Allison--I would suggest that you look closely at the job description of
your LTA and possibly have your LTA keep a log of what he/she does each
day and the time spent on each task.  It is possible that the job
description or task description doesn't adequately reflect what the job
has come to represent currently.  First, does the LTA provide articles
for folks in house from your collection (document delivery) and if so
how many and how long does this take?  Does the LTA order supplies,
collect mail, compile any kind of reports or statistics?  Does the LTA
send overdues, handle placing ILLs through OCLC, package and send out
books to others (this is very time consuming)?  Are there any annual
projects the LTA helps with?  What about any kind of clerical assistance
with the serials process, journal holdings lists, reshelving materials,
assistance at the service desk while others are at lunch, phone
coverage?  A careful log over the next week or so with times should tell
you exactly what your LTA does, how much time each task takes and what
needs to be replaced.  Perhaps this position IS no longer as necessary
as it has been in the past and you need a different set of
skills--part-time clerical only skills and a part-time professional
position perhaps. Clerical jobs in libraries have been replaced by
computerized processes in the last decade or so.  More professional
skills are needed now than before and additional professional
responsibilities have developed(liaison with departments, more training
of other health care professionals, assistance with Endnote, etc. etc.).
Be open to new possibilities. 

Joy Kennedy, MLS
Health Resource Library
Northwest Community Hospital
800 W. Central Rd.
Arlington Heights, IL 60005-2392
Phone: 847-618-5180; Fax 847-618-5189
email: j1kennedy @ nch.org; library @ nch.org
 
 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Medical Libraries Discussion List 
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Allison Matthews
> Sent: Tuesday, January 18, 2011 8:22 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [MEDLIB-L] CHAT: staffing
> 
> Hi -
> 
> Our 1 LTA is leaving at the end of January and we have been 
> told by Admin that if we wish to rehire the position, we must 
> fight for it and prepare all this documentation (with 
> measured evidence) showing that it is a much needed position 
> in our library.  Any ideas on what I/we can use in justifying 
> our need?  We can throw in all kinds of stats like number of 
> ILLs each yr, literature searches, etc., but the problem is 
> our Administration does not understand the time element of 
> those tasks.
> 10 ILLs a day sounds like nothing, but when it involves 
> pulling the journals, photocopying/scanning, creating 
> invoices, emailing, etc., it all adds up.
> 
> I should mention that we are an AHEC library serving health 
> professionals in 5 counties, plus serve as the local 
> hospital's library.
> We also support 5 residency programs.  And, when our LTA 
> leaves, there will be 3 MLS-trained librarians to staff the 
> library the 45 hrs/week it is open.
> 
> Any and all advice/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
> 
> Thanks in advance,
> 
> Allison Matthews, MLS
> SEAHEC Medical Library
> 2131 South 17th Street / PO Box 9025
> Wilmington, NC  28402-9025
> Phone: (910) 343-2180  Fax: (910) 762-7600
> Email: [log in to unmask]
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