A cost-effective study of ownership versus access: A case study for St. Patrick's College, Maynooth

This study takes a cost-effective approach to the examination of the alternative methods of article supply, to ascertain not only the cheapest service but also to rank the alternatives according to their effectiveness or performance Three alternative methods of article supply are considered subscribing to a periodical title (ownership), individual article supply (IAS) provided by two electromc document delivery services, ContentsFirst/ArticlesFirst of OCLC FirstSearch and UnCover, and traditional article supply through the British Library Document Supply Centre A comparison of the alternatives is made to identify their differences The elements and measures of a costeffective analysis are discussed and in particular cost-per-use, which is derived for all the alternatives The operational costs of the alternatives are obtained by taking a management accounting approach and are examined in relation to the provision of the services within the library of St. Patrick's College, Maynooth The cost-per-use of owning a periodical title is calculated based on the operational costs of the Periodicals Department of the College, its subscription price and a lifetime use determined by examination of the current requests for articles made through the Inter-Library Loans Department of the library The cost-per-use for the other services are also obtained based on their operational costs and document delivery charges The result of this study shows that based on the cost-per-use of all the alternatives, access should continue to be the method of article supply for all but one title currently taken as ILLs in Maynooth College In Maynooth, article supply by mail should continue to be provided by the BLDSC but consideration should be given to providing fax delivery through UnCover ContentsFirst/ArticlesFirst and the other databases on FirstSearch do provide good title coverage, multi-user and end-user user and predictable costs but as yet does not provide the perfect EDD solution in terms of either Internet access or document delivery. The results can be used by other libraries but may need to be adapted to suit local circumstances, where priorities and costs may be different to those of St Patrick's College, Maynooth. The results and methodology can be used to alert libraries to the cost differential of the different methods of article supply, possible advantages and disadvantages of EDD services studied and can provide an aid to the evaluation and selection of services

The Summon Discovery Tool: Its Implementation and Impact on Usage Statistics at Maynooth University

Poster presented at: CONUL (Consortium of National and University Libraries) Annual Conference 201

Strategies for the Future

Abstract included in text

Strategies for the Future

Abstract included in text

A cost-effectiveness study of ownership versus access

This paper describes a method which was used to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of three different ways of supplying periodical articles in an academic library. The methods considered were: subscribing to a periodical title (ownership); individual article supply provided by two electronic document delivery services, ArticlesFirst of OCLC FirstSearch and UnCover; and traditional article supply through the British Library Document Supply Centre. The operational costs of the alternatives are obtained by taking a management accounting approach and are examined in relation to the provision of the services within the library of St. Patrick's College, Maynooth, Ireland. The cost-per-use of owning a periodical title is calculated based on the operational costs of the Periodicals Department of the library, its subscription price and a lifetime use determined by examination of the current requests for articles made through the library's Inter-Library Loans Department. The cost-per-use for the other services are also calculated based on their operational costs and document delivery charges

A cost-effectiveness study of ownership versus access

This paper describes a method which was used to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of three different ways of supplying periodical articles in an academic library. The methods considered were: subscribing to a periodical title (ownership); individual article supply provided by two electronic document delivery services, ArticlesFirst of OCLC FirstSearch and UnCover; and traditional article supply through the British Library Document Supply Centre. The operational costs of the alternatives are obtained by taking a management accounting approach and are examined in relation to the provision of the services within the library of St. Patrick's College, Maynooth, Ireland. The cost-per-use of owning a periodical title is calculated based on the operational costs of the Periodicals Department of the library, its subscription price and a lifetime use determined by examination of the current requests for articles made through the library's Inter-Library Loans Department. The cost-per-use for the other services are also calculated based on their operational costs and document delivery charges

Impact of simulated nitrogen pollution on heathland microfauna, mesofauna and plants

Deposition of reactive nitrogen derived from intensive agriculture and industrial processes is a major threat to biodiversity and ecosystem services around the world; however our knowledge of the impacts of nitrogen is restricted to a very limited range of organisms. Here we examine the response of groups of microfauna (testate amoebae), mesofauna (enchytraeid worms) and plants to ammonium nitrate application in the Ruabon heathland long-term experiment. Plant data showed significant differences between treatments, particularly characterised by a loss of bryophytes in nitrogen-treated plots, by contrast enchytraeids showed a non-significant increase in abundance in response to treatment. Testate amoebae showed no significant changes in abundance or inferred biomass but significant changes in community structure with a reduced abundance of Corythion dubium, interpreted as a response to the loss of bryophytes. Our results suggest that simple indices of plant community may have value for bioindication while the bioindication value of testate amoebae and enchytraeids is not clearly demonstrated

Virological failure and development of new resistance mutations according to CD4 count at combination antiretroviral therapy initiation

