![\"Cleaning](\"https:\/\/news.nnlm.gov\/region_7\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2024\/02\/cleaning-300x193.jpg\")
Are you ready for Spring Cleaning? With a bit of tidying up, you can keep DOCLINE running efficiently for your library.<\/p>\nAre you ready for Spring Cleaning? With a bit of tidying up, you can keep DOCLINE running efficiently for your library.<\/p>\n
DOCLINE\u00ae is the National\u00a0<\/span>Library of Medicine’s <\/span>interlibrary loan (ILL) request\u00a0<\/span>routing\u00a0system.\u00a0<\/span>\u200bThe purpose of the system is <\/span>to provide efficient document <\/span>delivery\u00a0service.\u00a0<\/span>\u200bTutorials and the manual are <\/span>available online<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n DOCLINE finds potential lenders for ILL requests via a\u00a0routing\u00a0<\/span>algorithm that matches requests\u00a0<\/span>based on reported journal holdings.\u200b The routing algorithm <\/a><\/span>is what makes DOCLINE ILL prompt and\u00a0<\/span>accurate. <\/span>The system is intended for reciprocal ILL among biomedical libraries in\u00a0<\/span>the United States and Canada. Check your licensing agreements to see if you can lend internationally. <\/span>\u200b<\/p>\n DOCLINE enables libraries to borrow from and lend to one another. <\/span>DOCLINE is not an article purchasing mechanism.\u200b The service is available 24 hours a\u00a0<\/span>day, seven days a\u00a0week.\u00a0<\/span>\u200bSome DOCLINE activities are\u00a0<\/span>suspended on U.S. national\u00a0<\/span>holidays.\u00a0<\/span>\u200b\u200bScheduled maintenance is\u00a0<\/span>announced to subscribers of\u00a0<\/span>the\u00a0<\/span>DOCLINE-L Email Discussion\u00a0<\/a><\/span>List<\/span>. <\/span><\/p>\n There is no charge for\u00a0<\/span>participation in DOCLINE; however, i<\/span>nterlibrary loan\u00a0<\/span>transactions between libraries may have a cost. Charges\u00a0vary by\u00a0lender.<\/span>\u200b Medical Library Association\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>EFTS program<\/a> is an online billing\u00a0<\/span>system that collects an ILL\u00a0<\/span>charge and pays it to the lender,\u00a0<\/span>less a transaction fee. <\/span><\/p>\n To select lenders for your routing table, consider factors such as <\/span>EFTS participation, ability to handle <\/span>\u200bRush and Urgent Patient Care\u00a0<\/span>requests, the lender’s performance statistics, and how much they charge per article. <\/span>You can check Base Fees for any DOCLINE Library in the Lend Information section of their library profile. Look for Request Charges to see what the Base Fees are for individual lenders and if those lenders participate in Library Groups.<\/span><\/span><\/span>\u200b<\/p>\n DOCLINE Library Groups consist of DOCLINE libraries who follow a shared set of lending rules when lending to each other. More information about Library Groups is available in the DOCLINE Manual<\/a>. <\/span><\/span>Members of the Library Group FREESHARE lend to other FREESHARE libraries at no-cost ($0.00 base fee). To participate in FREESHARE, your library must follow these guidelines: <\/span><\/p>\n Libraries who participate in FREESHARE but do not follow the group\u2019s guidelines will be notified and removed from the group. More information is available from NNLM.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n \u200b<\/span>\u200bWe recommend that you check your Routing Table annually. If you see the label\u00a0<\/span>NLM Only, <\/span><\/b>this means that the library is borrowing from the <\/span>National Library of Medicine\u00a0<\/span>only. The library is n<\/span>ot lending, and you will want to delete the library from your Routing Table. <\/span>\u200bYou may see the labels Te<\/strong>m<\/strong>porarily\u00a0Closed<\/span><\/b>\u200b and Closed. <\/span><\/b>You can keep the temporarily closed libraries in your Routing Table, but you will want to remove closed libraries. \u200b<\/p>\n If you would like a deeper dive, check out this recording that I conducted for Maine librarians in December 2023. Routing Table Basics starts at 19:25 minutes.<\/p>\n\n