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EAHIL 2024, Date: 2024/06/10 - 2024/06/14, Location: Riga (Letland)

Publication date: 2024-06-14

Author:

Vandendriessche, Thomas
Van Meel, Chayenne ; D'Hont, Anouk ; Scheys, Kris ; Sijsmans, Paul ; Tuerlinckx, veerle ; Verbrugge, Mark ; Vanderstraeten, Sylvette ; Hamouda, Norin ; Tuand, Krizia

Abstract:

Context: The Information Retrieval (IR) service at KU Leuven has undergone a transformative journey over the past decade. Originally starting as a modest initiative at the Biomedical Library (now KU Leuven Libraries – 2Bergen – Learning Centre Désiré Collen), it swiftly burgeoned into a vital research support service tailored for researchers and students of the Biomedical Sciences Group and medical practitioners of the University Hospital, UZ Leuven. The service primarily focuses on giving training in systematic searching as well as developing search strategies for systematic reviews, scoping reviews, … . In addition, our team of information specialists is active in both national and international collaborations such as EAHIL, European Respiratory Society and certain EU projects. For many years, IR was considered only a service for biomedical sciences, but its scope has broadened to encompass (inter)disciplinary demands from fields like psychology, sociology and engineering, among others. This evolution now positions IR alongside the same dining table as its big brother 'Open Science'. In the context of the Strategic Plan of KU Leuven Libraries 2022-2026, IR has been recognised as one of the significant research support services KU Leuven Libraries, comprising twenty-four libraries, has to offer. Objectives: The exponential growth of the IR service within the Biomedical Sciences Group necessitated a cohesive and standardised approach in delivering an increasingly diverse and comprehensive service to meet the evolving needs of researchers and students. Consequently, the need for a comprehensive delineation and assessment of the service's underlying processes emerged. Furthermore, acknowledging the expansion of IR beyond biomedical sciences prompted a reorganisation to ensure a unified service across multiple KU Leuven libraries, catering to all students and researchers. Design: Addressing the first objective, a Process Optimisation project was set up, targeting the services for the Biomedical Sciences Group. This endeavour involved identifying the main process and subsidiary processes, defining the operational context, visualising subprocess flows, and documenting procedures within an online manual enhancing transparency and accessibility. Simultaneously, an IR working group was established to devise a coherent service model across all KU Leuven Libraries. Diverse projects such as standardising processes, developing a unified website, creating a research survival game, and establishing a knowledge database, were set in motion to achieve this overarching goal. Evaluation: This presentation will delve into the comprehensive Process Optimisation project, outlining its significant modifications along with the hurdles and challenges encountered. Additionally, it will illuminate the contributions of the IR working group and their beneficial impacts on information specialists and researchers, emphasising the evaluation of the newly designed IR website through user feedback. Outcomes and next steps: The outcomes are twofold: a refined, standardised IR service tailored for the Biomedical Sciences Group, and the standardisation of the IR services across KU Leuven Libraries. All in all, this harmonisation has yielded a more efficient, expansive, and user-centered service benefiting the university community. Moving forward, ongoing analysis and evaluation of IR services will continue to be needed, considering input from both information specialists and clients to ensure continual refinement and enhancement.