Madison Public Library staff put together this document in 2011 and it was our first official "Best Practices" blog. Except that it pre-dated the blog and only went out via email. We hope you enjoy it in blog-format as well.
NOTES
- There are two
Note fields in a patron record: Circulation and OPAC.
- Notes are added
by going to the patron’s Details screen and clicking “Edit” under “Library
use”.
- Always include
the date and your initials in a Note.
- The Note field is
limited to 255 characters, but can be easily edited.
- The OPAC note displays
in the patron’s OPAC account and in the Details screen in the Staff
Client. The Circulation note only
displays in the patron’s Checkout and Details screens in the Staff Client. ALWAYS copy an OPAC note into the Circulation
note if you want staff to see the same note that you entered for the patron. You don’t want a patron to say “I
had a note that I forgot to return…..” and not be able to see the same note in
the Checkout screen.
- Notes are displayed
above the “Messages” section of the patron's Check out screen and should be used for
issues that are important and/or time sensitive.
- Once a note has
been edited, a record of the changes is NOT kept.
MESSAGES
- Messages are added
by going to the patron’s Checkout screen and clicking “Add a new message”.
- Date and location
are automatically added to messages, but initials should be added as
appropriate.
- Once a message
has been saved, it cannot be edited.
- Messages that are
deleted are not saved. (We hope to change this in future development so
messages can be saved.)
- You have an
option to leave a message for “Other Librarians” or leave a message for the
patron.
- If you leave a
message for “Other Librarians”, it will show up on the Checkout screen in red
and staff at any LINKcat library can delete the message.
- If you leave a
message for the patron, it shows up in black (not red) on the Checkout screen
and also in the patron’s account on the OPAC.
ONLY THE LIBRARY THAT ENTERED THE MESSAGE FOR THE PATRON CAN DELETE THIS
MESSAGE. For this reason, we recommend
that any information that needs to be shared with both the patron and staff be
put in both the OPAC note and Circulation note (See above.) The exception to this would be a message for
the patron regarding lost and found items.
XXX library would enter a message for the patron saying that their
umbrella is in the lost and found. It is
unlikely that any other library other than XXX would need to delete that
message.
EXAMPLES
OF NOTES AND MESSAGES
NOTES:
1.
Parts Missing
a.
Item is returned
with a part missing.
b.
Add the Part
Missing note to both the OPAC and Circ note field.
c.
When patron returns
the missing part, the note is removed from the OPAC note. The Circ note is deleted if the parts are
matched up, or the Circ note is updated to reflect that the missing part is
being sent to the owning library.
d.
The Circ note is
deleted when the parts are matched up.
2.
Administrative
Stop
a.
Note
Administrative Stop and the reason in the Circ note. Include date, location, and initials. Also DEBAR(patron account flag) in order to prevent checkout.
3.
Payment Plans
a.
Put details in
the Circ note. Remember to change the Patron Category to Limited Use.
MESSAGES:
1.
Old Holds Authorizations
from Dynix were transferred into Messages, but the way they transferred
resulted in duplicate wording and dates that are confusing. Help us cleanup these Hold Authorizations by
creating a new message:
a.
Click “Add a new
message”
b.
Under “Predefined
notes”, click “Hold Pickup Authorization”
c.
In the message
box, type “For Joe Smith, Jan Smith…..”
2.
New Holds
Authorizations should be entered by following the same steps as above:
a.
Click “Add a new
message”
b.
Under “Predefined
notes”, click “Hold Pickup Authorization”
c.
In the message
box, type “For Joe Smith, Jan Smith…..”
3.
Damaged Items:
a.
Use “Add a new
message” to provide details about a damaged item and routing it to the owning
library.
4.
Lost and Found:
a.
Click “Add a new message”
b.
Under “Add a
message for:”, click the name of the patron.
c.
In the message
box, type “Umbrella left at XXX. Will be in the lost & found until 8/24/11”
d.
This message will
appear in the patron’s account on the OPAC and in black letters on the Checkout
screen. XXX library can delete the
message when the item is picked up or discarded.