Submitted by Jean Song
National Center for Integrative Biomedical Informatics
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
The growth of molecular information in the biomedical, clinical, and public health disciplines is well illustrated by the exponential increase in the number of databases, data sets, tools, and software being used to store, retrieve and analyze proteomic, genomic, and metabolomic data. Through the collaboration of the National Center for Integrative Biomedical Informatics (NCIBI) and the Health Sciences Libraries (HSL) at the University of Michigan, a four month pilot position, the Informationist, was created to provide a proof-of-concept model for a viable information professional position that would increase the quality and breadth of research support for the basic sciences and informatics at the university.
The objectives of this position were:
- To serve as the primary liaison for the NCIBI.
- To serve as a liaison for the molecular biology and genetics subject specialties in the HSL.
- To evaluate existing bioinformationist programs and develop an implementation plan for a permanent position at the University of Michigan.
Projects that were completed included citation analysis, specialized literature searching, classification schema development, library resource consultation, publicity, current awareness, usability, and data acquisition. Because the pilot informationist position created at the University of Michigan produced tangible evidence that a bioinformationist position would be beneficial for the bioinformatics research community at the university, a recommendation was made to create a permanent position for the future.