INFORMATION ABOUT LIBRARY OF O.O. BOHOMOLETS NATIONAL MEDICAL UNIVERSITY

The library of National medical university was founded in 1841 as the library for medical faculty at Kyiv Saint Volodymyr University on the base of funds at Vilno medical surgical academy.
In 1881 at the initiative of student O.A. Kisel (future famous pediatrician) “Clinical society of medical students” was established and the students’ library was founded. During the first year of its existence the library included 130 books.
1907 – The library serves the women’s medical courses, 1916 – the library works as a part of Women’s medical institute, 1929 – it acquires the status of library of Kyiv medical institute with the book stock of over 10,000 copies.
Until 1941 the library included almost 300,000 books and journals. They almost all were destroyed during German fascists’ occupation. During the war Kyiv medical institute was evacuated to Cheliabinsk. In February, 1944 the institute with the library stock of 8,500 books returned to Kyiv. The replenishment of stock from private libraries, second-hand bookshops and receipt of compulsory copy started.
Until 1983 the library was in the building of modern museum of history of medicine.
1992 – Library of Ukrainian state medical university. Modern name since 1995.
The library stock is multidisciplinary, the total number of 650,000 copies in Ukrainian, Russian, English, German, French and other foreign languages, in particular, 42,650 foreign books and journals and 4,000 rare editions. The book stock is the unique collection of scientific medical, medical biological, public political and fiction literature.
The library stock keeps the rarest editions: “Real encyclopedia of medical sciences” (1892), “Physiology in experiments” (1898), journals “Doctor”, “Russian doctor”, “Surgery” (since 1890), lifetime editions of works by M. Pyrogov, I. Sechenov, S. Botkin, I. Mechnikov, O. Bohomolets, etc. The dissertation stock includes 4,300 copies.
At present moment the library consists of 7 sections: book acquisition, scientific processing of literature, book depositary, information bibliographic department, department of educational literature, department of scientific medical literature, department of public political and fiction literature.
The library has 7 reading halls (4 of them in hostels). Every year the library performs approximately 50 information events, serves over 10,000 readers, publishes over 600,000 copies of literature.
The reference aids consist of alphabetical, systematic, thematic catalogues, as well as alphabetical catalogs of periodicals and part works, dissertations, author’s abstracts. The bibliographical files are run. Recently the library started implementing the computer technique into its work.
We can say that the new stage in development starts since today in the history of the library. Now the readers can use electronic catalogs of largest libraries in Ukraine (Vernadskyy National library, National parliament library, State scientific medical library, etc.) and foreign countries. Hereby, the use of internet for our readers is free of charge.
The most authoritative project among a great number of different databases is the project “Electronic information for libraries”, established at the initiative of the Institute of open society “Budapest” and one of the world largest publishing houses of periodicals – EBSKO Company. This project consists of 11 databases, among them 5 medical databases; the largest one is Medline that provides with the competent information in medicine: fundamental medical sciences, health care systems, care for patients, dentistry, etc. The database includes 1,200 full text journals. The cost of annual subscription to access to these electronic resources is UAH 6,000.
The important stage in activity of our library will become the establishment of electronic catalogs, textbooks, development of own databases. This will assist to significant enlargement of informational opportunities of the library.
Finally, o would like to express the deep gratitude from workers and readers of the library to the rector of National medical university V.F. Moskalenko for establishment of such brilliant information enter, for his constant support and aid in needs for development of scientific library.