Library Collections

The subject areas in which the TTUHSC Libraries collect may be summarized as follows:

CORE SUBJECTS

Basic medical sciences: e.g., human and comparative anatomy and physiology, human heredity, histology, embryology, biochemistry, pharmacology, toxicology, pharmacy and pharmaceutics, microbiology, immunology, parasitology, and pathology.

Body systems; e.g., musculoskeletal, respiratory, cardiovascular, hemic, lymphatic, gastrointestinal, urogenital, endocrine, and nervous systems.

Diseases: e.g., infectious, metabolic, and immunologic diseases; diseases caused by physical agents and by animal or plant poisoning.

General medicine: e.g., its educational, scientific, professional, practical, legal, bioethical, economic, social, and military aspects; includes materials on physicians.

Health care delivery: e.g., assessment of health care need,, health care plants/facilities, and types and distribution of health care manpower; planning for and management of health care delivery systems; primary care; quality of health care, laws affecting the organization and financing of health care; the economic and social impact of disease and health care on special population groups; medical service plans, including health and hospitalization insurance, national health programs, and health care maintenance organizations (HMOs).

History of medicine.

Medical specialties: e.g., surgery, pediatrics, dermatology, geriatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, radiology, psychiatry, otorhinolaryngology, ophthalmology, etc.

Practice of Health Professions.

Practice of pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences.

Practice of medicine: e.g., diagnosis, drug therapy and other therapeutic techniques.

Practice of nursing.

Public health: e.g., preventive medicine, health statistics, health problems of special population groups, epidemiology, sanitary control, hygiene, and societal, economic, and environmental factors affecting public health.

RELATED SUBJECTS

Aviation and space medicine
Animal physiology
Basic veterinary medicine
Biometry
Biostatistics
Botany of poisonous plants
Cytology
Dental and oral surgery
Demography/Epidemiology
General genetics and heredity
Health sciences in library and information sciences
History of medicine
Medical informatics

PERIPHERAL SUBJECTS

Anthropology
Economics
General biology
General botany
General education
General science
Human ecology
Human engineering
Molecular biology
Parapsychology
Philosophy
Physics
Religion and medicine
Sociology
Special education
Veterinary public health
Zoology

COVERAGE OF THE BIOMEDICAL LITERATURE

Levels of coverage are:

1. A comprehensive collection will be maintained in Core Subjects: scholarly literature, technical publications addressed to health professionals (practitioners and students), substantive publications describing health conditions and major reference tools will be collected.
2. A research collection will be maintained in the Related Subjects to support graduate level research; major scholarly works will be collected, as well as major technical publications, and major reference tools.
3. A reference collection will be maintained in the Peripheral Subjects. This basic collection will provide a broad outline of current knowledge of these subjects and will consist of a limited number of scholarly works in selected languages and selected major technical publications and reference tools in English.

SCOPE OF THE TTUHSC LIBRARIES COLLECTION

The Libraries of the Health Sciences are the major bibliographic resources for the schools of medicine, nursing, health professions, pharmacy, and graduate biomedical sciences in the West Texas area. They function collectively as resource libraries in the National Network of Libraries of Medicine Regional Medical Library Program (NNLM). The subject areas which the library collects are as follows:

CORE SUBJECTS: NLM AND LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CLASSIFICATION

Scholarly literature in any other subject field may be collected if a reasonable proportion of its contents are relevant to the needs of the Health Sciences Centers. Any reference tools which are non-biomedical in scope and are necessary for public service and for carrying out the other library functions are acquired upon recommendation of the reference staff, campus associate directors and/or various academic departments.

SPECIAL NOTES

The following notes attempt to explain why certain core subjects are collected and to what extent. The notes are intended to be used to clarify the scope of collecting in other levels excluding the core and to define any deviation from the policies for the research and reference collection levels.

Core Subjects

1. Chiropractic. Homeopathy. Osteopathy.

   Materials selected will include only publications of a substantial nature and which provide detailed description or analysis of the therapeutic system, or the history of its use. Only current texts are kept.

2. Genetics, Human.

   The emphasis is on materials related to the improvement of health or prevention of disease.

