The Governors Wellmobile, a mobile health unit in Maryland, provides quality primary and preventive health care services to underserved and/or uninsured populations, particularly women and children, in response to critical needs that have been identified in many studies of Maryland?s health care problems. The Governors Wellmobile is managed and operated by the University of Maryland School of Nursing (UMSON). The UMSON is the Governor?s key partner in the operation of the Wellmobile. This unique mobile clinic is in constant motion, offering services in Baltimore City and surrounding counties. The utilization of family nurse practitioners who are assisted by undergraduate and graduate students and a variety of practitioners from the UM professional schools, provides a comprehensive approach to the delivery of community-based health care services. The challenge arises in relation to the field-based nature of the Governors Wellmobile. Practitioners and students find themselves providing care to complex patients with limited access to knowledge sources or other professional resources. The severe space constraints on the Wellmobile make it nearly impossible to carry reference texts. Therefore, connectivity to the UM and Internet resources is critical. The School of Nursing?s application for the National Library of Medicines """"""""Internet Connection for Medical Institutions"""""""" proposes to install gateway equipment and cellular technology (CDPD) to connect the Governors Wellmobile to the School of Nursing LAN. Direct authentication into the LAN will grant remote providers in the mobile clinic direct access to the extensive School of Nursing resources and UMB backbone, including Human Services and Health Sciences Library (HSHSL) and Internet. Activities proposed in this grant have four main goals: 1) to provide field-based clinicians and students stationed on the Wellmobile access to the resources of HSHSL at UM and the Internet; 2) to educate and train interdisciplinary providers to utilize Internet-based multimedia information resources and digital medical libraries as a normal process in the provision of patient care; and 3) to enhance partnerships and communication with the Medical librarians and other interdisciplinary providers involved in the Governors Wellmobile; and 4) to measure and track increased use of electronic resources and document the contributions made to health care practice on the Wellmobile. In order to accomplish these goals, grant funds will be used to purchase and install gateway hardware and software, provide training for users by the Medical librarians, and support connectivity costs for the use of CDPD (cellular connectivity). The University of Maryland School of Nursing and the Maryland State Department of Health and Mental Hygiene have pledged support for this multi-institutional network.
