United States National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health

Fact Sheet
Public Services Division

The Public Services Division (PSD) offers a range of services for accessing the National Library of Medicine's (NLM) collection and information resources. Through onsite service and an interlibrary loan network, PSD provides access to the world's largest collection of biomedical literature. A staff of information specialists offers reference and customer service assistance to health professionals, researchers, educators and others in need of biomedical information. PSD staff also organize NLM information for access through the World Wide Web at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/ and authoritative health information for consumers, in both English and Spanish, in MedlinePlus at http://medlineplus.gov. PSD staff carry out NLM's mission to preserve its invaluable collection of printed literature and non-print media for future generations.

Reference and Customer Services Section

As the primary contact point for public inquiries, Reference and Customer Services staff respond to requests for assistance accessing and using the services and programs of the Library. Inquiries are received through e-mail at custserv@nlm.nih.gov, telephone ((888) FIND-NLM), postal mail, fax and in person from individuals and organizations in the United States and abroad. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's) are written and posted to NLM's Web site as appropriate.

Reference librarians are available in the main Reading Room during all open hours of the library. They assist onsite customers in using NLM LocatorPlus, MedlinePlus, PubMed, Internet Grateful Med and a variety of commercial electronic database products. To help access the contents of the over 18,000 journals held at NLM, there are over 200 abstracts and indexes. (See Fact Sheet, Reference Services.)

NLM's main Reading Room includes an extensive reference collection of over 4,500 key directories, indexes, handbooks and atlases selected by Reference librarians. In addition, a ten-year collection of more than 180 major medical journals is available for self-service access. Current audiovisual materials, including computer assisted instruction software, are available for self-service access in the Learning Resource Center. (See Fact Sheet, Learning Resource Center.)

Reference staff produce the Current Bibliographies in Medicine (CBM) series on a variety of topics of interest to the health science community. Many of the CBM's are produced in conjunction with the National Institutes of Health Consensus Conferences. The bibliographies are available free at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/resources.html.

Collection Access Section

Access to NLM's collection of printed journal literature published after 1870 and books published after 1913, as well as more than 30,000 current audiovisual materials, is available through the Collection Access Section. (Earlier materials are managed by the History of Medicine Division.) Onsite patrons are provided materials through an onsite stack retrieval service (stacks are not open to the public). Photocopiers, microfilm and microfiche readers are available for patron use in the Reading Room.

Offsite health professionals can access NLM's materials offsite through the interlibrary loan service. Requests for photocopies of journal articles and loans of books or audiovisuals must be made through local and regional libraries. Requests are forwarded to NLM when the material is not available elsewhere in the National Network of Libraries of Medicine® (NN/LM).

NLM's Collection Access Section also manages DOCLINE®, NLM's automated interlibrary loan request, routing, and referral system. More than 3,000 health science libraries across the U.S. and Canada, and many libraries abroad, use DOCLINE to send and receive document requests. DOCLINE is also linked to PubMed through a feature called Loansome Doc®. This enables health professionals to send requests for articles to their library electronically. (See Fact Sheets, Interlibrary Loan Policy, DOCLINE and Loansome Doc.) All requests are processed within four days of receipt; most are processed within one day. Clinical emergency requests are processed and transmitted electronically within two hours of receipt. (Actual physical volumes are not loaned outside the United States.)

Preservation and Collection Management Section

The Preservation and Collection Management Section is responsible for ensuring that NLM's collection remains accessible and in useable condition and that the information in older, deteriorating materials is preserved for future users. Preservation functions include binding, book repair, microfilming brittle monographs and serials, disaster prevention and recovery, monitoring collection storage conditions and preservation awareness training for staff and users. Collection management functions include shelving, shelfreading, shifting, collection security, space planning and identifying materials in need of treatment or replacement. Section staff evaluate developments in preservation methods, equipment, supplies and services and provide consultation to other biomedical libraries on their preservation needs. (See Fact Sheet, Preservation Program.)

Web Management Team

The Web Management Team provides leadership and support in technology and systems for the Division. The Team's primary responsiblities include design and content management of the NLM Web site and Intranet for staff; as well as the development and management of MedlinePlus, the library's consumer health Web site.

For further information write:

Chief, Public Services Division
National Library of Medicine
8600 Rockville Pike
Bethesda, MD 20894
Email: custserv@nlm.nih.gov