A clinical librarian in a hospital critical care unit may generate a positive return on investment.

BACKGROUND: Timely information provided by clinical librarians can contribute to outcomes such as improved patient care and time savings for hospital staff. What is unknown is the return on investment (ROI) of a clinical librarian on a critical care unit. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the ROI, from the employer perspective, of placing a clinical librarian in a critical care unit in a large UK acute hospital. METHODS: Using a mixed methods approach, ROI was estimated by comparing the total costs with the total monetised benefits of implementing the clinical librarian intervention. Total costs included salary and equipment costs. Total monetised benefits included time saving for hospital staff, support for professional development and improved patient care. RESULTS: When total monetised benefits were compared with total costs, the 15-month clinical librarian intervention generated a positive ROI of £1.18-£3.03 for every £1 invested. DISCUSSION: Using outcome measures derived from previous research, this novel study generated promising results indicative for commissioners seeking to improve patient care and deliver value for money. To improve generalisability, multisite studies using standardised ROI tools are recommended. CONCLUSION: Employing a clinical librarian in a critical care unit can generate a positive ROI.

Increasing impact in a time of decreasing budgets.

This virtual issue (VI) has been compiled to mark the CILIP Health Libraries Group Conference 2012. In line with the conference theme: 'Health libraries under the microscope: perfecting your formula', the VI is a collection of 10 articles and regular features that have been published in Health Information and Libraries Journal in the last 2 years. The VI focuses specifically on the topics of impact, value and cost-effectiveness. All the articles and regular features contained in this VI are freely available online.

International trends in health science librarianship Part 10: The Greater China area.

This is the 10th in a series of articles exploring international trends in health science librarianship. This issue describes developments in health science librarianship in the first decade of the 21st century in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. The next issue will report on Japan and South Korea. JM.

Cost-effective ways of delivering enquiry services: a rapid review.

BACKGROUND: In the recent times of recession and budget cuts, it is more important than ever for library and information services to deliver cost-effective services. OBJECTIVES: This rapid review aims to examine the evidence for the most cost-effective ways of delivering enquiry services. METHODS: A literature search was conducted on LISA (Library and Information Sciences Abstracts) and MEDLINE. Searches were limited to 2007 onwards. RESULTS: Eight studies met the inclusion criteria. The studies covered hospital and academic libraries in the USA and Canada. Services analysed were 'point-of-care' librarian consultations, staffing models for reference desks and virtual/digital reference services. CONCLUSIONS: Transferable lessons, relevant to health library and information services generally, can be drawn from this rapid review. These suggest that 'point-of-care' librarians for primary care practitioners are a cost-effective way of answering questions. Reference desks can be cost-effectively staffed by student employees or general reference staff, although librarian referral must be provided for more complex and subject-specific enquiries. However, it is not possible to draw any conclusions on virtual/digital reference services because of the limited literature available. Further case analysis studies measuring specific services, particularly enquiry services within a health library and information context, are required.

The Open Access Association? EAHIL's new model for sustainability.

OBJECTIVE: To discover a governance structure and a business model for the European Association for Health Information and Libraries (EAHIL) which will be economically sustainable in the medium term, arresting a long-term gradual decline in membership numbers and implementing new revenue streams to sustain association activity. METHODOLOGY: Reviewed survival strategies of other professional associations, investigated potential of emerging interactive web technologies, investigated alternative revenue streams based around the 'franchise' of the annual EAHIL conferences and workshops. A fully worked-through and costed alternative structure was produced, based on abolition of the subscription, web-based procedures and functions, increased income from advertising and sponsorship and a large measure of member participation and engagement. Statutes and Rules of Procedure were rewritten to reflect the changes. This plan was put through the Association's approval cycle and implemented in 2005. RESULTS: The new financial model has proved itself sustainable on the basis of the first 2 years' operations. The long-term gradual decline in membership was reversed, with membership numbers trebling across the EAHIL region. The software worked with minimal problems, including the online electoral process. CONCLUSION: With no identified precedent from other professional associations, the changes represented a considerable risk, which was justifiable because long-term projections made it clear that continuing the traditional model was not viable. The result is a larger, healthier association with a stronger link to its membership. Long-term risks include the high level of member commitment and expertise. There are also important questions about scalability-diseconomies of scale probably limit the applicability of the overall open access model to larger associations.

Implementing PDA technology in a medical library: experiences in a hospital library and an academic medical center library.

Personal digital assistants (PDAs) have grown from being a novelty in the late 1990s to an essential tool for healthcare professionals in the 2000s. This paper describes the experiences of a librarian who implemented PDA technology first in a hospital library, and then at an academic medical center library. It focuses on the role of the library in supporting PDA technology and resources. Included are programmatic issues such as training for library staff and clinicians, and technical issues such as Palm and Windows operating systems. This model could be used in either a hospital or academic health sciences library.

Salary survey of the Medical Library Group of Southern California and Arizona.

The 1982 salary survey of the Medical Library Group of Southern California and Arizona (MLGSCA) indicates that 211 health sciences librarians in Southern California and Arizona earned a mean annual salary of $20,910 for 1982. Data analysis shows a positive correlation between salary and educational level. Other factors found to affect salary were job history, number of positions held, MLA certification, and professional responsibility. Age, gender, and MLA certification did not have a consistent positive correlation with salary. Results indicate that the salaries of hospital librarians are, on the average, roughly comparable to those of academic librarians in Southern California and Arizona.