Abstract
A regional network initiated a collaborative project to demonstrate value of library services to management by focusing on (Citation1) value provided by literature searches through questionnaires; (Citation2) interlibrary loan cost savings through statistics and comparisons of commercial costs; and 3) efficiency of electronic resources through cost per usage. Results showed searches' impact on health care decision making as well as hospital cost savings, interlibrary loans' cost benefits, and low cost per use of regional, virtual library resources. This project demonstrates the value of library services and the role they play in provision of quality health information for quality health care.
This article is based on a presentation at MLA '08, the 108th Annual Meeting of the Medical Library Association, May 19, 2008, Chicago, IL.
The authors would like to thank the following participants in the project: Marvett S. Burns, MLS, VA Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System, Biloxi, MS; Dianne Jones, G. V. “Sonny” Montgomery VA Medical Center, Jackson, MS; Felicia Little, MLIS, Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, TX; Sara (Hill Blackwell) Memmott, VA Medical Center, Oklahoma City, OK; Lola H. Purvis, MLIS, CLIS, VA Medical Center, Alexandria, LA; and Linton Swenson, VA Medical Center, Fayetteville, AR.