DMU Library Exhibits Document Early Contributions of African American Surgeons, Global Health Successes

National Library of Medicine Displays Open to Public in Des Moines

DES MOINES, IA (06/03/2010)(readMedia)--

The public is invited to the Des Moines University (DMU) library for two great exhibits this summer. The "Opening doors: contemporary African American academic surgeons" display arrived June 1 and "Against the odds: making a difference in global health" begins July 5. Both are from the National Library of Medicine, the largest medical library in the world.

"Both displays cover many topics and are typically booked several years in advance. The first offers an opportunity to present and highlight some of the contributions from African American physicians to academic medicine and surgical practice," explained Library Director Larry Marquardt.

The first display uses the stories of a few African American medical pioneers as a glimpse into past contributions.

The July exhibit ties with the University's global health initiative to train students to be global citizens through education, advocacy and global experiences. The display shows how collaboration between families, medical workers, scientists and governments improves health care as well as highlighting past public health campaigns that made an impact. It will be available until August 12.

"Health information saves lives. Through this exhibit we hope to increase awareness of treatable, manageable global health diseases and issues," said Yogesh Shah, M.D., associate dean of global health at DMU.

The library is in the Des Moines University Student Education Center, 3300 Grand Ave., on the top floor. Free parking is available behind the building. Public hours are Monday-Friday, 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. For more information about the library, visit http://library.dmu.edu.

For more about the exhibits, visit http://apps.nlm.nih.gov/againsttheodds/index.cfm and http://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/aframsurgeons.

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Des Moines University (DMU) is the only private medical school in Iowa, offering graduate-level, professional degree programs in osteopathic medicine, podiatric medicine, physical therapy, physician assistant studies, biomedical sciences, anatomy, health care administration and public health. Founded in 1898, the institution offers superior academics in a collaborative environment. DMU students' pass rate on national examinations and board certifications is consistently higher than the national average and the rates at similar institutions.