Navigate to Fulfillment > Checkout/Checkin > Manage Patron Services.
Bring up the patron record by having the patron tap their DukeCard; scanning their DukeCard; or searching by typing their name or NetID.
You’ll see a snapshot of their current status and any user notes in the right sidebar or at the top, and tabs for Loans, Returns, and Requests.
Note: the Patron ID Card and User notes may appear either at the top of the screen, as shown here, or in a sidebar to the right, depending on the width of your browser window and/or your zoom settings. If you want the patron information to appear at the top, decrease the width of your browser or increase zoom percentage.
The Patron Services Page displays the following core patron information: Patron Name, ID (NetID), User Group, Active balance, Notes, Number of items of the Hold Shelf, Overdue Items.
A small, folded blue corner indicates that a tab has content.
From the Patron Services page, click the patron’s ID in the Patron ID Card (right, or top) to enter a more comprehensive User Details view, including tabs for Contact Information, Identifiers (alternate IDs), Notes, Blocks, Fee/Fines, Attachments (emails sent to patron), Proxy Information, and History.
You can also search for patrons using the persistent search bar, with Users selected from the dropdown menu, which will bring you directly to the more comprehensive User Details view.
Patron Services
From the Patron Services page, you can manage loans, renewals, and item requests.
Loaning
From the Patron Services page, select the Loans tab.
Scan or enter the barcode of the item being loaned in the Scan item barcode field. Scanned barcodes should contain the final “enter/return” input. If you enter manually, click OK.
Due date and time, along with other item details, will show in the Loan Display.
Multiple items can be loaned in a session. Once you have finished, close the patron session by selecting “Done”.
Note that a patron record will time out after 2 minutes of inactivity if not closed.
By default, the Loan Display will show “Loans of this session.” Click to display “All Loans” to see all current loans on the patron’s account.
To change the loan due date:
On the Patron Services page, select the Loans tab.
In the Loan display drop-down list, select All loans.
In the row actions of the loan, select Change Due Date and select the new due date and time from the Calendar dialog box. If a time is not specified, the system uses the library closing time of the new due date. If the library is closed on the chosen day, the due date will default to the next open day.
Select Change Due Date. The new date is saved in the Loans tab.
A Loan Status Notice letter email is sent to the patron with the new due date and saved as an attachment to the user record.
You can define one user to be a proxy user for another. A proxy user can loan and return items on behalf of another user. Manage proxy users on the Proxy For tab of the User Details page.
To add a proxy user:
Search for the patron who will act as proxy and navigate to the User Details page.
Open the Proxy For tab of the User Details page. Select Add Proxy For.
In the Proxy for field, enter or select the patron for whom you want the current user to be a proxy.
Select Add User. The patron is added; the user is now a proxy for this patron.
Proxy relationships are not assigned an expiration date. To remove the proxy relationship, select Delete in the row actions list in the Proxy For tab of the proxy’s User Details page.
Each user can act as Proxy for multiple other users.
Note that proxy relationships can only be managed from the proxy’s User Details page, not from the user for whom they are designated as a proxy. In other words, if a graduate student is set up to be a proxy borrower for a faculty member, the relationship is managed from the graduate student’s page, not the faculty member’s page.
When loaning items to a user as a proxy, be sure to click the Use proxy button under the patron ID field.
Returning
Renewing and Changing Due Dates
Item Records - Viewing and Searching
Requests and Recalls
Hold requests and recalls in Alma are mostly handled at the title level instead of item level. This means that Alma will automatically put the hold on the nearest available copy. If there is information in the item description field, such as a volume number, then the request will be handled at item level instead. Staff can also submit requests at the item level (see “Requesting a Specific Item” below).
If all items for a title are on loan, Alma will recall the item that has been loaned for the longest period of time.
Fulfilling patron physical item hold requests
There are many ways to search for both Active and Completed patron hold requests. For batch pulling of hold requests, Alma creates a Pick List which contains hold requests that have not yet been filled.
Placing patron physical item hold requests
Note: patron requests are title-level if there is nothing in the item description field. If there is something in the item description field, i.e. volume or copy numbers, the request will move to item-level.
Notices and Letters
Notices (letters) will be sent by email to patrons automatically, such as overdue and courtesy notices, but can also be sent manually by library staff.
