Document Type
Poster
Preview
Embargo Period
1-1-2024
Publication Date
5-19-2023
Department
MUSC Libraries
Description
Objectives: A strong collection in a subject niche that supports the research and educational needs of your users can be complicated. Whether you are the liaison librarian or just working with the subject, it is important to know the current collection so that you can anticipate the needs of your users. In 2017, after doing an initial broad collections assessment, the Director of Information Resources and Collections Services (DIRCS) identified subject areas for additional development. The objective was to see how collaborating with liaison librarians during the collection development process affected the resources within the areas of pharmacy and dental medicine. Methods: A weighted binary classification grid was created which identified the core electronic collection first for pharmacy, then later for dental medicine. Utilizing a collaborative approach, the Director of Information Resources and Collections Services partnered with the liaison librarians for pharmacy and dental medicine. Information was shared about potential resources requested by faculty to complement the core collection. Librarians conducted a search of the collection development literature in several databases (PubMed, Academic Search Complete, CINAHL, PsychInfo) to find articles describing best practices for niche areas. Citations were collected using EndNote and uploaded into Covidence for screening. COUNTER usage statistics of pharmacy and dental medicine resources were collected and analyzed. Additionally, Cost Per Use (CPU) data for both collections is being analyzed. Results: Results are forthcoming based on completion of data analysis. Conclusions: Preliminary data analysis indicates that collaborating with liaison librarians for resources that were identified as Core Collections within pharmacy and dental medicine subjects has initially shown a better Cost Per Use (CPU) than when compared with resources that were identified and obtained, but not promoted through collaboration.
Rights
Copyright is held by the author. All rights reserved.
Keywords
collection development, health science librarianship, collaboration, academic libraries