3. Geriatrics. Gerontology.

   The Library collects materials in the following areas which are related to aging:

   1. Biological aspects of aging Aging as an integral part of the development process. Aging at all levels: molecular, cellular, organ systems, individual.
   2. Clinical aspects of aging. Degenerative diseases. changing response to therapeutic intervention and nutritive requirements due to age.
   3. Psychosocial aspects of aging Intellectual functions, memory and learning, visual-motor coordination, syntheses of sensory information, verbal and non-verbal behavior, sleep patterns, etc. Psychological disorders, depression, alcoholism and drug abuse.
   4. Health services. Administration and allocation of services to the elderly and chronically ill.
4. Health Professions.

   The Library attempts to provide some support to each of the programs in health professions. Much of the background material for these programs falls within the core subjects covered by the Library. Emphasis remains on current material. Currently there are programs in the following areas:

   1. Audiology
   2. Biomedical communications
   3. Emergency medicine
   4. Clinical laboratory science and management
   5. Communication disorders
   6. Occupational therapy
   7. Physical therapy
   8. Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
5. History of the Health Sciences

   Recently published works on the history of health and the biomedical sciences. Persons in the biomedical sciences, biographies of prominent persons in the biomedical and health sciences, bibliographies and journals are acquired in English only. Rare books in scope are purchased, funds permitting. Facsimiles of old or rare medical works are purchased if in the general scope. Materials which are pertinent to West Texas medical history, or, in some instances, Texas medical history are acquired.

6. Hospital Administration.

   Current authoritative materials on hospital administration are collected including; architectural planning; organization and management; clinical departments and emergency services; safety and disaster programs; hospital jurisprudence; medical personnel and records management.

7. Nutrition.

   Basic texts in nutrition, nutritional disorders, dietetics, basic research and food composition as well as international studies of nutritional status in individual populations and epidemiology are collected. Materials on food production (agricultural methods) and food supply are not collected.

8. Optometry.

   Materials in this area are not collected except on a very minimal level.

9. Public Health.

   While most of the material is at the research level in public health, other subjects within this broader category are collected at various levels depending upon demand and development of programs.

10. Anthropology.

    With the exception of the following special topics, the Libraries of the Health sciences do not collect in this area:

    1. Physical anthropology.
    2. Folk-medicine. Medical folklore and the medical practices of primitive or ethnic groups are collected upon request by the faculty in support of specific courses.
11. Chemistry.
    1. Inorganic and physical chemistry.
    2. Organic chemistry.
    3. Biochemistry.
    4. Food chemistry. When related to nutrition, development, weight control and physiological processes, materials in this area are collected.
12. Education.
    1. Medical, nursing and health professions.
    2. Special education. Education of the mentally retarded, autistic children, persons with impaired speech, hearing or vision or those with learning disabilities are covered if related to the medical professions. Works directed to educators or dealing primarily with teaching methods are acquired at a very minimal level.
    3. Educational technology. It is difficult to select what will be useful to those in the HSC on educational methods and evaluation. Materials in these areas are selected upon recommendation by the faculty, although materials directly related to medical or health related fields are usually acquired.
    4. Health education. Works dealing with methods of communication or content of health information for the public are acquired selectively, with preference for those materials which are substantial, of authoritative authorship or sponsored by a professional organization. Samples are obtained, when possible, for review before selection.
13. Genetics. Heredity. Evolution.

    The emphasis here is on the relation of genetics to human health. General genetics texts are acquired sparingly at the reference collection level. The following subjects are collected:

    1. Medical genetics.
    2. Genetics as related to inheritance of diseases, metabolic disorders, birth defects.
    3. Genetic counseling.
    4. Genetics of pathogenic bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites.
    5. Genetic effects of drugs and chemicals.
    6. Genetic effects of radiation.
    7. Biochemical genetics, if applicable to biochemistry.

    The following subjects are not collected:

    1. Plant or plant disease genetics.
    2. Genetics of social or water bacteria or microbes.
    3. Genetics of any organism or animal if restricted to that species and without application to human genetics.
    4. Population genetics.
    5. Application of genetics to improvement of agriculture, viniculture, industry or animal husbandry.
14. Law.

    The Libraries of the Health Sciences collect materials on medical jurisprudence and forensic medicine when they are directed primarily to the physician or other health professional.

15. Management.

    The materials collected in this subject area consist of current items on management, particularly as related to personnel administration, budgeting, and management systems or methods. This collection is primarily for the use of the library staff, but the clientele of the library should be considered when making selection decisions.

