Collection Development Policy

for the

University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences Library

Contents:

1. Purpose of the Collection Development Policy

2. Historical Background of the Library

3. Objectives

4. Clientele Served

5. Access to USAHS Resources and Services

6. Budget

7. Selection Criteria

8. Access to Resources not held by USAHS

9. Subject Areas

10. Special Collections

11. Collection Limitations

12. Preservation Activity

13. Weeding of Outdated Material

14. Review of the Collection Development Policy

1. Purpose of the Collection Development Policy

The purpose of this collection development policy is to clearly outline the process by

which information resources are selected and deselected for the University of St.

Augustine for Health Sciences (USAHS) library.

2. Historical Background of the Library

The USAHS library was most fortunate in acquiring the personal library of Dr. Stanley

V. Paris, PhD, PT. This valuable collection became the foundation upon which the

University's library was built. The initial collection held a large number of historical

texts in the field of physical therapy and a large collection of teaching videotapes. Ever

since, other faculty members have contributed and continue to contribute their personal

collections to supplement the USAHS library.

3. Objectives

The objectives or purpose of the USAHS library collection:

To support faculty and staff in their health sciences teaching and scholarship

To support students in their research and study of health sciences and education

topics

4. Clientele Served

The library at USAHS exists to serve all full-time staff, faculty, and students, including

those not present on a physical campus.

5. Access to USAHS Resources and Services

5a. Hours: Please check the library’s website for the most up-to-date listing of hours

for each campus.

5b. Catalogs: The USAHS library maintains an online public access catalog (OPAC)

through Softlink’s Liberty system. The OPAC uses the National Library of

Medicine cataloging scheme, including MESH subject headings. The USAHS

library also maintains an online catalog of all online and print journal holdings,

called the A-Z Journal Locator (an EBSCO product).

5c. Loans: All full-time staff, faculty and students are allowed to borrow items from

the USAHS library except for materials marked as reference or reserve, and all

serials, bound or unbound. Please see the USAHS Library Circulation Procedures

for details.

Interlibrary loans for articles and books are available to all students, faculty, and

staff.

6. Budget

Budget allocations across subject areas and types of material (monographs, periodicals,

etc.) tend to vary each year because of the nature of health sciences publishing and the

needed resources for each program. The Library Committee has the responsibility to

discuss any single purchase over $1,500 requested in the budget, and recommend the

renewal or non-renewal of subscriptions. Each year the Library submits a request for the

following year’s budget allocation for acquiring new materials. The Finance Committee

approves the library’s annual budget.

7. Selection Criteria

7a. Acquisitions: Selection of materials in all formats for the USAHS library is

primarily by staff and faculty recommendation. The librarians are available to

suggest and recommend resources where appropriate or where there is a perceived

need which other personnel have not identified. The librarians give final approval

for acquisitions.

The first principle of selection is that material acquired must relate to the health

sciences or higher education fields, with resources specific to the curriculum

taught at USAHS as top priority. In general, the USAHS library purchases one

copy of any resource per campus, unless the library expects a higher-than-normal

demand for an item, such as in the cases of equipment or bone models. The

monographs and audio-visual resources that the USAHS library acquires are in

English. Material of all media is selected according to its currency, price,

relevance, and authority. The USAHS library acquires any material formats

whose content matches the criteria set forth in this policy.

The USAHS endeavors to have a strong collection of peer reviewed health

sciences journals, print or digital. The selection criteria for the periodical

collection stems from faculty recommendation, usage statistics, and interlibrary

loan requests. A periodical not held by the University for which the library

receives a statistically significant number of interlibrary loan requests in a given

year will be discussed by the Library Committee for possible inclusion. The

librarians will keep track of these statistics.

Selecting materials for new campuses or educational programs will follow the

same criteria set forth in this policy.

The library will attempt to ensure that only the most authoritative and reliable

resources are included in the library collection. However, it is ultimately the

responsibility of the library user to evaluate and corroborate the information

contained in library resources. The library cannot be held liable for a user citing

or applying incorrect information.

