Loansome Doc®, Librarians, and End-Users in the Midwest

Abstract

This study replicates and extends a previous study conducted in the Southeast on Loansome Doc services provided by libraries and the experiences and opinions of end-users. A total of 531 active Docline Libraries and 318 end-users were surveyed. Many of the findings from a previous study of Loansome Doc in the Southeast are duplicated in this study of Midwest libraries. Approximately half of all the libraries offered Loansome Doc services. Those that did not were not interested in adding the service in the future. Most libraries had minimal increases in number of users and interlibrary loan activity. Problems were rare and satisfaction was high. End-users were primarily physicians, residents, and medical students who found out about Loansome Doc through PubMed. Most end-users thought Loansome Doc was convenient and articles were received in a timely manner. The single improvement of Loansome Doc most often suggested by end-users was electronic delivery of articles. Libraries should be encouraged to provide electronic delivery if they don't already provide it. Better promotion of Loansome Doc by local libraries and at the regional and national level may lead to increases in the number of participating libraries and end-users.

Key Words:

• Loansome Doc
• interlibrary loans
• document delivery