16. Library and Information Science.

    Every effort is made to collect the latest materials (e.g. monographs, journals, and reports) in this area primarily for the library faculty and staff. Particular attention is paid to materials related to special libraries, science and medical libraries, information science, automation, and library administration.

17. Mathematics. Statistics. Computer Science.

    Efforts are made to get the advice of faculty and staff in these areas before purchasing. Materials which relate directly to biomedical or social science problems are collected specifically at the research level.

18. Physics.

    General handbooks, encyclopedias and other materials are collected for the reference collection at a minimal level. If the specific fields are closely related to medicine, additional monographs and other materials will be collected very selectively (. e.g. optics, sound, acoustics, radiation, bio-physics).

19. Psychology.

    This subject engenders a very extensive literature and selection is based upon whether [1] the materials add to the understanding of normal and pathologic human behavior, or [2] disorders. Subject areas which might be added upon review are general psychology, psychopathology, clinical psychology, developmental psychology, physiological psychology, psychopharmacology, drug and alcohol abuse.

20. Sociology. Economics.

    Where sociology as a discipline is directly related to health care and practice, materials in all formats are purchased. Publications which deal specifically with the socio-economic factors of health status or the delivery of health care are of sufficient importance for the libraries to acquire.

21. Zoology. Veterinary Medicine.

    Materials in this area are purchased only to support research and the vivarium.

Limitations to Coverage

Limitations to coverage of the biomedical literature are treatment of the subject, form/type, language and geographic guidelines.

Treatment of the Subject

TTUHSC Libraries of the Health Sciences are committed to collect scholarly biomedical literature comprehensively in those areas which are necessary to support programs of TTUHSC programs. This literature may be published in journals, other serials publications, monographs, government documents, or in non-print formats. The libraries attempt to collect that literature which:

1. report observations or experiments in the biomedical sciences,
2. review recent progress of state-of-the-art in various areas of investigation,
3. critically evaluate observations or thcories,
4. analyze legal, economic, political, or social developments having broad and lasting effects on biomedicine,
5. synthesize ideas and observations from diverse sources which may result in the exposition of original concepts.

Form/Type of Material

TTUHSC Libraries of the Health Sciences collect the following types of literature on a top priority basis:

1. primary research and clinical journals and monographs in the biomedical sciences,
2. major journals and monographs relating to the practice of medicine,
3. state-of-the-art reviews of a subject area in general or of that subject in a specific country,
4. scientific publications of major academics, learned societies, professional organizations, research, and educational institutions,
5. government publications concerning legislation of programs which will have long-tem impact on health, health care delivery, and/or biomedical research,
6. other substantive educational materials (both in print and non-print formats specifically designed for personnel in the health sciences.

Language

Language of a publication limits coverage in all the subject areas. Those materials published in English will have top priority.

Geographic Limits

Health-related materials issued by the departments of the following governmental bodies are collected on a selective basis:

1. U.S. Federal government
2. U.S. State governments
3. U.S. territorial governments
4. U.S. quasi-governmental agencies
5. Foreign national governments
6. International organizations
7. Governments of selected domestic and foreign metropolitan areas

SELECTION GUIDELINES BY FORM OR TYPE OF MATERIAL

Abridged Editions

Abridged editions of textbooks and other biomedical publications are not collected. Excepted are published legislative summaries, major publications in core subjects which have a unique title, works printed before 1801 and, in some cases, Americana (WZ 270).

Abstracting and Indexing Services

Major abstracting and indexing services in biomedicine which are either national or international in scope are collected on a selective basis. As many of these indexes are now on-line, the deciding factor in either purchasing or retaining an index or abstracting service is its availability in on-line form.

Academic Dissertations (Theses)

Only those doctoral dissertations and master's theses which are done in programs of TTUHSC are collected.

Annual Reports

Annual reports of major centers of medical education as well as regional, and private foundations supporting medical research are collected on a selective basis. Reports from TTUHSC libraries and major resource libraries are retained on an indefinite basis. All other annual reports are reviewed for possible disposal.

Autographed Biomedical Publications

Such publications are collected if 1) they are within the scope of the TTUHSC libraries, or 2) they are the works of an employee of TTUHSC.

Bibliographies

Subject bibliographies which are derived solely from Index Medicus are not collected with the exception of the NLM literature searches and recurring bibliographies.

