P.K. Nyame Library Ghana College of Surgeons and Physicians Information Resources and Library Promotion

Aim of the College Library The primary aims of the College Library: to support learning, teaching and research activities of GCPS. to keep Fellows, Members and Residents of the college informed of the library’s services and available resources. to develop direct communication between the library and the Faculties.

Who is the College Librarian? The College Librarian is an information professional who specialize in health resources management and provides medical information for Surgeons, Physicians, Residents, allied health professionals, consumers, and corporations.

Tasks of the College Librarian Accesses and delivers information using materials ranging from print sources to electronic databases. Manage the reference desk, give orientations to students on how to use library resources, and assists in searching bibliographic databases. Help Fellows, Residents, and other health professionals by providing medical literature searches using evidence-based medicine techniques. Sometimes serves patients directly by providing access to health care information at consumer health libraries, hospitals, or academic medical center libraries. Evidence-based medicine Evidence-based medicine (EBM) is an approach to medical practice intended to optimize decision-making by emphasizing the use of evidence from well designed and conducted research.

Tasks of the College Librarian (cont.) Help desk service Faculty support (Articles for Literature Review) Participating in collection development (Acquisition of Resources) User training Exhibitions Assist to develop Library`s webpage Promoting library services and resources

Information Resources Access to over 100 Databases and repositories e-Journals (over 65 000 titles) Incision Platform, Hinari, PubMed etc. Digital Collection of University of Ghana’s Balme Library GCPS Theses Collection, Textbooks, Journals, Periodicals (Dailies & Magazines) etc. DVDs and CDs Computers with internet connection and free Wi-Fi connectivity.

Balme Library open Access http://ezproxy.ug.edu.gh:2048/login Username/Email: bbb@ug.edu.gh Password: @Sakai1234z Select Staff.

Hinari Login (Access in Ghana Only) http://login.research4life.org/tacgw/login.cshtml Username: GHA044 Password: 90115

Help Desk Duties of the College Librarian include: Participating in Help desk service by providing assistance with any questions about Library services and collections to all library patrons. Assisting in information searching, answering questions: by phone and via e-mail

Faculty support The College Librarian is responsible for: Establishing relationships with the Faculties, identifying which information services may be required by the faculty and delivering these services. Developing effective two-way communication and collaboration between the library and the Fellow, Members and residents.

Work with Faculties The role of the College Librarian includes: Taking book orders Selecting journals and databases Setting up Trials and organizing presentations of new databases(If any). Assisting to embed Information Skills in curriculum/class/assignment (if Possible)

The College librarian is involved in: Providing specialized assistance for the faculty staff to identify journals for manuscript submission(Literature Review) Providing individual and group consultations for Residents in any research area. Where to publish; How to sign up for alerts Citation analysis advice: Web of Science, How to find Impact Factor, health related online index etc.

Collection Development activities Participating in collection development for print and e- resources of the College Journal. Coordinating book and journal purchase upon request. Keeping up-to-date journal and databases collections

Communication Key factor in developing relationships with Faculties. The College Librarian has to make him/herself known and available to the faculty. The ways of communication with Fellows and Residents: Visiting Fellows and academics visiting the College librarian via phone, via individual e-mail, via distribution lists and subject listservs

Promotion It is important to make everyone aware of the library Promotion keeps the Fellows and Residents up-to-date with the latest developments of the library. There are many ways to promote the library: Library`s webpage on the College’s website Orientation tours and training sessions for new Residents. Exhibitions as a medium of promotion: Promote books, journals and electronic in the Library. a permanent exhibition in the Library during AGSM, Medical Knowledge Fiesta to present the most interesting books and journals in our collection

More involvement in Research The College Librarian is involved in research in providing adequate information to Residents. Librarians direct residents where authentic information can be retrieved both online and physically. Workshops and CPDs the College Librarian provides support.

Future Plans to create a patron survey – an effective tool for promoting library services. to evaluate how the Faculties and Residents use our e- resources and how satisfied they are with the College Librarian’s support, incl; Website (e-resources through the college website) Databases (access, usage) Library instruction, Help guides.

Being visible! The importance of visibility and promoting the activities of the Subject Librarians are important Ensure that all Faculties and Residents are aware that there is a college librarian who may offer services for their specific questions concerning the library and resources. If the Faculty members and Residents are not going to come to us, we have to go to them!

Library Etiquette: Dos Be a Fellow, Member or Resident before you can use the library. Use all the Library Resources. Switch your mobile on silent mode. Respect Library Rules and Regulations of the library.

Library Etiquette: Don’ts Do not make noise in the Library (or its surroundings). Do not use cell phones inside the Library Do not carry/move any item out (chairs, tables, books, etc.) without permission from Library Do not install or uninstall any software program(s) on the Library computers. Don't bring in food

Thanks!