Reference librarians often must face ingratitude by
patrons. I have worked with patrons that are most appreciative
of the services I provide to them in my 35 years in this profession. Academic librarians are responsible to serve
the students, faculty, and staff of their respective institutions. I have received few requests from businesses
in the local community in recent years.
Last week one of my colleagues left me a message that F.S.
asked for assistance from the chemistry librarian. I was away from the office for a few days, so
I phoned him back yesterday and asked what he wanted. He had a relatively complicated question about
sugar cane bagasse.
I spent about an hour on his query and sent my results to
him via e-mail with suggestions on how he could pursue his research further. He never responded to me. Don’t I deserve a “thank you” for doing work “beyond
the call of duty”? He is not part of my
university’s community and I was certainly not under any obligation to him. He would have to pay an information consultant
big bucks for this service.
All in a days work.
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