Biographies and Autobiographies

Biographies and autobiographies of health professionals are collected unless the work relates to activities unconnected with biomedicine. Biographies and autobiographies of patrons of the health sciences and professions are collected only if the patron's efforts or contributions (whether monetary or otherwise) were of significant influence, and if a substantial portion of the biographical work relates to his/her interest in the field of biomedicine.

Bulletins and Transactions of Faculties

These publications are collected only if they contain substantive signed articles.

Catalogs

No formal effort is made to collect catalogs of medical schools.

The following are not collected:

Book catalogs of medical libraries (except history collections).
Individually issued catalogs of drugs.

Congresses, Conferences, Symposia, etc.

These publications are collected on a limited basis. Only those which have superior significance will be considered.

Directories of Members

Membership directories, in general, are not collected below the state level, with the exception of the local health related societies. Directories that are simply a list of the names of members and lack other information are not collected.

Directories of Organizations

U.S. publications are not collected below the state level with the exception of local organizations related to health care. Canadian and other foreign directories are collected on a selective basis and then only at the national level.

Examination Series

Examination guides which are produced to aid students in the health sciences in preparing for specialty on board exams are collected only in the English language and only if they are published by the major medical publishers or major professional organizations.

Fiction

Fictional works, including drama and poetry, written by medical professionals are not systematically collected, except if written by local individuals.

Government Regulations

Regulations which interpret legislation are collected only as issued by the Federal government in The Code of Federal Regulations. Regulations issued by other governments, with the exception of the State of Texas, are not collected.

Health Education and Patient Education Materials

Health education materials are materials used to educate the health consumer in matters of health and self-care/self-help. Patient education materials are health education materials specifically designed for persons suffering from a particular disease or disorder.

Publications which are prepared by recognized leaders in health professions, by institutions of outstanding reputation, or under U. S. Federal Government contract are collected selectively, and then only on the advise of the health professional whose subject is in question.

Hospital Journals

Hospital (in-house) journals are not systematically collected. Individual regional campus libraries may collect pertinent literature for those hospitals they serve if they add strength to the overall collection.

Imprint Variants

Materials that are published in two or more places in the same language are collected in a single imprint with the U.S. edition preferred. However, if the title, preface, or textual content of the works differ, and if the subject is in scope, both imprints are collected. Excepted works are those printed before 1801 and Americana (WZ 270).

Journals (see Journals: Selection Guidelines)

Juvenile Literature

This type of literature is not collected.

Lectures and Speeches

Separately published lectures, speeches, and addresses in the core subjects are collected on a selective basis; those in the related subjects are collected on a very selective basis. Lectures and speeches separately published given by faculty or local health professionals are collected.

Legislative Documents

These are collected on a very selective basis in the core subjects, and are retained in report form only.

Loose-leaf Publications

Loose-leaf publications are here defined as those publications which are updated by replacement pages which must be interfiled in the basic work. This type of material is collected only in the core subjects and on a very selective basis. General textbooks in loose-leaf format are not collected except when specifically requested for the Reference Collection.

Manuals

Laboratory manuals in the core subjects which are designed for use by health care personnel are collected if procedural details and techniques are explained. Those prepared by HSC faculty are collected. Administrative manuals which outline the organizational structure and policies of major health-related institutions are collected on a selective basis. Operating manuals for use with a specific company's equipment are not collected. General first aid manuals are collected only in the English language.

Maps, Graphs, Posters, and Charts

Individually issued items are collected when requested by faculty.

Newsletters and Newspapers

These are subscribed to on a limited basis. Few are permanently retained in the collection.

Pamphlets

Pamphlets (unbound, non-periodical publications of not fewer than five and no more than forty-eight pages exclusive of covers) are collected selectively.

Criteria for selection are as follows:

Contains significant current or historical information in biomedicine.
Outlines the standards or position of major health related organizations.
Provides information for health education.

Personal Narratives (see also Biographies and Autobiographies)

Personal narratives of illness or injury written by a patient or his/her family are collected on a selective basis.

Photographic Collections

Publications which consist of a collection of photographs with identifying captions and lack comprehensive textual material are not collected. Exceptions: those of local interest are collected selectively.

Popular Works

Popular "how to" materials are not collected.

Press Releases

Press releases are not collected.

