Medical Librarian Ascension Health Care / Library Services Oshkosh, Wisconsin
Background: Describes the development of a Counter 5 Usage Statistics Playbook for Librarians to standardize and simplify the data collection and reporting process for a large health system with 23 librarians reporting selected local library statistics at the national level.
Description: Under the guidance of The Library Measurements Team, librarians reported selected usage stats in 2020. For 2021, we needed to upgrade to the Counter 5 (C5) industry standard. After immersing ourselves in C5, we mapped C5 equivalents to previous metrics, adding improved C5 metrics. To disseminate our recommendations, we created a Playbook with C5 training resources, definitions, worksheets, administrative links, screenshots and explanations for each resource. The Playbook led librarians step-by-step through the new process, addressing a previously unmet need as a job aid for standardizing the collection of usage stats. The Measurements Team charted a path through Counter 5, so that individual librarians did not have to struggle on their own.
Conclusion: Feedback from Librarians and analysis of data submitted via the new process determined the utility and positive impact of The Playbook.
The Counter 5 Stats Playbook resulted in: 1) more consistent, cleaner data 2) faster, more efficient and standardized data collection 3) happier Librarians who knew how to pull required metrics and how to interpret reports.
Why this is important: This data is used to show the value and fiscal stewardship of Library Services to executive leadership and stakeholders.
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