Print or Online

A patron (that's that we call library visitors) came in this morning looking for a print copy of Brenner & Rector's the Kidney. Turns out we have only the 2004 edition, and that we had hadn't purchased the 2008 edition. Oh dear! Or maybe not. We do have online access to the most recent edition of that book via UCSF Library's MD Consult, an electronic content aggregator I think of as an electronic "aggravator" because their PDFs take so long to load.

Aggravation aside, the question remains: does the library need to spend $400 on a new edition of this title? If we buy it, will you use it? Please advise.

Embase, anyone?

Recently I've run into a few researchers here at SFGH, (not really run into them, just talked to them) who are beginning new projects and need to do exhaustive literature searching. They can't risk missing any of the European biomedical literature that may not be included in Medline. They need access to a database called "Embase", the database formerly known as "Excerpta Medica"

UCSF's Parnassus Library does not license this resource. The Mount Zion library is the only UCSF affiliate that does, and will very kindly do literature searches for SFGH staff on request. My question is: should the SFGH library subscribe to this database? Is there enough demand out there to warrant the purchase? Would you use it if you had it? Let me hear from you!

Librarians as Educators

While I don't often take the time to read Library Journal, preferring instead to let them pile up on my desk so no one else can read them, I did notice one news item from the October 1, 2008 issue that struck me as significant. It referred to a faculty opinion survey called Ithaka's 2006 Studies of Key Stakeholders in the Digital Transformation in Higher Education that revealed an "...emerging disconnect between librarians' perceptions of their roles and the expectations and habits of the faculty they serve."

The study drew a lot of comment from academic librarians, among them Steven Bell of Temple University, who suggested that the next study should include librarian roles of educator and instructional partner along with the more traditional ones. Good thinking, Steven. I believe this is a area where librarians can make the greatest impact, both now and in the future, and in all types of libraries.

Paging Dr. Google

Interesting article in the International Herald Tribune about how the public uses the Internet for health information. And later Twitters about their treatment.

Don't Wanna Come to Class?

Would you like to get the scoop on PubMed but don't want to or can't take the time to come and sit in class? Well, here's a sneak preview of tomorrow's class: PubMed Basics

If you come to class, you'll get hands-on experience with some of PubMed's search features, and we'll show you how to get full text articles. But if you really can't make it, you can call 206-6639 to arrange an individual coaching session. We'll even come to your office or work space.

That Time of Year Again

Last fall we made the announcement that in order to fund online resources for both UCSF and SFGH affiliates, we planned to cut the library’s print journal subscriptions The decision was based on what we saw as dwindling use of print titles, rising subscription costs, and desire to fund electronic resources such as DynaMed, Nursing Reference Center, and online databases such as CINAHL and Medline with their accompanying full text journal content.

After we announced the cuts, we hunkered down to await the fallout. But aside from several requests to retain specific titles, the negative reaction never came. Is it true that our staff is so well served by existing electronic resources that current print subscriptions aren’t all that important any more…except maybe for browsing? If that’s not true, we need to hear from you because it’s that time of year again, and we’re planning more print journal cuts. Here are some of the print subscriptions that are on the chopping block but available online:

Academic Radiology
Annals of Emergency Medicine
Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy
Journal of Investigative Medicine
Pediatrics in Review
Scandinavian journal of Infectious Diseases
Seminars in Thrombosis and HemostasisTransfusion

Drug Error Finder

This just in from the U.S. Pharmacopeia people:
"As a service to healthcare practitioners, industry, consumers, and others, USP has developed a free tool for accessing drug names that have been identified with a medication error. USP's Drug Error Finder allows a user to search more than 1,400 drugs involved in look–alike and/or sound–alike errors. It not only lists the other drugs involved in a mix–up, but also designates the severity of the error where at least one report was received through USP's Reporting Programs. Use USP's Drug Error Finder*."