NIH Public Access Policy

NIH Public Access Policy (and how librarians can help)

By Stephanie Ballard, M.L.S., M.Ed.2009

Why involve the Library?

Institutions receive $$$ from National Institutes of Health for research

As grantees, institutions are liable for complying with NIH policies

Shows proactive & responsible approach

Overview of presentation

I. Benefits II. LogisticsIII. CopyrightIV. Library

I. Benefits

Benefits of Policy to researcher

Increased visibility for your workYour articles are archived in

perpetuityEasy access to colleagues’ PMC

articlesContinued eligibility for NIH grantsIntegration with NLM databases:

PubMed, Clinical Trials, Gen Bank, PubChem

Benefits of Policy to othersUnprecedented access to

biomedical literature via PubMed Central

Allows researchers to more quickly build on cutting-edge discoveries

Speeds process of translating scientific findings to clinical care

Adds transparency & accountability to federal spending

PubMed CentralNLM’s digital repository

◦“free internet-accessible archive of full text articles from peer-reviewed scholarly biomedical journals”

Permanent & searchableLinks to publisher websitesIncludes many articles reporting

on research not funded by NIH

PubMed homepage

II. Logistics

Brief history Congress assigned NIH job of drafting

Public Access PolicyVoluntary Policy enacted in 2005, but

compliance rates were lowBecame mandatory in 2008Applies to articles accepted for peer-

reviewed publication after April 7, 2008 or grants active as of October 2007◦Prior to mandatory date: OK but not required

All types of NIH grants, not just research

Resistance to PolicyH.R. 801 by Rep John Conyers

◦“Fair Copyright in Research Works Act”◦Referred to House committee in March

Attempt to reverse PolicyH.R. supported by publishing lobbyH.R. opposed by scientific

community, patient advocates & librarians

Five W’s of deposit in PMC Who: Principal Investigator, author or third-party

designee, such as a helpful librarian ◦ Some publishers also submit articles

What: final peer-reviewed manuscript in MS Word◦ Excel, TIFF, JPG & other formats ◦ Also PDF submitted by publisher

When: upon acceptance for publication ◦ Maximum 12-month embargo

Where: NIH Manuscript Submission system◦ portal used to upload manuscripts/articles

Why: see slide #3 “Benefits of Policy to researcher”

How: include NIH grant number(s)◦ NIH formats manuscript into uniform XML-based format

Other options for deposit

Use journal that automatically deposits all applicable articles

Arrange with journal to deposit your specific article (may charge fee)

Journal starts process and PI or author completes it by approving submission

Identification numbers: PMCID

Must add PubMed Central ID to citations of articles reporting NIH-funded research

Also in grant applications, proposals & progress reports

If PMCID not yet available, then use interim NIHMSID (NIH Manuscript Submission Identification)

PMCID vs. PMID

PMID number not acceptable to NIH

Translate PubMed IDs to PubMed Central IDs with online converter

PMCID & NIHMSID

PMCID/PMID & full-text links

III. Copyright

Copyright alert for authors !Ask your friendly librarian for helpBefore selecting journal, check

publisher’s policies for cooperating with NIH Policy◦SHERPA website for publishers’

policiesInclude submission notice &

amend publisher agreement, if necessary

Sample listing in SHERPA

Article submission notice

Authors should include notice to publisher that article, if accepted, is subject to Public Access Policy

Extra protection when used with amendment to publisher agreement

Amend publisher agreement

Add to agreement SPARC’s Addendum or

NIH’s suggested language◦“Journal acknowledges that Author

retains the right to provide a copy of the final peer-reviewed manuscript to the NIH upon acceptance for Journal publication, for public archiving in PubMed Central as soon as possible but no later than 12 months after publication by Journal.”

Copyright alert for grantees !Institutions must assume greater

administrative role in complianceRisk management focus on how PI’s

handle publishers agreements Once author signs rights away,

grantee may be in non-complianceRequiring pre-approval of journals

may spur resistance from authors

Grantee licenseAuthors, rather than employer,

often own copyright to their workEmployer may acquire rights from

authors to ensure its complianceUse a non-exclusive license with

authors which automatically allows grantee to submit works to PMC

Grantee may also seek right to post works in institution’s own repository

IV. Library

Library involvement--why?PubMed Central (PMC) is housed

in National Library of Medicine (NLM)

3 librarians on NIH Advisory Committee from start of planning

Libraries are supportive of PolicyLibrarians have traits required for

task

How Library can help

1. Advise authors re: copyright issues

2. Research publishers’ policies3. ID publishers that submit to PMC4. Assist in amending publishing

agreements5. Locate citations & PMCIDs

How Library can help (cont’d)6. Coordinate various

departments7. Stay current on new

developments8. Presentations & written updates9. Dedicated staff can better

handle complicated tasks of Policy

Library’s visionRelieve research staff of burdenProvide support, resources &

educationCarrot-not-stick approachShow NIH Public Access Policy is

an opportunity rather than annoyance

References 1. Carroll, M. W. (2008). Complying with the National Institutes of Health public access

policy Copyright considerations and options. Cambridge, MA: Science Commons. http://www.arl.org/sparc/bm~doc/NIH_Copyright_v1.pdf

2. Homan, J. Michael; Watson, Linda A. STM publishing meets NIH digital archive: librarian service on the PubMed Central National Advisory Committee. Reference Services Review, 2004, Vol. 32 Issue 1, p83-88, 6p; DOI: 10.1108/00907320410519504; (AN 14083164)

3. National Institutes of Health (U.S.). (2008). Analysis of comments and implementation of the NIH Public Access Policy. Bethesda, Md.?: NIH. http://publicaccess.nih.gov/analysis_of_comments_nih_public_access_policy.pdf

4. The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition.Addendum to publication agreement. http://www.arl.org/sparc/bm~doc/Access-Reuse_Addendum.pdf Accessed May 25, 2009.

5. The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition. Author Rights: Using the SPARC Author Addendum to secure your rights as the author of a journal article. http://www.arl.org/sparc/author/addendum.shtml Accessed May 25, 2009.

6. Shepard P. Schizophrenia Bulletin and the revised NIH public access policy. Schizophrenia Bulletin [serial online]. September 2008; 34(5):799-800. Available from: PsycINFO, Ipswich, MA. Accessed May 25, 2009.

7. University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries. NIH Public Access Policy: Frequently Asked Question. http://www.library.wisc.edu/scp/nih/faq.html Accessed May 25, 2009.

8. Willinsky J. The publisher's pushback against NIH's public access and scholarly publishing sustainability. Plos Biology [serial online]. January 27, 2009;7(1):e30-e30. Available from: MEDLINE with Full Text, Ipswich, MA. Accessed May 25, 2009.