Assessment and evaluation is not a gut feeling: integrating assessment and evaluation into library operations

摘要

The authors love assessment and evaluation, and we believe it should be integrated into all aspects of library programming. There. It's been said. Reaching this point in our relationship with assessment and evaluation has definitely had its ups and downs, and we still struggle with it. So why speak out about this now? The current economic environment makes it more important than ever for libraries to showcase their contributions to their institutions. Several hospital libraries have been closed in the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, MidContinental Region (NN/LM MCR), in the last few years. The Veterans Administration Hospitals, anticipating boomer librarians' retirements are looking at large numbers of vacancies with the possibility of no replacements. While academic health sciences librarians are not anticipating their libraries being closed, they are fighting for replacements for departing and retiring librarians and for budgets to offer services to support more complex needs such as data management and curation, systematic reviews, and provision of clinical information at the point of care. Health care reform is requiring more accountability. When assessment and evaluation are pervasive, librarians have the evidence to effectively communicate how each part of the library contributes to the success of the institution.