Library Guide and FAQs |
To see a plan of the library click here
Welcome! The library and its staff are here to help you find the information you need. Please ask if you need help.
To join the library you must be either (i) employed by Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, (ii) a student or university employee based on the hospital site, or (iii) work within the NHS in Greater Manchester. Access to, and full use of, all library facilities is available immediately on registration.
To register with the library all you need to do is complete a registration card, either green (medical students), blue (other undergraduate students) or white (staff and all other readers). Your details will be entered on the computer, which allocates a reader number, and a membership card will be sent out to you (nurses and students - please collect the card from the counter).
The loan period for all stock is three weeks, whilst a one week loan operates for our more poular books and a 24 hour loan is available for journals. If an Item has not
been reserved it can be renewed in person at the counter, or by
telephone and email up to three times.
There is a limit of four books or videos per borrower at any one time, (undergraduate student limit is three books), but any amount of journals can be borrowed.
If you cannot find the book or journal you require, please ask at the counter. If an item is out on loan, you may reserve it by completing a yellow reservation card at the counter. Please put your name and address on the back - we send this card out to notify you when the item is available for you to collect from the library.
PLEASE NOTE: All library systems are shut down 10 minutes before closing.
There are over 5000 books
on the library catalogue. They are shelved by the (US) National Library of
Medicine classification scheme and are searchable on the dedicated library
catalogue computer by the counter.
To find the journal you want, you must first of all check to see if the library holds it. Our journal holdings are listed on the library catalogue under "Journals held at Hope or in the Salford area", click on this line to reach the search screen . Journals can be searched for by title, and can also be search under topic. For example, type neuro* in the title field and this will find all our neuroscience journals.
Our journal holdings are also provided in a printed booklet entitled Journals List which is kept near the counter. This is a combined list of: (a) journals held here in the library; (b) journals in particular departments/units within the trust: and (c) journals held by other Hospitals and Trusts within the Salford and Trafford area.
Journals are shelved in alphabetical order, whist current issues are put on display to the right of the Computer Room for seven days. Pre-1984 journals are in the Quiet Room (accessed through the doorway nest to the Photocopier Room at the end of the Library furthest from the counter).
Articles from journals not held at Hope can usually be obtained (for a fee) via the Document Request Service (see below or click here).
5. Electronic Access - Athens Password
Access to databases, electronic journals and other electronic resources
provided for the NHS is via National Library for Health using an Athens password. To register
go to National Library for Health and click on
"register" on the left-hand side of the screen - the form will then
take you through the details required.
A full listing of ejournals provided by the library is available from the
counter, about half are currently available via
www.Swetswise.com using
the Athens username and password provided through Aditus.
The new NHS Copyright Licence for 2006-2008 has been agreed.
What it means: You can make and distribute as many copies as you require for each particular purpose subject to the following limit and for internal NHS information purposes
For further explanation of this issue, please consult the following documents: click here for a poster showing NHS Copyright regulations for 2006-2008; click here to read an explanation of these regulations. Please note, as explained in the documents, different rules apply to non-NHS members.
Items not held at Hop
e can be requested via the Document Request
service. The charge for each item varies according to the source
from which it is obtained - the current list of charges is
displayed by the counter.
How to request an item:
For certain membership categories of John Rylands University Library of Manchester we are able to provide a cheaper service. To be able to administer this we must see your CURRENT JRUL CARD, and your JRUL Membership number should be quoted on all requests. All JRUL members wishing to submit a request to the Medical Library must also be registered as a member of the Medical Library.
Please note: If you are ordering articles through the e-links system on Dialog (e.g. Medline) you must be a registered member of the Medical Library for us to activate the request. A charge will be made for each request.
Please contact us on 0161 206 5971 / 5405 if you have any queries about these procedures.
The photocopier is located in the corner of the library furthest from the entrance. Flexicards are available from the counter for a 50p deposit. To add credit to your card you will need to add value through the value loader machine, this is located by the photocopier. Place your flexicard in the slot, then feed the machine with any type of coins to increase the available credit; all copies cost 5p. Change is available from the counter. NB No refunds are available. The photocopier is switched off ten minutes before closing, so please ensure you have finished before then.
The library welcomes requests for training on how to search healthcare databases and find information on the Internet. One-to-one sessions can be booked in advance in person at the counter, by telephone, or by email. Group sessions are held periodically, notification is through our website and "Library Update". Departmental Group sessions can also be booked. Please ask in the library for details of any of these courses. NB Please see the training section of the website for details of forthcoming sessions.
All computers are connected to the hospital/NHS network.
There are six computers in the PC Room available for drop-in and training
sessions. In addition there are eight laptops available for loan within
the library, between 09.30 - 17.00. These should be booked in advance,
returned to the library office by 17.00 at the latest and an ID badge is
required as deposit. Computers in the library are intended primarily for
conducting literature searches and are not for personal use.
10. Electronic Awareness Service
If you have a particular research interest, search profiles may be set up and monthly updates of publications in that field emailed or posted to you. Please ask at the counter for details.
Although the library is quite compact, there are study spaces for over 40 readers. A quiet study area is available in the Quiet Room.
Library FAQs |
| What are the library's
opening hours? 08.30-20.00 Monday 08.30-18.00 Tuesday-Fridays. Please see the home page for any changes (NB the hours will change from 2 January 2007). |
|
Where is this week's BMJ (or Lancet, NEJM, or any other current
journal title)? On the current journals display rack to the right of the computer room. It is shelved in the main sequence when the next issue arrives in the library. |
| Where is this week's
BMJ Classified?
