Redefining Reference in an Academic Health Sciences Library

Abstract

Deciding that changes in the pattern of questions at the reference desk required focused consideration, the reference librarians at the Health Sciences Library of the University at Buffalo held a planning retreat. Technology-induced changes in the information-seeking behavior and reference needs of the library's clientele caused a reassessment of how these needs could best be met and what is the best use of librarians' time. The librarians considered current trends in reference in other academic libraries, the specific needs of the clientele of the Health Sciences Library, and the strengths and expertise of the library staff. The results of this structured discussion produced ideas for redefining reference to provide customized services for the clients and environment.

Cite this work

No public copy is stored for this record, so only the metadata is cited.

Stored only when both papers are in the corpus — 2 citations exist upstream.

Papers that cite the same references — the relational fallback while embeddings are still backfilling.