NNLM Region 5 Membership: Public Libraries

Posted by Emily Hamstra on October 21st, 2025 Posted in: Blog
Tags: NNLM Membership

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This is the third post in a 4-part series on membership in NNLM Region 5.

What is Membership?

Membership in the Network of the National Library of Medicine (NNLM) is an opportunity to connect with regional NNLM staff and other member organizations who share in the goal of improving access to health information. Membership is open to all institutions or organizations who share the work of NNLM’s mission. Membership is free and allows member organizations to apply for funding from their NNLM region. All members are listed in the Membership Directory. The membership directory lists all member organizations across the country, and those members are managed regionally.

The NNLM includes 8,816 members across 50 states and U.S. Territories. Of those, 809 organizations are located in NNLM Region 5.

NNLM Region 5 Membership: Public Libraries

Membership among public libraries in NNLM Region 5 is growing rapidly. Since 2021, public libraries have been the largest area of growth in NNLM Region 5’s membership. NNLM Region 5 has a total of 163 public library members.

Funding and Training

Between 2021 and 2025, NNLM Region 5 funded 24 awards to public libraries in the Region, totaling $84,000. 18 of these awards were $1,500 collection development awards, increasing access to current books on health and medical topics. Other awards included:

• A Technology Improvement Award ($5,000) to Springfield Public Library (OR) to purchase equipment and software to add adaptive technology to an existing computer station.
• An Outreach & Engagement Award ($24,000) to Las Vegas – Clark County Library District (NV) created the event series #GetCardedforHealth. The series hosted expert speakers on the importance of dental health on heart health, breast cancer awareness, and Alzheimer’s Disease. Additionally, they updated the Health & Wellness section of their library website.

NNLM Region 5 staff provided training and outreach to public libraries through state library conferences. We met many public library workers while exhibiting at the California Library Association Conference, Washington Library Association Conference, Association of Rural and Small Libraries, and others. Our online classes and webinars are regularly attended by public library workers, and many of these classes and webinars are available on the NNLM YouTube channel to watch after the live event. Many NNLM classes provide credit towards the Medical Library Association’s Consumer Health Information Specialization (CHIS), a specialization popular with public library workers. NNLM provides a guide to CHIS, including information about free classes with CHIS credit and NNLM’s sponsorship of your CHIS application fee.

If you have ideas for NNLM Region 5’s outreach, programming, training, and funding opportunities for public libraries, please leave a comment in the NNLM Region 5’s Suggestion Box.