Programmed Texts

Materials designed for health care personnel which are in printed format and published by major medical publishers, major professional organizations, or major centers of medical education are collected selectively. Self-instructional texts which are primarily in non-print format are selected on the basis of guidelines for non-print materials.

Progress Reports

Progress reports which are actually annual administrative or research reports are collected on a very selective basis. Preliminary reports are not collected.

Promotional Materials

Commercial product and service advertising materials and literature used in fund raising appeals are not collected.

Published Abstracts

As a general rule these are not acquired by the library; however, if published abstracts come as part of a journal subscription, they are kept with the completed volume.

Radio and Television Scripts

These are not collected.

Reprints

Reprints are collected on the following basis:

Reprint editions of monographs and series/serials if the Library lacks the original and the original cannot be purchased, or if the original is in poor condition or too valuable to lend, are collected.
Reprints of the collected works of a health professional which are published in one volume are collected. A monograph collection of reprints or a reprint series/serial on a core subject of special importance is collected only if this is the only way to acquire this information.

Materials which are not collected:

Reprints of a single journal article.
Reprint collections of the writings of members of a particular institution/organization are not, as a general rule, collected.
Monographs which consist primarily of reprints of journal articles are not collected.

Standards

Publications which identify standard levels of safety of productions or conditions which affect human health are collected.

Official U. S. national standards for devices and products used in health care delivery or in biomedical research are collected very selectively.

Statistics

U.S. Federal Government and Texas Government health, vital, and/or population statistics are collected. Health, vital, and/or statistics for other in-scope governmental bodies are collected only in cumulated form, and that selectively. Statistics series which contain substantial health, vital, and/or population statistics in addition to other statistics, are collected if in scope; however, if such series are published in sections, only those sections which contain health, vital, and/or population statistics are collected.

Syllabi and Course Outlines

These publications are collected only if produced within TTUHSC.

Textbooks

Textbooks which are intended to be used in the professional education of biomedical personnel are collected. Other textbooks are not collected unless a need arises in a special subject area.

Translations

Translations from a foreign language into English and from a less familiar language to one that is more familiar (e.g. Arabic to French) are collected. If a translation exists in English, it is to be preferred to the original language. Translations of English works into foreign languages are not generally collected. Exception: a work of a local author. Translations of single journal articles are not collected.

Unpublished Materials

Manuscript materials of present or potential historical interest may be collected in all areas of biomedicine as space allows. Materials to be excluded from the general collection are: papers presented at congresses/symposia, manuscripts, student reports, typewritten (original or copies) texts of speeches, and typewritten bibliographies. Unpublished case histories and current medical records are not collected.

Yearbooks [Student]

Only those produced by the Texas Tech University Health Sciences centers are collected.

JOURNALS: SELECTION GUIDELINES

1. Relevance to Library Objectives and Relationship to Total Collection.

2. The major support is given to those programs in teaching, research and clinics which are the emphasis of the schools of TTUHSC. Special needs for programs which affect only a small number of individuals are considered, but support cannot be as comprehensive. Programs which lie outside of TTUHSC (users of the libraries but not supporters of those libraries financially) have either secondary priority or are not considered.

3. Bibliographic Accessibility.

4. If a journal has been published for some time, it is necessary to ascertain whether it is indexed in widely-used and available indexes. If a journal is too new to be in an index, and if it is not possible to make an educated guess that it will be, it should be deferred (unless specifically requested by a faculty consultant). Those publications which have no cumulated indexes and do not appear in the major indexing tools are questionable and should receive low priority in selection.

5. Expressed Need.

6. Titles for which a definite need has been shown either through requests to support major teaching and research programs, by multiple recommendations, or interlibrary loan requests, should be given top priority for purchase regardless of other factors. (Note: follow copyright law.)

7. Quality of Publication.

8. It quality cannot be pre-determined either from the publisher's reputation or other available information, a sample should be requested. These samples should be placed in a prominent place so that experts in the field can review them and give an estimation of potential value and use.

9. Cost.

10. All relevant titles should be selected regardless of price; however, those whose annual subscription rates are usually high should be given additional consideration. If possible, a consultant in the appropriate subject area should review the journal and give an estimation of potential use.

11. Local Availability.

12. Whenever possible, the libraries seek to obtain those journals which are of vital interest to the programs of TTUHSC on their local campuses.

