Browsing by Subject "Library Services"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Impact of COVID-19 on academic health sciences library programs and Services.
    (2021-05-24) Ragon, Bart; Whipple, Elizabeth C.; Rethlefsen, Melissa L.
    OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the study is to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on the programs and services provided by Academic Health Sciences Libraries and to identify best practices for responding to future events. METHODS: This multi-site qualitative study captured the evolution of Academic Health Sciences Libraries during the pandemic. Surveys were administered in May 2020, August 2020, and February 2021 to gather data on the current state of library programs and services using a phenomenological approach. RESULTS: May 2020 and August 2020 data illustrate the transition of libraries during the early stages of the pandemic. In May 2020, library leaders were energized as they focused on the transition to remote services and well-being of staff. By August 2020, library leaders seemed exhausted, maintaining much of their focus on internal communication and well-being, but also working through the challenges of budget reductions and planning for reopening spaces.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Impact of Covid-19 on Academic Health Sciences Library Programs and Services: Lessons Learned
    (2022-03-17) Whipple, Elizabeth C.; Ragon, Bart; Rethlefsen, Melissa L.
    Our research team conducted longitudinal surveys of academic health sciences library leaders to record the impact of COVID-19 on their library programs and services over time: April 2020, August 2020, and February 2021. Our multi-modal analysis highlights lessons learned in the context of new service models, new opportunities, skills needed, wellness as an integral necessity, and policy considerations for libraries. Overwhelmingly, libraries were successful in providing many services remotely and will continue in some variation thereof. Libraries also experimented with new configurations of space, staffing models, and reduced hours. New opportunities abounded to demonstrate the expertise of our profession: educational expertise and course development to support medical education; collaboration with institutional and external partners for COVID-19 information gathering, analysis, and dissemination; remote learning support; and library space upgrades or space utilization by external groups for COVID-19 support. Flexibility, agility, adaptability, and resiliency were repeatedly mentioned as skills needed to both support one another and to provide continuity of services. The needs related to wellness morphed over time, as many libraries were initially in “support” mode for their staff and navigating ways to connect with one another, both personally and professionally; later on, wellness concerns underscored anxiety over returning to work. Additionally, some libraries consciously began discussions regarding equity, both around acknowledging financial disparities among staff, and the inequity in current library staffing structures. As libraries moved out of acute crisis mode, many recognized the need for better policies around topics such as remote work, technology needs, and disaster preparedness.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Supporting faculty success through subversive advocacy
    (Commonplace, 2023-12-12) MacIsaac, Olivia; Coates, Heather L.
    Our library has encountered a variety of challenges when supporting faculty through the tenure and promotion process. The Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) campus standards and processes, like that of many others, preferentially reward outcomes and impact over the process of inquiry. Additionally, a narrow range of peer-reviewed products is preferred—journal articles, books, conference proceedings, etc. Given the emphasis on reputation and impact in our campus standards, candidates are expected to demonstrate that their research has had an effect on the world beyond campus. Thus, the range of evidence used in dossiers often centers on funding and citation-based metrics, with other metrics considered as secondary. Over the past decade, the research metrics services provided by our library to faculty candidates has evolved significantly. We began by retrieving traditional bibliometrics and teaching others how to do so. As we repeatedly encountered gaps in the data at the level of individual faculty members, we adopted a more proactive stance in our support. We continually advocate for broader consideration of the types of products that are valued, the range of evidence used in dossiers, and the types of impact discussed in statements. In many cases, we use evidence from the publishing and informetric literature to corroborate individual experiences and advocate for change. As our campus implements a new Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) pathway for promotion and tenure, we are challenged to adapt so that we can effectively support faculty who choose this pathway. In this commentary, we will discuss the points of intervention to proactively engage with scholars.