Join for an open house celebrating the return of the W. K. Kellogg Health Sciences Library in the Tupper Building.
Thursday, January 12
3–5 p.m.
Proposed cancellation of ClinicalKey
Along with the other libraries in the Dalhousie University Libraries system, the W.K. Kellogg Health Sciences Library will have a significant collections budget shortfall for 2016-17. Reducing book purchases and spending endowment funds will help reduce the shortfall, but additional cancellations will be required.
We are in the process of cancelling ClinicalKey as our first step toward balancing the 2016-17 budget.
ClinicalKey, an Elsevier product, has two main components: journals and ebooks. This subscription cost more than $100,000 CAD in 2015/16 and was the second most expensive item on our budget.
The majority of journals included in ClinicalKey are duplicates of titles the University Libraries already subscribe to in another Elsevier package.
The ebooks portion of ClinicalKey is required to support the Health professions and Medical curricula is well used, and provides unlimited access to students. To date, the vendor has not been able to provide a model that would allow us to subscribe to just the ebook portion.
In order to support the curricula, a portion of the funds saved by cancelling the ClinicalKey subscription will be repurposed to purchase ebooks. Replacement of the required ebooks will be phased in over two budget years.
Over the next six weeks liaison librarians will review titles identified as most relevant to the curricula in consultation with faculty. The Resources team will then purchase replacement ebooks and, in a few cases, print books.
Although ClinicalKey is a large, well-known education resource for Medicine and the Health Professions, we must be good stewards of the Dalhousie Collections funds while also meeting our user needs. Due to the increased annual renewal cost, the duplication of journal content, and the unfavorable currency exchange rate, we are making this difficult choice. The contingency plan outlined here will fill in the collection gaps left by the absence of this product.
Deadline for comments regarding this decision: 5 pm Friday, May 13, 2016. Please send your comments to: Patrick Ellis or Ann Barrett at Kellogg.Library@Dal.Ca
Copyright Office presents on changing Access Copyright Licensing Agreement.
As you may be aware, Dalhousie will be experiencing changes to our copyright licensing scheme effective January 1, 2016
To prepare for these changes, the team at the Copyright Office has had a busy fall providing 26 presentations on copyright to many of the university’s departments and faculties (including FASS, Science, Engineering, Health Professions and Medicine).
The goal of these short, 10-15 minute, presentations has been to discuss the changes in licensing, why they are important and the tools that faculty and instructors have at their disposal in making materials available.Although the major discussion has focused on Fair Dealing and licensing changes, the presentations have served as springboards for discussions on various copyright issues.
Check out some Common Copyright Questions.
Interested in having the Copyright Office team present to your faculty or department? Contact Copyright Services Coordinator, John Yolkowski by email at jyolkowski@dal.ca, or by phone at (902) 494-4346.
Looking for more information about Copyright? Visit http://www.dal.ca/dept/copyrightoffice.html
Embase services are currently not available
Dear Embase users,
Due to technical problems Embase services are currently not available. Our team is working with the highest urgency to resolve the issue.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused by this outage and thank you for your patience.
Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions or concerns.
Your Embase Team
Upcoming Kellogg Library Subscription Changes
The W. K. Kellogg Health Sciences Library has determined that it has a significant collections budget shortfall for 2015/16. Reducing book purchases and spending endowment funds will help reduce the shortfall but additional cancellations are also required. The following items will be cancelled in the New Year but much of the material will be available through other Dalhousie subscriptions or through free Document Delivery.
| Subscriptions to be cancelled | Continuing alternate access |
| Nursing and Allied Health Database | CINAHL and other databases |
| Elsevier Clinics | Clinical Key |
| Springer Protocols | Access will remain for pre-2016 content |
| Karger Journals | Request newer content through Document Delivery |
| Karger eBook Series Collection | Request through Document Delivery |
Why is there a budget shortfall at the Kellogg Library?
This year the Libraries collections budget increased by 1.9% and money was provided to offset some of the effect of the 2014/15 US dollar exchange rate. In addition to its portion of the Libraries’ collection budget, the Kellogg Library receives funds from other sources to help cover the costs of some programs. In general, the amount of these additional funds has decreased.
Roughly 85% of Kellogg library materials are paid for in US dollars. The Canadian dollar has declined significantly this year. In May, a $10,000 US subscription was worth $12,200 Canadian. Today, that subscription will cost $13,360, a 9.5% increase.
The Libraries are diligent and negotiate the lowest possible increases, but vendors are increasing prices anywhere from 1% to 8% per year. These vendor increases significantly inflate costs over time: a subscription that cost $50,000 USD in 2010 and increased 5% annually will cost $64,000 USD this year.
Will there be further cancellations?
When inflation combines with a weak Canadian dollar, university libraries face very difficult choices. Across the country, libraries are making cuts to stay within their budgets. Most recently Memorial University announced cuts, but many others have made similar announcements, including British Columbia, Brock, Ottawa, Queen’s, Ryerson, Simon Fraser, and Western.
We monitor spending closely and make adjustments throughout the year. We work to minimize the impact on student learning and faculty research, but journal and database subscription cancellations are increasingly common and are likely to continue.
Deciding what to retain and what to cancel is a complex balancing act. To help ensure that we make the best choice in the circumstances, the Kellogg librarians will be discussing collection changes with their departments throughout 2016 and 2017.
Alternate access to cancelled material
Despite these cancellations, the Libraries continue to provide a large collection of journals (110,000) and books (1.5 million) to support learning, teaching and research.
When a subscription is cancelled, the content is often available in another database and we often retain access to previously purchased materials.
When we don’t have alternate access, we can usually obtain the material you need through Document Delivery. (Haven’t used Document Delivery before? Watch this video.)
