This document was developed by Jacqueline Doyle, Mary Holcomb, Dave Piper and Joan Schlimgen of the Arizona Health Sciences Library. The example of the Collection Development Manual (2005 Edition) of the Health Sciences Library and Informatics Center, The University of New Mexico is gratefully acknowledged.
This collection development policy is intended to establish broadly defined principles and guidelines for the selection, acquisition, and retention of library information resources that comprise the collections of the Arizona Health Sciences Library (AHSL) in Tucson and in Phoenix. These collections together with resources of other University of Arizona libraries are intended to meet current and long-term information needs of the University of Arizona as they relate to the health sciences. The guidelines set forth in this policy serve both to guide library staff and to inform library users.
During the last decade rapid development of publishers’ ability to supply online resources to meet the demand by users for information delivery on demand to any location has driven the trend toward the virtual library. Scientific, technical and medical publishing continues to experience rapid change. Open access publications and institutional repositories are growing in number and influence; publishers are being bought and sold until few players remain except the very large publishing houses. Publishers and database producers are consolidating electronic journals which are experiencing rapid and widespread acceptance. Much broader availability of e-books is probably not far off.
Faculty and students have expressed their need for even more electronic materials and the AHSL attempts to provide electronic access whenever feasible. At the same time, we remain attentive to the access vs. ownership issues and to efforts being undertaken worldwide to be certain that electronic content remains available.
Even before the “age of the e-journal” rising costs had become the norm. For example, in the early 1990’s drastic cuts were made in print journal subscriptions in order to balance decreasing budgets and sharply increasing costs. The trend away from print subscriptions and toward license agreements for online access has not slowed these increases. On the contrary, some publishers, faced with declining numbers of print subscriptions, have attempted to impose exceptionally large annual price increases. In the most egregious cases the library refuses, whenever possible, to purchase subscriptions at vastly increased prices. However, the journals in question are often considered indispensable to the university, thus limiting price negotiability. Additionally, large corporations are buying up and consolidating publishers. Groups of journal titles are offered on an “all or nothing” basis, further weakening library negotiating positions and moving control of costs further from the library.
The availability of electronic resources brings both new opportunities and increased expectations for rapid information access in teaching, research, and patient care. Electronic resources pose new challenges in acquisition and management, often proving to be more rather than less expensive than the traditional print books and journals. In spite of increased costs and complex management issues, electronic resources are rapidly becoming critical to the success of all AHSC enterprises. The AHSL-Phoenix is being established as a primarily digital/virtual library while the AHSL-Tucson continues moving rapidly in that direction. It is important to emphasize, however, that the library acquires resources best suited to support the research, clinical, administrative and educational needs of its clients regardless of format.
The library expands and deepens resource availability for its users by collaborations of various kinds. Its participation in University of Arizona initiatives is fundamental but consortial memberships such as the Arizona University Libraries Consortium (AULC) and Arizona Health Information Network (AZHIN) also provide opportunities to maximize resource availability at the least possible cost. The library is a Resource Library within the National Library of Medicine’s National Network of Libraries of Medicine program. Interlibrary loan borrowing and lending are provisions of this membership. While collaborations have always been important, in this digital age they are critical.
The library’s collections are comprised of online resources, accessible to authorized users from the point of need, and of print and media resources located in either Tucson or Phoenix. Materials may be permanently or temporarily included in the collections and may be circulating or non-circulating at the library’s discretion.
Scope refers to the breadth of the resources collected by a library. In general, these resources may be described as scholarly and designed for health professionals and students. However, the AHSL also provides a limited array of current resources directed to the layperson or health information consumer. While specific areas of emphasis may vary with the current research and educational goals of the institution, the collections concentrate on the following broad areas:
Coverage refers to the depth or comprehensiveness with which in-scope materials and offerings are selected. In the climate of extraordinary proliferation of relevant materials, increasing prices and decreasing budgets, the library does not attempt to own every relevant resource but rather to acquire a representative selection across disciplines and to rapidly provide needed materials it does not own.
Overlapping Coverage with other University of Arizona Libraries. Health care and health care research is increasingly interconnected with disciplines covered by the collections of other University of Arizona libraries (e.g. engineering, information technology, sociology). Some duplication between UA libraries (primarily of print resources) will be unavoidable; however, the AHSL attempts to eliminate duplication to the extent practical.
Factors to be considered in selecting all resources include:
The AHSL collects in formats compatible with current technology and customer preference. These formats include print books and journals, online books and journals, online databases, and other media including DVD and VHS. Although the AHSL-Phoenix is intended to be a digital library, some print items including a small reference collection will be acquired.
Collection assessment and evaluation are ongoing processes that monitor and identify changing goals, priorities, and requirements of the institution as well as needs of the library’s users. In addition to managing the collections in terms of broad, long-range objectives, the library takes into account new programs and changes of direction or thrust of existing programs.
The Arizona Health Sciences Library provides current, authoritative literature to satisfy users’ needs and retains older works with enduring scientific or historical value. Journal subscriptions and standing orders are reviewed on an ongoing basis and may result in cancellations or new acquisitions. Evidence such as journal utilization data and impact factors contribute to the decision-making. Deselection is the process of identifying and removing materials that no longer contribute value to the collection. Systematic reviews are made of books and audiovisual materials that are more than twenty-five years old with the goal of deselecting items according to established guidelines, which include such criteria as use statistics, physical appearance and historical value. Faculty input is sought as needed.
Material Gifts. The Arizona Health Sciences Library appreciates donations of books, journals, and other appropriate materials. These donations are a valuable source of additional copies for heavily used resources as well as replacement copies for damaged or missing items. They can also be a source of historically significant or rare works.
Potential donors are asked to submit a description, preferably written, of those items they wish to donate. Desirable information for books includes title, author(s), date of publication, and publisher. Information about journals should include title and inclusive volumes/issues and/or dates.
By signing a release form, or deed of gift, the donor acknowledges the right of the Library to use or discard donated materials as it sees fit. Donations are acknowledged by letter and reported to the appropriate university office(s).
Monetary Gifts. Monetary donations are processed in accordance with University of Arizona gift policy.