13. Language and Country of Origin.

14. Priority is given to U.S. titles and English-language journals. Multilanguage journals with strong international editorial and review boards also are considered. Other titles in other languages are only acquired when the demand is very strong.

15. Special Types of Publications.
16. 1. Newsletters, house organs, and ephemeral publications are not collected with the exception of:
    2. 1. Those issued locally and of interest to the archives.
       2. publications from national health organizations with broad political or social influence beyond their own membership (e.g. A.M.A., N.L.N.).
    3. State medical journals on a selective basis are acquired as they are often retrieved on Medline and for their use as reference tools. Cost (some are free) should not be a consideration.
    4. Library and information science publications are acquired upon recommendation of the library faculty.
    5. cumulative indexes are acquired only for heavily used journals and only if they cover long periods of time, usually 10 years.

JOURNALS: RETENTION POLICY

Usually, journals which are considered important enough for an initial purchase are added to the collection permanently. The exceptions are as follows:

1. Publications which are primarily for the purpose of current news and have no collective indexes. This does not apply to local publications which may be kept for the archives.
2. Added copies of heavily used journals are withdrawn after 10 years.
3. Some annual literature reviews may be designated for withdrawal after 15 years (e.g. yearbook series, recent progress in, etc.).

JOURNALS: BACKFILES

Because the financial commitment to a journal title is far greater than to a monograph title, the selection of a specific title is more critical. At the time of decision to purchase a title, several items are taken into consideration in purchasing the back files:

1. No title is purchased in back files beyond 1945. Gifts that go beyond these dates are retained based on need and space.
2. In most cases, the subject matter and its relevancy to research are deciding factors as well as cost and availability.
3. In all cases, where the journal title is less than five years old, the first and subsequent volumes are purchased, funds being available.

JOURNALS: EVALUATION

The libraries maintain a constant and thorough evaluation of their journal collections. Current subscriptions are evaluated according to the following criteria which is similar to monograph selection criteria:

1. Relevance of subject to on-going or anticipated programs at TTUHSC.
2. Accessibility through indexes, databases and current awareness bibliographic tools.
3. If it can be determined, actual use of the journal.
4. Quality.
5. Language and country of origin.
6. Cost.
7. Evaluation by faculty.
8. Frequency of interlibrary loan requests for a specific title during a specific period of time.

COMPUTER SOFTWARE

Collection is limited to functional computer software (e.g. Adobe Creative Suite) for use by students and faculty.

SEPARATE COLLECTIONS

1. Archives.

   This collection exists to collect the records of the TTUHSC institutional history.

2. Rare Book Room.

   This collection is built largely upon gifts to the libraries from all periods of health care history, but with special collecting emphasis on frontier and rural health in the West Texas area.

3. Reference Collections.

   This is a non-circulating collection which is present in 2 libraries of the TTUHSC system. It exists in order that ready-reference, factual, and index materials may be found quickly by users and librarians alike. It consists of two broad general categories (information on persons and organizations; factual data). The Lubbock reference collection has been transferred to the general collection

4. 1. Persons and organizations.
   2. 1. Directories of persons/biographical dictionaries.
      2. Directories of organizations. These are generally withdrawn when newer editions supercede them.
      3. Telephone directories. These are generally withdrawn when newer editions supercede them. TTU/TTUHSC telephone directories will be kept in archives.
   3. Factual data.
   4. 1. Encyclopedias. Only the most current editions are kept in the Reference Collection.
      2. Handbooks.
      3. Drug sources.
      4. Statistical sources.
      5. Dictionaries. Only the most current editions are kept in the Reference Collection.
      6. Indexes, abstracts, and bibliographies.
      7. Catalogs. Those from educational institutions are not kept nor acquired because we have microform copies in subscription. Commercial catalogs may be acquired as they contain biomedical information, such as instrumentation.

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES

The TTUHSC Libraries have extensive holdings in electronic resources, which may be viewed and copied by our faculty, staff, and students, regardless of their location. Generally, in cases wherein we have subscribed to an electronic journal already extant in our hard copy journals collections, we eliminate all but one paper copy of the title. Obvious exceptions to this rule are such titles as JAMA, NEJM, etc. In the case of electronic books, no attempt is made to reduce or eliminate hard copies. The library system will not engage in licensing practices which limit use to one physical campus or site, or which do not permit the broadcast of the electronic product via proxy server. At this time, the TTUHSC Lubbock and El Paso campus libraries are sharing some electronic resources.