7b. Donations and Gifts: The USAHS library will accept donations and gifts based on

the following criteria:

Material relates to health sciences and the curriculum of USAHS

Material is recent (published within the last ten years) OR material is a

significant legacy work within the field The library does not already hold more than 2-3 copies of the

material

at each campus OR the existing copies of the material circulate

frequently enough to warrant an additional copy

The material is in good condition OR needs only minor repairs

The benefactor understands and agrees that once donated, the material

is property of USAHS and the library can choose to use or dispose of

the material in any way it chooses

Both parties understand that the USAHS library has the right to

decline any gifts or donations offered with contingencies to which the

library does not wish to adhere.

USAHS will provide an itemized receipt of materials donated upon request, but

will not assign monetary value to non-monetary donations. If the donation is

monetary, USAHS will provide a receipt with the donation amount specified, as

per the IRS requirements for such a donation. USAHS is a for-profit university

and donations are not typically tax deductible.

8. Access to Resources not held by USAHS

With the increasing availability of information through electronic online services, it is no

longer necessary for the USAHS to acquire all resources relevant to the health sciences.

USAHS is a member of the Northeast Florida Library and Information Network

(NEFLIN) which provides interlibrary loan privileges with other libraries across the state

of Florida.

USAHS is a member of Docline, an interlibrary loan request routing and referral system

made available through the National Library of Medicine. Docline connects the USAHS

library to thousands of medical and health sciences libraries throughout North America.

Through this system, the USAHS library can access articles and monographs not in our

own collection quickly and easily.

The USAHS Library website strives to provide up-to-date “Subject Guide” lists of

hyperlinks to particularly relevant, informative, and authoritative websites on the World

Wide Web.

9. Subject Areas

The USAHS library acquires and collects materials primarily in the following subject

areas:

Physical Therapy

Occupational Therapy

Human Anatomy and Physiology

Rehabilitation Medicine

Orthopedics

Sports Medicine and Exercise Therapy

Biomechanics and Kinesiology

Pediatrics and Child Development

Pharmacology

Biochemistry

Pain and Disability

Clinical Pathology

Musculoskeletal System

Cardiovascular System

Respiratory System

Nervous System

Geriatrics, Chronic Disease

Medical Profession

Public Health

Medical Research

Health Sciences Education/Higher Education

Physician Assistant

Occupational Science

Mental Health/Psychology

10. Special Collections

The USAHS Library maintains the following special collections:

historical monographs in the physical therapy field

occupational therapy assessment manuals and kits

11. Collection Limitations

While the subject areas listed above may indicate broad categories, the USAHS library

will not purchase at all levels in each subject, and will only purchase in so much as the

budgetary allocations for the current year allow. Resources are acquired as determined

by cost and by the current needs of the library users.

12. Preservation Activity

As the USAHS is a relatively new collection, material held is generally in good

condition. All materials are stored in a temperature-controlled environment. Staff

identifies resources that require repair or rebinding in the shelving and handling process.

13. Weeding (De-selection) of Materials

The USAHS collection is continuously assessed and therefore there is a process of

continuous weeding.

13a. Periodicals: On a periodic basis, popular/commercial journals are weeded from

the collection. The contents of these journals are usually time dated. Two to three

years of some titles are all that is required by this University.

13b. Monographs: In as much as space allows, the library will keep older monographs,

including previous editions of current titles, for their historic value. The library

may weed duplicate copies of these older monographs, as only one or two copies

are necessary for archival purposes. In future circumstances where space does not

allow for the preservation of older monographs, the library may digitize these

texts for on campus use as requested.

13c. Outdated Formats: The library may weed materials in outdated electronic formats,

especially if the library lacks the equipment necessary to access the content. The

library may replace these materials with newer editions in newer formats when

they are available.

13d. Damaged Items: The library will repair, replace, or weed damaged items

depending on the severity of the damage and the necessity of the item to the

collection.

13e. Disposal: With the exception of damaged items, which will be discarded

immediately, materials weeded from one campus library will be evaluated for

inclusion in another campus library, based on available space and current

collection. Materials weeded from all campus libraries will first be made available

to students and faculty to add to their personal collections. Any remaining

materials will be discarded.

14. Review of the Collection Development Policy

Although the Collection Development Policy is under continuous review by the USAHS

staff, it is formally reviewed and endorsed, as appropriate, by the Library Committee,

made up of faculty from various programs. The Policy is presented to the Executive

Committee, and then the Board of Trustees, to ensure that the library collection remains relevant to the

key goals of the University.Approved by the Library Committee June 2011ss.