Reconciling rising serials costs, the serials budget, and reference needs in a medical library serials retrenchment program: a methodology

Devising a coherent serials retrenchment plan while maintaining quality reference service is a dilemma faced by increasing numbers of medical librarians. In 1991, the staff of the Shiffman Medical Library, Wayne State University, began to address increasing serials budget reductions that by 1994 amounted to a projected 20% maximum cut. The resulting retrenchment plan combined an ongoing serials use study, faculty and librarian reviews of cancellation lists, and systematic refinements in interlibrary cooperation and document delivery service. The Shiffman plan provides a constructive framework that can be adapted to other medical libraries facing immediate, major serials retrenchment.