Objectives: No randomized controlled trials have yet reported an individual patient benefit of initiating combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) at CD4 counts > 350 cells/μL. It is hypothesized that earlier initiation of cART in asymptomatic and otherwise healthy individuals may lead to poorer adherence and subsequently higher rates of resistance development. Methods: In a large cohort of HIV-positive individuals, we investigated the emergence of new resistance mutations upon virological treatment failure according to the CD4 count at the initiation of cART. Results: Of 7918 included individuals, 6514 (82.3%), 996 (12.6%) and 408 (5.2%) started cART with a CD4 count ≤ 350, 351-499 and ≥ 500 cells/μL, respectively. Virological rebound occurred while on cART in 488 (7.5%), 46 (4.6%) and 30 (7.4%) with a baseline CD4 count ≤ 350, 351-499 and ≥ 500 cells/μL, respectively. Only four (13.0%) individuals with a baseline CD4 count > 350 cells/μL in receipt of a resistance test at viral load rebound were found to have developed new resistance mutations. This compared to 107 (41.2%) of those with virological failure who had initiated cART with a CD4 count < 350 cells/μL. Conclusions: We found no evidence of increased rates of resistance development when cART was initiated at CD4 counts above 350 cells/μL. HIV Medicin

International collaborative study to assess cardiovascular risk and evaluate long-term health in cats with preclinical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and apparently healthy cats:The REVEAL Study

Background: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is the most prevalent heart disorder in cats and principal cause of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Yet, the impact of preclinical disease is unresolved. Hypothesis/Objectives: Observational study to characterize cardiovascular morbidity and survival in cats with preclinical nonobstructive (HCM) and obstructive (HOCM) hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and in apparently healthy cats (AH). Animals: One thousand seven hundred and thirty client-owned cats (430 preclinical HCM; 578 preclinical HOCM; 722 AH). Methods: Retrospective multicenter, longitudinal, cohort study. Cats from 21 countries were followed through medical record review and owner or referring veterinarian interviews. Data were analyzed to compare long-term outcomes, incidence, and risk for congestive heart failure (CHF), arterial thromboembolism (ATE), and cardiovascular death. Results: During the study period, CHF, ATE, or both occurred in 30.5% and cardiovascular death in 27.9% of 1008 HCM/HOCM cats. Risk assessed at 1, 5, and 10 years after study entry was 7.0%/3.5%, 19.9%/9.7%, and 23.9%/11.3% for CHF/ATE, and 6.7%, 22.8%, and 28.3% for cardiovascular death, respectively. There were no statistically significant differences between HOCM compared with HCM for cardiovascular morbidity or mortality, time from diagnosis to development of morbidity, or cardiovascular survival. Cats that developed cardiovascular morbidity had short survival (mean \ub1 standard deviation, 1.3 \ub1 1.7 years). Overall, prolonged longevity was recorded in a minority of preclinical HCM/HOCM cats with 10% reaching 9-15 years. Conclusions and Clinical Importance: Preclinical HCM/HOCM is a global health problem of cats that carries substantial risk for CHF, ATE, and cardiovascular death. This finding underscores the need to identify therapies and monitoring strategies that decrease morbidity and mortality

The Problematization of Sexuality among Women Living with HIV and a New Feminist Approach for Understanding and Enhancing Women’s Sexual Lives

In the context of HIV, women’s sexual rights and sexual autonomy are important but frequently overlooked and violated. Guided by community voices, feminist theories, and qualitative empirical research, we reviewed two decades of global quantitative research on sexuality among women living with HIV. In the 32 studies we found, conducted in 25 countries and composed mostly of cis-gender heterosexual women, sexuality was narrowly constructed as sexual behaviours involving risk (namely, penetration) and physiological dysfunctions relating to HIV illness, with far less attention given to the fullness of sexual lives in context, including more&nbsp;positive and rewarding experiences such as satisfaction and pleasure. Findings suggest that women experience declines in sexual activity, function, satisfaction, and pleasure following HIV diagnosis, at least for some period. The extent of such declines, however, is varied, with numerous contextual forces shaping women’s sexual well-being. Clinical markers of HIV (e.g., viral load, CD4 cell count) poorly predicted sexual outcomes, interrupting widely held assumptions about sexuality for women with HIV. Instead, the effects of HIV-related stigma intersecting with inequities related to trauma, violence, intimate relations, substance use, poverty, aging, and other social and cultural conditions primarily influenced the ways in which women experienced and enacted their sexuality. However, studies framed through a medical lens tended to pathologize outcomes as individual “problems,” whereas others driven by a public health agenda remained primarily preoccupied with protecting the public from HIV. In light of these findings, we present a new feminist approach for research, policy, and practice toward understanding and enhancing women’s sexual lives—one that affirms sexual diversity; engages deeply with society, politics, and history; and is grounded in women’s sexual rights