NNLM Region 5 Membership: Community Based Organizations

Posted by Emily Hamstra on November 4th, 2025 Posted in: Blog
Tags: community health workers, community organizations, NNLM Membership

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This is the fourth 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: Community Based Organizations

76 of Region 5’s members are Community Based Organizations. These organizations range widely in their scope and in the communities they serve. Since 2021, Region 5 has funded 6 projects in Community Based Organizations, totaling $20,300, including:

• Contracting with The Next Door Inc. to develop video tutorials on using MedlinePlus.gov. These plain language tutorials are aimed at community health workers, with the goal of increasing awareness and use of MedlinePlus in their work with the communities they serve.
• A collection development award to the Oregon Post Adoption Resource Center Library to update the library’s collection.
• A technology award to Advancing Modoc to purchase technology to improve access to health information in rural California.

In 2024, during the Rural Health Webinar series, we hosted the webinar When Your Community is Your Hospital. This webinar, presented by speakers from First Five Tehama and Chico State shared information about a partnership between academic institutions and community based organizations in Northern California in response the lack of access to healthcare, the need for access to health information, and the importance of engagement with local, on-the-ground community health workers. The training produced through this partnership was funded through an NNLM Region 5 Outreach & Engagement Award to Chico State.

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