The Medical & Healthcare Library carried out a survey of HSC users in January 2011 to obtain feedback on the service provided. The results of the survey are now available in PDF format below, or from the Issue Desks of the following libraries: Medical, Biomedical, Antrim Healthcare, Craigavon Healthcare, Altnagelvin, Knockbracken and Causeway.

Medical & Healthcare Library Survey Report April 2011

Plans are well underway to introduce a new integrated Library System for the University. Following a detailed tender process, a suite of products from Innovative Interfaces has been chosen to provide a complete management and access solution. In addition to the Millennium System, the Library has selected the Encore Platform and an electronic resource management system to provide access to its extensive collections.

The initial rollout of the products is expected to take place in August 2011 and the transition will involve improvements to the Library Catalogue, the issue system and the method of locating and accessing electronic resources. While there is the potential for a range of exciting and enhanced services in all of these areas, the primary focus in summer 2011 will be to replicate the functionality provided by the current system.

We will communicate a detailed schedule of the changes and any implications for service delivery throughout the spring and early summer. However, disruption will be kept to an absolute minimum and contingency measures put in place where necessary.

If you have any immediate questions, please contact Trevor Lyttle, Assistant Director (Resources Management) on extension 6223 or e-mail library@qub.ac.uk.

This problem was resolved on 23/3/2011.

There is currently a problem with accessing ProQuest journals from the honni A-Z list, and journal articles from ProQuest via CrossSearch.  The problem is under investigation and, until a resolution is found, please go to ProQuest from Find Database and search for material in the native interface.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused and will rectify the problem as quickly as possible.

As an integral part of the ongoing refurbishment project, improvements to the Clinical Science B car park, external steps and Mulhouse walkway are now planned for the coming weeks. From Saturday 19 February the Clinical Science B car park will be closed and consequently, access to the Medical Library in the Mulhouse Building will not be possible by the usual route. The pedestrian diversion will be via the footpath between the Microbiology Building and the School of Dentistry.

We apologise for the inconvenience caused by this diversion.  The end result will be a much improved access route and car parking facilities.

The Medical Library, in the Mulhouse Building, RVH, has been recently refurbished to improve study facilities and create a more pleasant and conducive learning environment.

• There are now three group study rooms seating between 8 and 10 people. Each room is equipped with wireless access, digital projection facilities and whiteboards. The study rooms can be booked via the Medical Library Borrower Services Desk (med.issue@qub.ac.uk).
• Computing facilities have also been improved with
  • wireless access throughout the building
  • laptops and digital projectors available for loan
  • SCC (Student Computing Centre with 50+ computers) upgraded
• The student lounge has been relocated and expanded to include a new casual seating area in the Fry Room.

Please come and visit the improved Medical Library. Library staff will be happy to help with any queries (med.info@qub.ac.uk).

OTSeeker, a database specifically for occupational therapists, has developed a resource for those wanting to know more about the process of closing the gap between research and practice, called Implementing Evidence in Practice. The resource currently has information about the process of implementing evidence, links to other related websites and will be developed further over the coming year. For further information and to access the resource, go the OTSeeker database or click here.

FileOpen have now released a new client plug-in that is fully compatible with Adobe Reader X and which should solve this problem. It can be downloaded here.

There is currently a problem printing SED documents from PCs running the latest version X of Adobe Reader. When attempting to print the following error message is received –
This printer is not allowed for secure printing.
Do you want to change your choice?

Until a new FileOpen plugin is released, it is necessary to change a setting in Adobe Reader to get round the problem. Go to Edit, Preferences, General and untick the box ‘Enable protected mode at startup’. Restart Adobe Reader and try printing again.

Note that, if your PC has Adobe Reader X, you should change this setting BEFORE opening an SED document. Otherwise you may find that you cannot subsequently retrieve it. Should this happen you will need to contact the library to get the document reactivated.

Procedures for printing and photocopying in the Medical Library have been brought into line with those operating in other Queen’s libraries.  This provides an improved service to users of the library in a number of ways, some of which are highlighted below.

A clearer system of paying for printing

Under the new system you have your own print/photocopy card.  You can add funds to it whenever required using a ‘Card dispenser/Cash upload’ machine in the library.  Cards are purchased from the same machine for £2 and they contain 75p worth of print credit to start you off.

Previously you needed to estimate how much print credit you were likely to need and pay for it at the Borrower Services desk.  Complications could arise if you purchased too few or too many credits.

Not enough credit?
Under the old system if you didn’t have enough credit your document(s) would have failed to print.  You would have had to return to the Borrower Services desk, purchase additional credits, log back on to the PC to re-locate your document(s) and resend them to the printer. Under the new system you just need to add more funds to your print/photocopy card and return to the p-station beside the printer to release your document(s) to the printer.  Documents remain in the print queue for 3 hours and can be released at any time during that period.

Too much credit?
If you paid for more printing than you actually needed then, if you were a registered member of the library, the credits remained on your account for future use.  However, if you were a guest, you lost any credits that you did not use on the day. Under the new system all unused credits remain on the card for future use.  Outstanding credits on member accounts under the old system can be transferred onto the new card on request.

Collecting document(s) intact from the printer and maintaining confidentiality

Under the old system document(s) were sent to the printer immediately and were printed out in the order in which they appeared in the print queue.  This meant that if you didn’t go to the printer immediately after sending your document(s) to print you could find your document(s) got mixed up with other peoples.  Even if you did go to the printer immediately there might be an issue with people waiting for print-outs being able to read each other’s documents.

Now documents are not printed until released at the p-station beside the printer.  You insert your card into the p-station and follow the onscreen instructions to release your document(s).  No-one else can release a document to the printer while you are using the p-station so other people’s documents cannot get mixed up with or be seen by anyone else.  Since documents are deleted from the print queue if they are not lreased to the printer after 3 hours, there is no danger that potentially confidential documents will suddenly emerge to be read by others.

Paying for photocopying

Under the old system the method of paying for photocopying was completely different from the print payment system.  Photocopy cards were purchased from a machine beside the copiers and, when you had photocopied material up to the card’s value, you needed to purchase additional card(s). Now, in the same way that you pay for printing, you just need to upload enough money to your personal print/photocopy card and insert your card into the card reader attached to one of the photocopiers.

Colour printing for everyone

Previously colour printing was only available for Queen’s students from the Student Computing Centre in the library.  Under the new system anyone can use the colour printer, simply by selecting the ‘RVH-Colour’ print queue when sending document(s) to print.  Bear in mind that a colour printout costs 20p whereas a black & white printout costs just 5p.

Documents sent for printing can only be released to a printer via a p-station and there is only one p-station in the Medical Library (located beside the black & white printer in the public internet area).  So, for colour printing, although you will still release document(s) in the public internet area, you will have to move to the Student Computing Centre to collect them.

A detailed, step-by-step guide to honni e-Lib is now available online. The guide covers all the main functions including: logging in/out; searching for articles, databases and electronic journals; obtaining articles not available in full-text; and using My Space to collect and organise your own personal sets of resources (including setting up alerts on useful searches).

For ease of navigation the Table of Contents provides hyperlinks to relevant sections of the document. These sections are also accessible via the honni e-Lib ‘Help’ facility so that, if you get stuck at a certain point, you can obtain context-specific help easily just by clicking the ‘Help’ link at the top right hand side of the web page.

The guide is provided in PDF format and can be viewed, downloaded and printed from http://www.honni.qub.ac.uk/sites/media/Media,216357,en.pdf.