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This month, we're highlighting stories from our members on their journey to health sciences and medical librarianship. We've shared those stories below! Next month, we're asking you to tell us more about where you work or live - what is a fun fact about the city/area you work? What do you like about the region? Is there anything interesting about your location that you want other people to know? To submit your response, send an email to: fhslanews@gmail.com
Jaclyn Castek "I am currently the Manager of Library Services at Tampa General Hospital. I assumed this role in 2018 and have been with the library since starting as a Library Tech in 2011. In 2013 I moved up to Medical Librarian. This is my first job in a medical library; I previously worked in the Hillsborough County Library Public Library system as a library assistant and a Librarian at the Largo Public Library for a short period of time. Librarianship was not my first career choice however. I actually started out pursing an education degree, and was focused on becoming a middle school geography teacher. Those who know me know I am no math whiz, so I struggled a little too much with math courses and was more or less forced to change my degree. I chose to go with Mass Communications for my AA and continued on to receive my BA in Journalism from USF. After being a freelance writer and trying to find a job in the journalism realm for 2 years I decided it wasn’t for me and took a look at the graduate program catalog at USF. I never thought of librarianship as a job but when I saw it listed in the catalog I thought, wow…I love libraries this might be a great fit! And it turns out it was, I loved every class of the program and was very excited to start my career as a public librarian! As I applied and interviewed for jobs in almost all domains of librarianship I learned a lot about the different types of libraries. I ended up accepting the position at TGH and have enjoyed it ever since. I think I have a similar story too several of our members. The connection between journalism and librarianship has always been interesting to me and love hearing others stories about how they made the jump between these worlds." Courtney Pyche "I took a gap year between my undergraduate graduation and graduate school. In that year, I began working full-time for the public library that I had worked for since 2014. My mentors, supervisors, and friends at the public library inspired me to complete my Master of Science in Information from Florida State University (FSU). I was fortunate to receive a graduate assistantship with the FSU STEM Libraries, where I learned how to be an academic librarian from some of the best. Our STEM libraries uniquely included some liaison responsibilities with health disciplines, including Nursing. Simultaneously, I was awarded a virtual internship with the Office of American Space in the U.S. Department of State, where I supported programs for the over 600 American Spaces globally. Shortly before my graduation in December 2020, I accepted a full-time children's librarian position with my public library employer. While I worked at the public library, I never lost that drive to do research and evidence-based library programs. I worked a lot on projects related to topics such as misinformation, STEAM, truth & reconciliation, and early literacy programs. I kept an eye out for positions at our local university, the University of Florida (UF), and, when I saw the posting for a public health librarian, it felt like the perfect mix of my experience in public, academic, and federal libraries - not to mention that UF is my alma mater. I am thankful every day for the mentors, friends, supervisors, and colleagues who led me here - it would not have been possible without them." Angie Novak "My story is not fancy or exciting and that’s ok. Like many of you, becoming a medical librarian was not necessarily where I expected to end up but I’m very grateful and glad the world of medical librarianship was opened up to me. I graduated with my MLIS degree in 2014 and immediately started looking for work. I applied for jobs at many different types of libraries including public libraries and academic libraries. About 6 months into my job search I interviewed at a small nursing school in Tampa that was working towards accreditation and had no formal library or past librarian. Shortly after my interview I was hired and began my official career as a librarian; building, cataloging and organizing their new library. The budget was extremely small and I had a lot of learning to do on the job but it was a great experience to learn a little bit about cataloging, teaching for the library, Learning Management Systems and much more. I wore many hats in my time at the school and I am proud of the job I did there. While I wasn’t necessarily looking for a new job I saw the posting for a medical librarian at Tampa General Hospital and had to jump at the opportunity. In the 6 years I have been at Tampa General I have earned AHIP, the CHIS specialization and a Masters in Instructional Design. It was one of the best decisions I have ever made and I am so thankful for all that I have learned and experienced at TGH." Read on for our Exec updates! Executive Committee President: Angie Novak Vice President: Roxann Mouratidis Treasurer: Dottie Kelly Immediate Past President/Strategic Planning Chair: Jorge Perez Webmaster: Pammy Herring CE Chair: Ardis Hanson Honors and Awards: Carrie Driggers-Adams Membership Chair: Janet Chan Blog Editor: Courtney Pyche This month's discussion focused on the following tasks:
Fall Virtual Meeting and Spring in-person Planning for the FHSLA business meetings is officially underway. At this month's executive meeting we discussed themes and activities for a fall virtual meeting. We are hoping to lock down a date in the next month and will be sure to send out details once they are finalized. Additionally, the executive committee is already working on finding a venue for the next in-person meeting in the Spring. The plan is to hold an in-person meeting in Tampa sometime February. The details are still being worked on so nothing is set in stone and can change depending on availability of a venue. We are in talks with multiple locations, so we have a variety of options. Stay tuned in the coming months for more information. Blog Our blog has some new posts including responses to last month's membership question. Don’t forget you are welcome to still submit your pet photos as well as responses to this month's prompt. If you have any pieces or updates you want posted to the blog, be sure to send an email to our blog editor at the following email address: fhslanews@gmail.com Membership The membership committee is working hard to bring new and interesting programming to FHSLA. Members were invited to a virtual coffee break on Tuesday, July 23 where members will get to meet virtually. This will be a great opportunity to connect and discuss the favorite tech tools being used in FHSLA libraries. The event is open to current and prospective FHSLA members so invite you to register and share with your colleagues. Register in advance using the following link: Coffee & Chat Registration. If you have any questions, please reach out to Janet Chan at janetchan@usf.edu Website Updates The membership directory is live! Be on the lookout for a registration email to gain access to members only content. Committees We have received a great response from members joining our various committees. It's exciting to see the progress made to ensure the organization is engaged and running smoothly. Thank you to everyone who has volunteered for a committee. If you are still interested in serving FHSLA in some way, please feel free to reach out to Angie Novak or Janet Chan. Comments are closed.
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