WEEDING (see also Appendices A and B)

The following are general guidelines for the monographic collections. Policies for specific subjects and collections such as reference and AV, and the evaluation of journals are discussed in sections devoted to each of those topics.

1. Comprehensive level collections. Special collections which attempt to be comprehensive within their specified limitations are not weeded, except for duplication or deterioration.
2. Research level collections. Most of the core subjects are collected at the research level, and are weeded selectively.
3. 1. Specialized monographs, major symposia and histories, and titles listed as classics in Garrison and Morton are retained indefinitely. If substantial use data are available, some weeding may be done.
   2. Texts. Authoritative texts published in numerous editions over a period of years are weeded selectively, as new editions become available. As a rule of thumb, the library keeps the first edition, and representative later editions at approximately ten-year intervals. The latest two editions of recent titles are kept. Multiple copies of all but the latest editions are weeded. Lesser texts which have become outdated are weeded if there is no data supporting current use in the past five years.
4. Peripheral level collections. No attempt is made to keep older monographs in these collections. Superseded texts and materials which have showed no evidence of use in the past five years are weeded.
5. Weeding procedures. The collection should be evaluated every five years. Depending upon the data available showing use, the mechanism for weeding will be formulated. Consultants should be used for specific subjects, and titles to be withdrawn should be checked against Garrison and Morton. Possibly as a guarantee against future duplication of effort, any title which has been judges of historical value should have its shelflist annotated as follows: Do not withdraw. R view (date, sources - G & M consulted, etc.).

The Libraries of the Health Sciences of Texas Tech University are no longer able to routinely accept most donations of books and other materials for the general circulating collection.  This change in policy is due to the high cost of processing donated materials, the library’s shift towards electronic resources, and the increasing demand for student study space.  Please consider other options for sharing your materials, including public libraries, used bookstores, or charitable organizations.  If you feel your potential gift is of critical research interest to the Libraries of the Health Sciences, such as items of local interest, please provide us with a description and characterization of the material via one of the following contact points:

Amy Faltinek                                                                     Richard Nollan

Sr. Director, Technical Services                                        Executive Director of the Libraries

806-743-4579                                                                   806-743-1048

amy.faltinek@ttuhsc.edu                                                  Richard.nollan@ttuhsc.edu

Library staff cannot appraise the value of the gift material.  Donors may have independent professional appraisals performed for especially valuable gifts.

RELATIONSHIP TO TTU LIBRARIES AND TO NATIONAL NETWORK OF LIBRARIES OF MEDICINE

1. Texas Tech University Library.

   Some efforts are made toward cooperation in the acquisition of materials so that unnecessary duplication does not occur; bearing in mind that TTU and TTUHSC are totally separate institutions. The Libraries of the Health Sciences serve all faculty and graduate students of TTU on the same basis as those of TTUHSC. However, requests for specific purchases from TTU students and faculty are referred to TTU if out of scope of the Libraries of the Health Sciences. Also, access to electronic resources are granted to TTU faculty and graduate-level students on an as-needed basis and vice versa.

2. Regional Medical Library Program (NNLM/SCR).

   The Regional Medical Library Program, a component of the National Library of Medicine's Biomedical Communications Network, facilitates the sharing of resources among medical libraries in the U.S. The Libraries of the Health Sciences collectively form one of the 15 resource libraries in the South Central Regional Medical Library Program (Region 5, NNLM/SCR: Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and New Mexico). The library furthers this cooperation by recording its holdings in regional and national union lists. Through its membership in the South Central Academic Medical Library Consortium (SCAMeL) the library cooperates in several library programs, including the SCAMeL Union List of Serials.

   Obscure or historical publications or materials of limited use but of importance for individual research are usually available at the National Library of Medicine or in other major collections in the United States. The existence of several interlibrary loan networks provides the library with limitless access to information.

General caveats and information:

1. Most resources collected by the TTUHSC libraries will be digital/electronic.
2. Most publishers and vendors use the academic/fiscal calendar year for subscription renewals.
3. For almost a decade, journal prices for the biomedical literature have been subject to an average annual inflation rate of between 9.5% and 11%.
4. Electronic journals are no less expensive than paper journals. In many cases, they are more expensive.

