Subject Collection Development Guidelines

Background

The Nursing Department at James Madison University was established in 1980 and has a long history of success.  From 1982-1999, the department was certified by the National League for Nursing accreditation.  In 1999, the department gained accreditation from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (CCNE).  Finally, in 2004, the Virginia State Board of Nursing approved the JMU program.  Over the last 5 years, the department boasts an over 90% pass rate for the NCLEX-RN exam (National Council Licensure EXamination). 

Programs Supported

Undergraduate Programs

• BSN
• RN-BSN
• Chronic Illness Minor

Graduate Programs

MSN Concentrations

• Clinical Nurse Leader
• Nurse Administrator
• Nurse Midwifery
• Adult or Gerontological Nurse Practitioner
• Familiy Nurse Pratitioner

Collection Areas:

Materials selected generally cover these Library of Congress classifications.

RT1-120 (Nursing) including topics such as

RT48-48.6        Nursing assessment

RT49                   Nursing care plans. Planning

RT86.45           Clinical supervision of nurses. Mentorship

RT86.54           Transcultural nursing

RT89-89.3        Specialties in nursing. Administration

RT90-90.3        Specialties in nursing. Teaching

Given the broad range of topics, certain subtopics within the larger Medicine classification (R) are also highlighted for areas of collection.

R (Medicine)

              RC952-954.6    Geriatrics

              RD9999.35       Surgical nursing

              RG500-991      Obstetrics

              RJ242-243        Hospital care

              RJ245-247        Nursing of children. Pediatric nursing

Guidelines

Monographs, videos, and serials, including encyclopedias, handbooks, and scholarly journals, are actively collected. Textbooks are collected selectively and only as a single copy, in accordance with the JMU Libraries’ Collection Development Policy. Materials such as pamphlets, patient education materials, popular/mass market materials, loose-leaf publications, posters, pocket-size books, self-instructional texts, most spiral-bound publications, syllabi, and workbooks, are generally excluded apart from the occasional exception. 

Medium of publication

Electronic versions of reference resources, videos, and monographs are selected when available to provider greater levels of access to students studying and working more off-campus in clinical sites. 

Language of materials

English-language materials are purchased almost exclusively.  Some occasional materials in other foreign languages are collected as parts of larger collective purchases.

Audience of materials

Materials are generally selected for the undergraduate, graduate, and general-academic readership levels.

Publication dates of materials

Given the frequent updating of the scholarship through new research, resources published within the last 3-5 years are the main emphasis.

Responsibilities

The responsibility of acquiring and managing Nursing collections primarily resides with the Nusring liaison librarian. The liaison librarian works with Nursing faculty within academic departments. Collection management activities are monitored and administered by JMU Libraries' Collection Development Committee, with expenditures authorized by the Dean of Libraries.

Updated June 26, 2012 by Carolyn Schubert.

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