75017, Paris, France Tel.: (33 1)44.15.18.88 Fax: (33 1)42.67.09.87 Contents J. Blancou - Preface. J.A. Acree - Introduction. J.A. Kellar - The application of risk analysis to international trade in animals and animal products. A.S. Ahl, J.A. Acree, P.S. Gipson, R.M. McDowell, L. Miller & M.D. McElvaine - Standardization of nomenclature for animal health risk analysis. R.S. Morley - A model for the assessment of the animal disease risks associated with the importation of animals and animal products. S.C. MacDiarmid - Risk analysis and the importation of animals and animal products. G. Davies - Risk assessment in practice: a foot and mouth disease control strategy for the European Community. D.W. Wilson & D.J.D. Banks - The application of risk assessment in animal quarantine in Australia. N.H. Heng & D.W. Wilson - Risk assessment on the importation of milk and milk products (excluding cheese) from countries not free from foot and mouth disease. P.T. Beers & D.W. Wilson - Import risk assessment for salmon meat. L. Miller., M.D. McElvaine, R.M. McDowell & A.S. Ahl - Developing a quantitative risk assessment process. M.D. McElvaine, R.M. McDowell, R.W. Fite & L. Miller - An assessment of the risk of foreign animal disease introduction into the United States of America through garbage from Alaskan cruise ships. M. Dalrymple - Model for assessing the risk of introducing brucellosis into a brucellosis-free area. W.D. Hueston - Assessment of national systems for the surveillance and monitoring of animal health. W.D. Hueston & K.D. Walker - Macroepidemiological contributions to quantitative risk assessment. B.G. Can_, E.J. Gimeno, J.C. Manetti, C. van Gelderen, E. Ulloa & A.A. Schudel - Analysis of risk factors associated with bovine spongiform encephalopathy in Argentina (summary; original: Spanish). R.S. Morley - Quantitative risk assessment of the risks associated with the importation of pigs to abattoirs. S.C. Hathaway - Risk analysis and meat hygiene. OIE - Guidelines for the evaluation of Veterinary Services. ===================================================================== ARTICLES MS Frank, AH Rowberg. Authentication and Management of Radiologic Reports - Value of a Computer Workstation Integrated with a Radiology Information System. American Journal of Roentgenology 161: 6 (DEC 1993). 1309-1311 J Piqueras, JC Carreno. Data Interface Between a Radiology Information System and a Computed Radiography System Using a Personal Computer and Standard Software. American Journal of Roentgenology 161: 6 (DEC 1993). 1313-1315 P Edwards. Computers in Medicine. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 86: 12 (DEC 1993). 737-738 UJ Balis, RD Aller, ER Ashwood. Informatics Training in United-States Pathology Residency Programs - Results of a Survey. American Journal of Clinical Pathology 100: 4 Suppl. 1 (OCT 1993). S44-S47 M Rizzardi, MS Mohr, DW Merrill, S Selvin. Interfacing United-States Census Map Files with Statistical Graphics Software - Application and Use in Epidemiology. Statistics in Medicine 12: 19-20 (OCT 1993). 1953-1964 ML Richardson. Using a Personal Computer to Create Anatomic Drawings for Publication. American Journal of Roentgenology 161: 5 (NOV 1993). 1097-1100 BK Kiong, TW Tan. A General UNIX Interface for Biocomputing and Network Information Retrieval Software. Computer Applications in the Biosciences 9: 5 (OCT 1993). 581-586 TE Moore, MH Kathol, SA Zollo, MA Albanese. Comparison of a Videodisc System with a Conventional Film File for Medical Student Teaching. Investigative Radiology 28: 10 (OCT 1993). 969-973 GO Barnett, RA Jenders, HC Chueh. The Computer-Based Clinical Record - Where Do We Stand?. Annals of Internal Medicine 119: 10 (NOV 15 1993). 1046-1048 FS Chew, JG Smirniotopoulos. Educational Efficacy of Computer-Assisted Instruction with Interactive Videodisc in Radiology. Investigative Radiology 28: 11 (NOV 1993). 1052-1058 DD Polson, WE Marsh. Cash Flow-Analysis - A Decision-Analysis and Financial Monitoring Technique for the Swine Practitioner .2.. Agri - Practice 14: 9 (OCT 1993). 5-8 RD Smith. 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JVME 20(3): 83-106 ===================================================================== CLOSING BITS ===================================================================== HALF OF TOP EXECUTIVES ARE COMPUTER ILLITERATE. 12/22/93 MENLO PARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 DEC 22 (NB) -- At least half of US and UK executives lack basic personal computer (PC) skills, according to a study conducted by Robert Half International. The reasons cited ranged from "fear" to "time pressures." The survey asked 100 top executives in both the United States and the United Kingdom, "In your opinion, what percentage of the nation's top executives is not computer literate?" The answers were 55 percent in the US and 51 percent of UK executives lack computer skills. PC industry guru Peter Norton once related a story about the time he asked an IBM executive if the executive had trouble installing OS/2. The executive replied, "I don't use a computer -- I have a secretary." Max Messmer, chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Robert Half International said: "Many top executives in both countries rely heavily on their management teams for work that requires computer use. However, it won't be too long before this skill is a necessity. It is already for many senior executives, who use PCs for everything from financial analysis to strategic planning to rapid communications." Reasons cited for computer illiteracy among executives include: computer skills considered a low priority; intimidated by computers; discouraged due to the learning curve involved; resistance to change; and a lack of time. WISHFUL THINKING. A Roper survey sponsored by IBM found that more than half of the respondents don't want a computer that requires a manual to use it. Two-thirds requested a computer that would recognize a user's face and automatically pull up the file s/he typically uses. (Washington Post 12/27/93 Business p. 13). WHO WILL USE THE HIGHWAY? Sprint CEO William Esrey dismissed the potential for consumer services on the information highway, saying the same people touted as the prime market are the same ones who cannot program a VCR. (Toronto Star, 02/02/94 B1). VCR DYSLEXIA. One out of six Americans still can't set the digital clock on his/her VCR, leaving 16% of the nation's VCRs permanently blinking "12:00." It's still an improvement over two years ago, when 20% of Americans couldn't set the time, according to the Wirthlin Group, which conducted the survey. One ray of hope: 72% of the 1,020 people surveyed had managed, at least once, to program their machine in advance to record a show. (Miami Herald 2/2/94 C1) BUT DID THEY GET IT TO WORK? Panic broke out at the Pentagon when a Florida man asked for instructions on how to work a radio amplifier he bought an auction for $97. The "radio amplifier" turned out to be a $472,850 piece of military hardware vital for US global communications in the event of nuclear war. It was mistakenly shipped to a haulage warehouse in Lakeland, Florida. (Ottawa Citizen, 01/07/94 A5).