Journals may be selected in several ways for inclusion in the Libraries' collections, including:

1. A determination is made that a needed title is required to support a program (either new or existing), and that its absence from the collections would constitute a failure on the part of the library system to support the program in question. Our support of programs must also be prioritized, with those programs having a direct curricular and educational impact receiving the highest priority. In years of scarce funds, it is sometimes impossible to add all titles required for a program. In such cases, librarians ask that the requesting entity provide us with a prioritized list of potential added titles. We then add those that we can, postponing further additions until the next fiscal year.
2. A request for the addition of a title from a library patron is always considered seriously. Titles thus requested are examined by the librarians to determine whether sufficient interlibrary loans have been requested by our patrons for the title in the last year or so. Such ILLs should be from more than one or two requestors. Titles are also examined to determine if they are indexed in MEDLINE/INDEX MEDICUS. While not an exclusive rule-out to the addition of a title, its non-presence in the list of titles indexed by MEDLINE/INDEX MEDICUS generally means that the title is not worth our acquisition. Often, new titles are slow to be indexed by MEDLINE/INDEX MEDICUS, and the process of a title's inclusion may take a couple of years. In such cases, it is wise to revisit the acquisition issue after a year or two.
3. Recommendations for additions may be based upon standard lists of quality journals, such as impact factor listings or the Brandon-Hill List. Lists such as these are useful in assisting librarians in making decisions for certain acquisitions.

Journal deselection presents a different set of problems. Deselection is done with great reluctance because of the difficulty in finding missing issues, should we wish to restart a subscription. Fortunately, we have not had to deselect journals for the past five or so years, except for duplicate subscriptions, thanks to increases in our resource budget and the dramatic rise in our electronic journals (currently, more than 27,000 titles). Deselection is done only after a careful study of decision options has been made, including:

1. Cost/usage. Librarians routinely look at the number of times a title is used. If there is a pattern of really low usage coupled with really high cost, a journal may be considered a prime candidate for deselection.
2. Duplication. If a title is held in more than one TTUHSC library, and is available electronically, it may be considered for deselection. Obviously, such titles as NEJM and JAMA are exceptions to this rule, but, as costs continue to rise, such may not be the case in the future. Currently, TTUHSC Libraries have a bit of room to maneuver, as we still have quite a few duplicate and multiple subscriptions which may be deleted in a crisis situation. As these multiple subscriptions are phased out, we will one day either be forced to increase our commitment to the journal literature, or engage in deselection of journal titles in order to stay within budget.
3. Prioritized deselection. Should the need to engage in broad-based deselection ever present itself, the library will distribute lists of our journal holdings (arranged by discipline) to the department chairs of all schools. Chairs will then be asked to deselect titles from within their respective disciplines. Such lists were in fact prepared last year. There was no need to distribute them because of new recurrent resource funding to our budget.

The State of Texas makes it rather difficult to discard or otherwise dispose of library materials, because of its definition of books, audiovisuals (and bound journals) as capitalized property of the state. To attempt to sell or permanently remove library materials such as these from a state agency library constitutes "alienation of state property." Given the facts that library space is finite and library acquisitions are ongoing, the logical conclusion is that, at some point, a weeding of holdings must be accomplished.

Typically, materials to be weeded are selected because 1) they have become too damaged to continue to be maintained within our collections; 2) they have been superceded by new or more recent editions; 3) they are at least ten years old and have a poor record of utilization by our users over the past five years. Any materials deemed to have historical value are not weeded. Because of their relative lack of space, libraries at Amarillo, and Odessa, shall not maintain large historic collections. The library at Lubbock alone has the space and the staff to maintain and preserve historic collections.

Where possible and practical, usually in the case of materials which don't quite fit the criteria above, faculty input to deselection may be sought. The seeking of such input is totally at the discretion of the librarian charged with the weeding. The librarians at all four campus libraries hold faculty appointments in the School of Medicine, while one also holds a faculty appointment in the School of Pharmacy. By training and experience they are competent to weed the collections.

Disposal of items thus weeded is also accomplished at the discretion of the librarian. Materials shall be stamped DISCARDED or WITHDRAWN; they may then be thrown away or placed in an open area for others to pick up. In no case shall such items be sold. In all instances, such items must be removed from the integrated catalog of the library prior to their disposal.