MLA '24

Portland, OR

Building an ILL Automation Workflow in a Small Hospital Library Using Microsoft Forms and Power Automate

Jonathan Ratliff
[email protected]

Library Svcs. Program Mgr. Library Services Program Manager
Samaritan Health Services

Background

  • 250-bed health system library with no document delivery management or discovery service
  • Article requests submitted via email
  • Requests tracked with mailbox folders
  • No consistent way to share request status with multiple staff
  • No online article request form
  • 40% of requests were for licensed or open access content
  • Poor tracking of data for usage and copyright

Objectives

  • Improve article delivery workflow using only existing Microsoft/SharePoint software
  • Develop an online article request form
  • Create SharePoint list to track request status
  • Integrate form and list using Power Automate
  • Lower rate of requests for licensed/OA content
  • Improve tracking of user requests
  • Better collection of article request data

Methods

Tools

  • Power Automate: MS cloud tool to create automated “flows” that connect services
  • Microsoft Forms: Basic, easy-to-use online form and survey tool
  • SharePoint Lists: Flexible lists integrated into SharePoint (hospital intranet)

Development

  • Request form created and deployed on library site
  • Tracking list created in SharePoint Lists
  • Create Power Automate flow to link form with list
  • Search info added to requests page to reduce number of requests for licensed/OA content

Implementation

Screenshot of the article request form showing the two questions: 'Do you have an article identifier (PMID or DOI)?', and 'What is the identifier?'.

1. Request Form

  • Simple, two-question form
  • Prefilled name and emails
  • Embedded into library SharePoint website
Screenshot of Power Automate showing seven workflow steps connected in descending order.

2. Power Automate Flow

  • Triggered by form submission
  • Processes form into list items
  • Sends email notification to staff
A screenshot of the individual article request item form showing fields and labels for the article request item data.

3. Request List Item

  • Fields automatically filled from form input
  • Updated throughout request lifecycle
A screenshot of the article request list showing an overview of requests, including a number in different statuses.

4. Request List

  • Easy overview when grouped by request status
  • Easily add non-form (email and phone) requests

Workflow

Flowchart showing progression of steps from form or email request to Power Automate processing to final handling by staff.

Results and Conclusions

Results

  • Good adoption: 36% of requests come through form
  • Form use correlated with 12% fewer requests for licensed/OA content
A pie chart of request sources for 2023-24. The slice labeled 'Form' is 36%. The slice labeled 'Email' is 64%.

Conclusions

  • Overall improvement to former system
  • Worthwhile for smaller libraries that already use SharePoint and other MS services

Future Directions

Improvements

  • Accept multiple requests in a single submission
  • Better feedback/notifications for users
  • Improve tracking of important stats like YOP

Challenges/Wishlist

  • Integration with upcoming discovery layer
  • Integration with DOCLINE (no available API)
  • End-to-end solution with file delivery

Acknowledgements

Thanks to the Zoe Herrera and the SHS Research Development Office for their help with this poster!