From Search Request to Publication: Creating a Workflow to Highlight the Efforts of a Systematic Searching Service

Abstract

Three librarians at the Ruth Lilly Medical Library (RLML) identified areas for improvement in a high-demand systematic searching service. The service lacked a way to track in-process searches, had a decentralized process for assigning projects, and did not capture individual workloads or the library’s search request backlog. After consulting with staff from other libraries, the librarians at RLML collaborated to develop a new workflow using a tool available through the university's Microsoft subscription. They created internal procedures to accompany the tool, conducted internal beta testing, and customized the tool to suit the needs of the service. To introduce the new workflow, the librarians engaged departmental stakeholders to show how the system could help quantify the effort of the evidence synthesis service and facilitate a more equitable distribution of workloads. They also conducted hands-on training sessions for librarians. The new workflow established a centralized waitlist for search requests used by all librarians and began tracking the stages and timing of systematic search projects. To ensure ongoing utilization of the new workflow, the library incorporated a standing agenda item in bi-monthly meetings to review the status of waitlisted search requests and encourage librarians to update project information. With the successful implementation of the new workflow, the library now effectively tracks in-progress evidence synthesis projects, manages a centralized systematic search request waitlist, and better highlights the efforts of the systematic searching service.