SCIE media releases 2008

Equal access to National Library for Health resources for social care staff

04 November 2008

From 1 November local authority social care staff in some areas of the country will be eligible to apply for an Athens password. This will allow them to access the NHS national core content collection, which contains a wide range of e-journals, e-books and databases, free of charge through SCIE’s Social Care Online website. In the past, these journals and databases have only been available to people working in the NHS. However, the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) and Skills for Care have successfully argued that those working in government-funded social care organisations should be given equality of access. The resources that are currently available have primarily a health focus, but there are already several social care related resources and SCIE is adding a number of key social care e-journals will be added over the next couple of months.  

SCIE has taken on the password and account administration of the scheme and is currently running pilots in four areas of the country – the South East, the West Midlands, East of England, South Central and the North West. Fourteen London boroughs are also participating. Volunteers from local authority social service departments are acting as regional and local password administrators for social care staff within each area. In the London boroughs NHS librarians have kindly agreed to extend their password administration to registered social workers in their boroughs.  A member of SCIE’s staff is also acting as a national administrator.

The pilot will last for ten months and if it is successful and demand is high it is hoped that the scheme can be extended to the rest of the country, providing local authorities within the additional areas are willing to put forward personnel who can take on regional or local password administration.
                                                       
To find out more, visit Social Care Online and follow the Athens password registration link on the home page.

Media contact

Kim Rutter| Marketing and Communications Manager | T: 020 7089 6840| M: 07958 104886| Email: media@scie.org.uk