April 18, 2006 > New Materials Available at the Washington Community Health Resource Library

Have a question about your health? Want to know more about a recent diagnosis? New books are arriving every month in the Community Health Resource Library, which is open to the public six days a week, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday. Located on the first floor of Washington West (2500 Mowry Avenue), the library issues membership cards to anyone who wants to check out books, DVDs and tapes or download medical articles through the library's subscription service.

This month, new selections include "The Mediterranean Diet" by Coulter, Medical Self-Care for people Age 50 and Up" by Metller, "The Lost Art of Healing" by Lown, "Overcoming Depression" by Hauck and "The Cancer Fitness Exercise Program for Patients" by Schwartz to name a few.

"Many people come in looking for information about an illness or medication," said Sumedha Shende, Operations Coordinator. "Our library is a comfortable setting for people to learn more about a disease or find out how to stay healthy."

You will also find the 2006 PDR: Physicians' Desk Reference, which contains information on various drugs and drug interactions for prescribed medications. The Community Health Resource Library has a complete collection of books on pregnancy and childbirth, complimentary therapies, relationships, weight control and a wide variety of health conditions and diseases. You can find a complete listing of our collection on our web site, www.healthlibrary.org.

The library is a resource for the entire community, with staff and volunteers providing health screenings and presentations at the library as well as out in the community at health fairs, schools and senior centers.

Free bone density screenings for osteoporosis are offered at the library Monday through Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and on Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Free blood pressure screenings are also available at the library. The blood pressure screening machine measures blood pressure as well as body mass index (BMI), pulse rate, weight and height. For more information you can visit the web site or call (510) 494-7030.

The library is in need of adult and student volunteers. If you are interested in becoming a library volunteer, please call Sumedha Shende, Operations Coordinator at (510) 494-7009.