Migrating Faculty Publications from a Department Website to an Institutional Repository

In October 2013, George Washington University\u27s School of Public Health and Health Services (now the Milken Institute School of Public Health) approached the Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library about moving a large collection of Health Policy Department publications and citations from the school\u27s website into the Health Sciences Research Commons (HSRC) institutional repository. After a project planning meeting with the school\u27s representative, library staff began uploading documents and citations from the collection. Working from a spreadsheet and file set provided by the school, library staff processed 604 citations (including 319 full-text files) dating back to 1996. Despite some problem files and citations, the majority were added to HSRC between November 2013 and April 2014. The successful completion of this project led to increased exposure of faculty research through standardized metadata, search engine optimization, and inclusion of research in the Digital Commons Network. Additionally, the establishment of new partnerships between the library and the public health school opened the door to future scholarly communications collaborations

Assessing Use of Two Discovery Services at Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library

Introduction The Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library, at The George Washington University, introduced Health Information @ Himmelfarb, a custom health sciences focused implementation of EBSCO’s Discovery Service (EDS) in the fall of 2012. Less than a year later, the Library Catalog was migrated to Innovative’s Encore. With two different discovery tools delivering some overlapping content and features, librarians wanted to know more about how the two services were being used. Methods A Discovery Task Force completed a staff focus group and a brief demographic survey of Health Information @ Himmelfarb users in spring 2015. All library staff who search the services were invited to the focus group. The demographic survey was embedded in Health Information @ Himmelfarb for three weeks and reached all users who accessed the service at that time. Results The focus group revealed that staff use both discovery tools frequently and use them in somewhat different ways. Some needs were identified for follow up, including better integration of content from the main campus library. The demographic survey had 1,300 responses and confirmed that students were the primary audience for Health Information @ Himmelfarb and that they are using it primarily for class work. Use of Health Information @ Himmelfarb was evenly spread across the three schools Himmelfarb serves (Health Sciences, Public Health, and Nursing), and may indicate a continuing need to include a broad spectrum of resources in the service for searching. A follow up survey to learn more about user satisfaction with the two services is planned for fall 2015

Where are You Storing Your Research Days Poster? Promoting an Online Repository for Research Days Submissions

In January 2015, the George Washington University Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library began to strategize how to increase student and faculty awareness of Himmelfarb\u27s Health Sciences Research Commons (HSRC) institutional repository, and to encourage them to self-archive their GW Research Days abstracts and posters for permanent storage

Ramp Up for Research Days : On-Campus + Online = Success

During fall 2015, Himmelfarb Library and The George Washington University Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR) collaborated to increase health sciences student participation in GW’s annual Research Days event. The library launched two new initiatives designed to target both on-campus students and Distance Education (DE) students: six “Ramp Up to Research Days” workshops with both in-class and WebEx components, and a customized Research Days portal within the Health Sciences Research Commons (HSRC) digital repository

All Hands on Deck: A Team Approach to System Migration

Purpose: To determine if a team approach to a complex integrated library system (ILS) migration would result in a timely and successful outcome. Brief Description: Changing needs and an aging integrated library system server platform prompted Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library to migrate to a new ILS. After considering several options, Himmelfarb decided to join with the George Washington University\u27s Jacob Burns Law Library in their move to a hosted instance of Innovative Interface\u27s Sierra ILS and Encore OPAC. Though some separation of data and functionality could be achieved, there were several functions that would be shared between the two libraries\u27 systems. A successful transition would depend upon both libraries\u27: detailed knowledge of the system data determining essential functionality to preserve willingness to change and accommodate Because the Law Library\u27s Sierra migration was delayed until mid-December 2012 and Himmelfarb\u27s pre-paid server maintenance was ending in March 2013, the window to accomplish migration was a short 12 weeks, prompting the decision to team-manage the migration. Conclusion: Teams and organizational tools, including weekly meetings to discuss problems, ensured the timely completion of key assignments that were critical to meeting the Go Live date goal. The team approach allowed the work and decision-making to be distributed among a large percentage of the staff, creating a broader sense of ownership. Distribution of tasks allowed a high level of attention to detail necessary for an optimal outcome

Neuschwanstein Castle

Color photography.https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/artshow_gallery_2014/1061/thumbnail.jp

Donegal

Color photography.https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/artshow_gallery_2013/1004/thumbnail.jp

Easter Rebellion, Belfast

Color photography.https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/artshow_gallery_2014/1059/thumbnail.jp

Lake Yellowstone (Yellowstone National Park, WY)

photography.https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/artshow_gallery_2016/1008/thumbnail.jp

Sligo

Color photography.https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/artshow_gallery_2013/1005/thumbnail.jp