On the current journals display rack to the right of the computer room. It is shelved in the main sequence when the next issue arrives in the library. If it is in use by someone else then check the online version from the jobs page. |
| Can I do word
processing in the library? Yes - We recomend borrowing a laptop if you are going to the use of a computer for more than 30 minutes. |
| Can I access the
Internet in the library? Yes - provided it is for legitimate work or research purposes. |
| Can I access my email
in the library? Yes - provided it is for legitimate work or research purposes. |
| How many books can I take
out? Students may borrow 3 books, other borrowers 4 books. All users may borrow any number of journals. |
| How long do I get books out
for? Materials are normally issued for 3 weeks. Renewable up to 3 times by telephone or email. |
| How do I use
the photocopier in the library? See the Library Guide. |
| Where do I buy a
card for the photocopier? See the Library Guide. |
| Where
can I get change for the photocopier? See the Library Guide. |
| Where is
the nearest internal telephone that I can use? In the corridor just outside the library. |
| Can I send a fax in the
library? No. |
| Where exactly is the
library? See Directions to the Library. |
| How do I contact the
library? See Contact the Library. |
| Can I park near the
library? Car parking for hospital visitors is available in Stott Lane. |
| I
work in the community - am I permitted to use the library? Yes - any NHS employee who works within Greater Manchester is able to join the library. |
|
I work elsewhere in the North West and I want to get a copy of an
article that is in a journal kept at Hope - how do I get hold of
it? Contact your local health library and they will be able to order it for you. There are about 100 health libraries in the North West. Many are based on NHS hospital sites. They co-operate to supply users with materials held across the region. |
|
I want to get a journal that is in a department at Hope - can I
just go there myself to get it? Departments have different policies about this. If in doubt contact the library staff. |
| How do I check
what books the library has? Search the catalogue on the library PCs. You will need to ask staff to check if it is on loan. The catalogue is not available on the Internet yet. |
| How
do I check if the library has a particular journal? Check the journals list on the web, or the printed Journals List by the counter, or search the library catalogue. |
|
The library hasn't got this particular journal/book so how do I get
hold of it? Submit an Inter-library loan request. See the Library Guide. NB You must be registered as a member of the Medical Library to submit any requests. |
| What do
you charge for Inter Library Loan requests? The charges vary according to user and where the item is obtained from. A leaflet of current charges is available at the counter. |
| Can I
charge Inter Library Loan requests to my department? Only if you provide us with written permission from the fundholder. |
|
I can't find a particular book or issue of a journal, but
according to the catalogue the library does have it - so where is
it? There are 5 possibilities: 1. It is out on loan. Ask the staff to check for you. 2. It has been shelved incorrectly. Check the shelves nearby. 3. It may be missing from stock, or that particular issue was never received by the library. 4. It is currently being re-shelved. 5. Another user is currently looking at it elsewhere in the library. |
|
How can I find out in the library what books and journals are held
by other libraries in the area? Consult the printed 'Union List of Periodicals' which sits on the coffee table by the counter. It lists the journals kept in health libraries across the North West region. Journals and books kept by Manchester University (John Rylands) can be searched on the JRUL catalogue. This catalogue also includes the stock of the Medical Faculty library, plus Gateway House etc. You can also search the catalogues of: MMU, Salford, and all UK universities. |
| Does the
library have nursing books and journals? Yes, it does - please check our catalogue when visiting the library - also please see the journals list. |
|
The library computers are often busy when I want to use one - can I
reserve one in advance? Yes. Telephone on ext 65405 or submit a booking online to reserve a computer. Or use computers elsewhere in the hospital. |
| Can I renew my loans by
telephone? Yes, please contact us on ext. 65405. |
| Can I renew my loans by
email? Yes, on library.hope@manchester.ac.uk |
|
I want to do a literature search - can someone show me how to do
it? Yes, ask any member of library staff to book a session for you - contact the library on extension 65405 to book an appointment or fill in our online Tuition Session Booking Form. |
|
Someone told me to use Cochrane - but what is this exactly and how
do I use it? See the Computer Guide or arrange a training session by contacting the library or submitting an online booking for a 1-2-1 tuition session. |
|
The printer says 'PC Load Letter' and won't print my document - how
do I fix it? On the printer itself, hold down 'Shift' and press 'continue' |
|
The printer says 'PC Load A4' and won't print my document - how do
I fix it? Ask the library staff to provide some more A4 paper |
|
The printer says 'Toner Low' and is printing faintly - what should
I do? Continue printing as normal until the printed output becomes illegible. Please note that the library printer should only be used for legitimate work or research-related purposes. |
|
I've been searching MEDLINE via National Library for Health but I'm getting error
messages and it won't let me continue - what should I do, and will
I lose my search results? After a period of time when there has been no activity during a search session, the networked connection to Aditus is terminated without warning. |
|
The library is sometimes quite noisy - is there anywhere quiet I
can study? Yes, there is a Quiet Room to the rear of the library. See Library Guide. |
|
I want to buy a book for my department - can I do that through the
library? Yes, send written details of the book(s) and your account code to Valerie Haigh in the library. |
| Does
the library produce details of new acquisitions? Yes, there is a monthly Library Update. Please contact us if you wish to be added to the mailing list, or pick one up from the library counter - or browse it online on the website. |
| Can I bring food
or drink into the library?
No |
| Where are the toilets? In the corridor just outside the library: see the plan. |