Shrewsbury Health Library, Telford Health Library and RJAH Library have moved to a new catalogue and borrowing system called HeLM (Health Libraries Midlands) that is used across many NHS libraries across the Midlands region.
This page will try to answer some questions, and tell you about the benefits of the new system.
What will happen to my data?
Your personal information from our old system (WorldShare) was migrated across to the new one, which is managed by PTFS on behalf of NHS England. This will include details of any books that you had on loan. Your personal data will be deleted from our current library system in early October.
Do I need to re-register to continue to borrow?
If you had an active account on our old system, then you don't need to do anything and your library card number will remain the same.
If you had created a password on the old system to log in to renew books or save lists, then you will need to create a new password on the new system when you want to log in.
Will I still have the same borrowing rights?
Yes, though there will be some small changes.
You'll still be able to borrow 16 items. Any items that were previously 28-day loans will become 6-week loans (7-day and 14-day loans stay stay the same). All books will get 5 auto-renewals.
There will still be no fines, but we'll still invoice you for unreturned items.
As the catalogue covers many more libraries, can I borrow items I find in other HeLM libraries?
Yes, you'll be able to reserve up to 16 books on the catalogue from any HeLM library (including the former BASE libraries) and have them sent to your local library or ask us to deliver them to your workplace. This means it will be much easier to get hold of a wider range of material we don't have in stock locally.
You'll also have up to 14 days to collect reserved items (unless they are 7-day loans, in which case you'll have 7 days to collect them).
Will I be able to search for e-books on the catalogue?
Yes, we hope that all of our e-books from the different suppliers we use will all be transferred to the new catalogue. You'll just need to check that the e-book you want is available from us, as there will also be the e-books of all other HeLM libraries on the catalogue as well.
Some e-books are available to all HeLM libraries, and these should have a link that says 'HeLM Library OpenAthens users click here'. For other books, there should be a link to the e-book that says 'SaTH OpenAthens users click here' or 'SaTH and ShropCom OpenAthens users click here' depending on which of the organisations we serve has access.
Where can I search the catalogue?
The catalogue for Shrewsbury and Telford Health Libraries is here, and the catalogue for RJAH Library is here. The main HeLM catalogue can be found here.
For Shrewsbury and Telford Health Libraries, you can still use OmniSearch to search for local books and e-books.
What happens if I move organisations?
If you are moving to another library in the HeLM consortium, then your library account moves with you! You'll just need to get in touch with your new library, and let them know you are now working there, and update your details.
A list of the organisations that are part of HeLM can be found on the HeLM website under 'Locations'. This list will grow as more libraries join.
Last updated: 23rd September 2022