Guidelines for Dentistry

Table of Contents

1. Purpose
2. General Collection Guidelines
    A. Language
    B. Chronology
    C. Geography
    D. Publication Date
    E. Treatment of Subject
    F. Types of Materials and Formats
3. Area Resources
4. Subjects and Collecting Levels

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1. Purpose.

Collections in Dentistry support a research agenda consistent with research enterprise at a Carnegie Research Intensive (Very High Research) institution with bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral]degree programs in the field.

The School of Dentistry offers the Doctorate of Dental Surgery Degree, a Bachelor of Science Degree in Dental Hygiene and combined DDS/MS or Ph.D. Degrees. The School provides advanced dental education programs in the following areas: Orthodontics, Periodontics, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Endodontics, Pediatric Dentistry, General Dentistry, and General Practice (hospital) Residency. The collection also supports continuing education and post-graduate training in anesthesia for dentistry.  

 

2. General Collection Guidelines.

A. Language.
English is the primary language of the monographic and serials collections.  Foreign and multilingual monographs and serials are purchased selectively.

B. Chronology.
Emphasis is on the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.  Historical dentistry materials and artifacts are also collected.  The Special Collections & Archives Department is the repository for historically significant retrospective materials.

C. Geography.
In the field of dental health care practice and organization, primary emphasis is on the United States. Publications of dental research and materials on the dental health care services of other countries are acquired selectively, regardless of national origin, with primary emphasis on those studies relevant to dental health problems in the United States.

D. Publication Date.
Emphasis is on current imprints except for the History of Dentistry collection.  Some retrospective purchasing takes place to add classic works or to replace missing titles still of use to the program.

E. Treatment of Subject.
Lower division textbooks are not generally acquired. Primary emphasis is on acquiring upper division, graduate and professional materials reporting current research.

F. Types of Materials and Formats.
Monographs and periodicals are the principal formats. Indexes, abstracts, encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks, bibliographies, data tables and charts, anatomical atlases, as well as conference proceedings and symposia, are also collected. Examination guides, self-instructional texts, outlines, pocket-sized books, syllabi, and workbooks are not collected.  Acquisition of serials takes precedence over that of monographs. E-journals are preferred over print when it is an acceptable equivalent.  Dissertations are added only by special request. The preferred format for reference works is electronic.  Other instructional and research formats for the collection include microform research collections, online databases, data sets, and audiovisuals in the most current technology available. Anatomical models are also collected selectively.  Pertinent local, state, and federal government documents are acquired, as well as publications from the primary professional association, the American Dental Association.

 

3. Area Resources.

There are no comparable resources in the area.  VCU has the only School of Dentistry in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the supporting library collections are often unique.

4. Subjects and Collecting Levels.

Dental materials in all subjects are typically collected at the research level (4).  Materials for biomedical science courses may be collected at the advanced study level.