Contact:
Patrick Ellis, Associate University Librarian, Resources and Head, W.K. Kellogg Health Sciences Library
Patrick.Ellis@dal.ca (902-494-1669)
Update: ACP withdraws ebooks
Updated December 4, 2015:
The American College of Physicians (ACP) has withdrawn their books from the StatRef ebook platform. Their decision means that effective December 1st, 2015 Dalhousie users will no longer have access to the ebooks: MKSAP for students 5 and Internal medicine essentials for clerkship students. However, MKSAP for students 4 is available in print at both the Kellogg and UNBSJ libraries and a newer edition of both titles is on order at both libraries (rebranded “IM Essentials: Text and IM Essentials: Questions”). Neither book is available electronically to institutions.
These books are kept on reserve at both libraries to ensure availability. Books on Reserve cannot be borrowed through Document Delivery but individual chapters may be available. Requests can be placed through Dalhousie Document Delivery.
Effective immediately ACP Smart Medicine will no longer be published (the content is in the process of being merged with Dynamed Plus). AHFS DI Essentials, which was bundled with ACP Smart Medicine on StatRef, will be available as AHFS Drug Information via MedicinesComplete.
Updated: Your guide to extended hours at the Dal Libraries
Updated: December 8, 2015
Exam time is quickly approaching! But fear not, the Dal Libraries are here for you, providing you with longer hours to linger in the library with your favourite study buddy or night owl.
For more information about the Night Owl program at the Killam Library, see here.
Killam Memorial Library
Effective November 21- December 20*
Sundays: 8 a.m.–3 a.m.*
Mondays-Thursdays: 8 a.m.–3 am.
Fridays: 8 a.m.–midnight
Saturdays: 8 a.m.–midnight
*On Sunday, December 20, the Killam Library will be closing at 6 p.m.
**Access to the Killam Library from midnight to 3 a.m. is for Dalhousie and King’s students only. Students must have their student ID with them to get in. Regular library services are not offered during this time, students will have access to the South Learning Commons or the atrium.
MacRae Library
Effective November 23 –December 16:
Monday–Friday: 8:30 a.m.–midnight
Saturday: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
Sunday: 10 a.m.–midnight
Sexton Design & Technology Library
Effective December 4 – 20th:
Monday – Friday: 8:00am – midnight
Saturday: 10:00am – midnight
Sunday: 10:00am -midnight
Sir James Dunn Law Library
Friday, December 4: 4:00 p.m.–10:45 p.m.
Saturday, December 5: 6:00 p.m.–10:45 p.m.
Thursday, December 10: 8:00 a.m. – 10:45 p.m.
Friday, December 11: 4:00 p.m.–10:45 p.m.
Saturday, December 12: 9:00 a.m. -12:00p.m. & 6:00 p.m.–10:45 p.m.
Thursday, December 17: 8:00 a.m. – 10:35 p.m.
Friday, December 18: 4:00 p.m. – 10:45 p.m.
Saturday, December 19: 6:00 p.m. – 10:45 p.m.
W. K. Kellogg Health Sciences Library
Effective November 6 –December 19:
Monday–Friday: 7:30* a.m.–11 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m.–11 p.m.
Sunday: 11 a.m.–11 p.m.
*Circulation is available at 8:00 a.m., Monday-Friday
* The Kellogg Library will be closed from December 21-January 3.
Remembrance Day Hours for the Dalhousie Libraries
Remembrance Day is the day for all Canadians to recognize the contribution our veterans have made and to honour those who made the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of Canada.
Remembrance Day is always on November 11. The Dal Libraries will be observing holiday hours on Wednesday, November 11.
Killam Memorial Library
1–9 p.m.
MacRae Library
1–10:30 p.m.
Sexton Design & Technology Library
10 a.m.–6 p.m.
W. K. Kellogg Health Sciences Library
10 a.m.–11 p.m.
Sir James Dunn Law Library
9 a.m.–10:45 p.m.
Wallace McCain Learning Commons
1:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Book Tour Event – “The Shift”
“The Shift” Book Tour Event
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Monday, November 2, 2015
Kellogg Health Sciences Library, Main Floor
Tupper Building
Praise for “The Shift”
“…this meticulous, absorbing shift-in-the-life account of one nurse’s day on a cancer ward stands out for its honesty, clarity, and heart. Brown…juggles the fears, hopes, and realities of a 12-hour shift in a typical urban hospital with remarkable insight and unflagging care. Her memoir is a must-read….”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“The Shift is the ultimate fly-on-the-wall experience. Theresa Brown has succeeded in serving up a thoroughly engrossing view of the everyday in an American hospital. I got so caught up in her stories that I was late for my shift at the hospital.”
—Dr. Pauline W. Chen, author of Final Exam: A Surgeon’s Reflections on Mortality
“Nursing needs more participant/observers like Theresa Brown who can give such eloquent voice to a profession long overshadowed by medicine but no less essential to the care of patients.”
—Suzanne Gordon, author of Beyond the Checklist.
Document Delivery “new-look” request form and account interface
Starting today (October 19), users of the Dalhousie Libraries’ Document Delivery service will notice a “new-look” request form and account interface. The newly minted interface is cleaner and clearer than its predecessor and it is hoped that patrons will enjoy this new way to interact with this popular service. Login and have a look here (login the same way as you did before with your barcode from your Dal ID card being your login and the last four digits of your phone number being your password, and remember, you need to have registered your card at the Library).The old forms will still work for the foreseeable future so no need to worry about changing any bookmarks right away.
We always appreciate feedback on this or any other aspect of the Document Delivery Service and invite you to contact us at (902) 494-3612 or by email at docdel@dal.ca.