For Review: Journals Being Considered for Cancellation for 2015/2016

Photo from a slide by Jill Cirasella, used under a CC-BY license. 

Rapidly escalating prices for scientific journals pose a significant threat to accessing information in healthcare research and education. This threat is often described as the serials crisis, and has a major effect on libraries ability to purchase and provide information resources. Many librariesincluding uschoose to cancel little-used resources to preserve funds for critical titles. This is necessary because publishers raise prices each year at rates that far outpace funding increases.

We have conducted a cost per use analysis of our journal subscriptions to determine which journals are not being used enough to justify their cost. For example, if a journal costs $5,000 per year but only 25 full-text articles were read or downloaded all year, that journals cost per use is $200 ($5000/25).

We set a threshold of $100 as our cost per use limit, with journals having a higher cost per use considered for cancellation. We can typically get articles for as little as $11 each through our Document Delivery service. 

For titles that are canceled, you will typically need to order the articles via Document Delivery just like you do for any other titles we dont carry. Previous years of the journals would generally still be available. We are investigating additional purchase-on-demand article ordering options as well.

The following titles have a cost per use greater than $100 and are being considered for cancellation for 2015/2016. Please review the list, and send any questions or concerns to Rachel Walden, Associate Dean of Learning Resources, at waldenrr@etsu.edu. Please put 2015 Journal Feedback as your messages subject line. Comments are being accepted through May 15, 2015. After that date, the library team will make final decisions about which titles to eliminate.

The following additional titles will be retained for 2015/2016 on a use it or lose it basis. These titles currently have cost per use >$100, but increasing research needs or access problems have led us to keep these for at least one additional year. If these titles do not show significant increases in use for 2015/2016, they will be canceled the following year.