Quality markers and use of electronic journals in an academic health sciences library.

OBJECTIVES: Patterns of use of electronic versions of journals supplied by an academic health sciences library were examined to determine whether they differed from patterns of use among corresponding print titles and to relate the applicability of print collection development practices to an electronic environment. METHODS: Use data supplied by three major vendors of electronic journals were compared to reshelving data for corresponding print titles, impact factors, and presence on Brandon/Hill Lists. RESULTS: In collections where one-click access from a database record to the full text of articles was possible, electronic use correlated with print use across journal pairs. In both versions, Brandon/Hill titles were used more frequently than non-Brandon/Hill titles, use had modest correlations with journals' impact factors, and clinical use appeared to be higher than research use. Titles that had not been selected for the library's print collections, but which were bundled into publishers' packages, received little use compared to electronic titles also selected in print. CONCLUSIONS: Collection development practices based on quality and user needs can be applied with confidence to the electronic environment. Facilitating direct connections between citation databases and the corresponding journal articles regardless of platform or publisher will support scholarship and quality health care.     

Diagnosis and disengagement: exploring the disjuncture between SEN policy and practice

Special Educational Needs (SEN) policy and practice in England and Wales currently relies on an authoritative and accurate diagnosis of need by professionals working in partnership with parents and children. Our analysis suggests there is a ‘continuum of disengagement’ for children and young people with SEN. This will be used as a central theme to illustrate the disjuncture between SEN policy and practice. The continuum becomes apparent under the scrutiny of issues that arise during the diagnostic process. Identification of problems such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia and dyspraxia lead to methods of intervention that can be identified as either preventative, counteractive or punitive. The ambiguity of the diagnostic process lies in the overlapping characteristics of these conditions. Referring to our research in the field of SEN provision in North Wales, this article explores the link between hidden disabilities, increasing disengagement and youth offending.     

Mommy doesn't do it like that

Since 1975, Neal Hawes has worked with delinquent boys at the state juvenile training school in Woodburn, Oregon. His six-year-old daughter Melinda inspired this story.     

The library as finals resting place: expanding service to health sciences students during final exams

To increase services to health sciences students during their final exam period, and to demonstrate to campus administration that the library is in tune with the students' fluctuating needs, the Kornhauser Health Sciences Library, University of Louisville, increased its hours of operation; created an inviting, comfortable environment; and offered free snacks and drinks for the students. The event, coined the "Finals Resting Place," was a positive public relations tool that strengthened the library's relationship with its students. Moreover, it reinforced the library's role and mission to the campus administration, particularly that of the dental and medical schools.