LibKey products

NHS England subscribes to LibKey Web and LibKey Nomad to augment the end-user discovery experience.

LibKey Web Integrates with the NHS Knowledge and Library Hub to provide improved A-Z journal listings, journal cover images as well as enhanced direct linking to PDFs and DOI look-up functionality. 

LibKey Nomad is a browser extension that channels users to the licenced content they are eligible for when they are searching other platforms.  

What is included in the national LibKey subscription? 

The following components are included in the NHS England-funded national LibKey subscription from Third Iron: 

LibKey Discovery

This enhances the NHS Knowledge and Library Hub (EBSCO EDS) in three key ways: 

1. one-click access to PDF articles and article pages from both subscribed and Open Access sources  
2. cover art from over 28,000 journals  
3. one-click access from the article record back to the full journal issue within BrowZine 

Find out more information on LibKey Discovery.

BrowZine Web

An online tool that allows users to easily browse your library’s current journal content through their web browser.

This works with the link resolver to ensure that users see both nationally and locally purchased content.

Please note that the full version of BrowZine (which includes personalisation features and an app) is not included in the NHS England subscription.

Find out more information on BrowZine Web.

LibKey Link

Adds one-click-access to PDFs and article pages through the LinkResolver to any OpenURL compatible databases, e.g. Google Scholar, PubMed etc.

This feature is used with the core content database provider interfaces, i.e. Ovid, EBSCO and Proquest.

Find out more information on LibKey Link.

LibKey Nomad

A browser extension, which enables links to full-text articles when users are searching open web content, e.g. publishers websites or Wikipedia.

The LibKey browser plugin combines information about your e-journal holdings, authentication and article linking to deliver one-click access to PDF and HTML articles.

Individuals are able to install Nomad on their own devices.  Instructions are available from the ThirdIron.

Guidance is available  to help local IT teams deploy the extension across your network and to support you in making the case.

The extension is available for Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Microsoft Edge browsers.

Find out more information on LibKey Nomad.

libkey.io

Provides a landing page where DOI and PubMed ID searches are matched against your library’s subscribed and open access resources.

LibKey.io can be integrated into your library homepage.

LibKey for Public Discovery Services – this feature enables libraries to link their resources into new services such as Semantic Scholar, Clinowl, and Citationsy.

Find out more information on libkey.io.

How do all the LibKey components work?

Data from the Holdings and Link Manager feed into LibKey. 

LibKey passes this information to resolve links in databases, websites and other services accessing LibKey via APIs.

It enhances user experience in the NHS Knowledge and Library Hub.

What is the duration of the contract?

The contract will run until March 2026.

Is BrowZine included in the subscription?

The national subscription includes BrowZine Web only - not all features of BrowZine.

BrowZine Web presents your journals collection in a streamlined user interface - this includes nationally and locally purchased content. of titles. It will be integrated into the NHS Knowledge and Library Hub but can be used as a standalone resource for users to access your journal content.

What is the extra cost for services who wish to purchase the BrowZine top-up for personalisation features and the app?

NHS trust libraries have the option to add the BrowZine personalisation features and the rowZine pp at a cost of £1,015 per year. A pro-rata rate can be negotiated to the end of the current national contract in March 2026. The cost of the LibKey Nomad++ top up is £1,850 per year.

Contact  Aaron Maierhofer on [email protected] to discuss further

These features enable end-users to build a customised collection with My Bookshelf and alerting features that notify them when a new issue has been published.

The app is available on iOS and Android for subscribing organisations. The Browzine App can now use OpenAthens..

Is information about IT requirements for LibKey available to share with IT depts? 

Third Iron have prepared instructions for IT professionals and these can be found through the Service Desk solutions library.

Does the functionality of the LibKey for the NHS content clash with existing browser plug-ins for university content? 

Third Iron are happy to test this but they do not foresee other browser plug-ins “clashing” with Libkey Nomad. 

Is training available? 

Third Iron runs regular and ongoing training sessions to support trusts with the implementation and rollout of LibKey.