ITM Library – Annual Report 2014

2014 saw the loss of a number of valuable library resources. Especially the loss of the Cebam Digital Library of Health substantially diminished our collection of online available journals. We also had to take leave of the CABI‘s Global Health database, a fine but increasingly expensive complement to PubMed and ISI Web of Knowledge. The unforeseen bankruptcy of two of our major books and journals providers in the autumn of 2014 also gave us some continuity complications, but these have by now been taken care of.

On the positive side, the new library website and the DSpace repository TropMed Central Antwerp are in fine shape, and the recently added UpToDate platform is highly appreciated by our clinicians. Institutional archives are developed further (with 0,2 VTE manpower) and we were able to open a brand new state of the art store room in the Karibu campus. After years of preparations – together with other ITM (support) services – the library managed to obtain ISO 9001 certification. As for external networking VOWB vzw was disolved in 2014, but its main activities are now continued by Elektron vzw (subscriptions consortia) and VVBAD vzw (collaborative projects), the ITM library being full member of both. Apart from the losses described above, 2014 was a fairly average year for acquisitions of books and other collections. Self produced database records accrued in a normal tempo, except for the enormous mass of recent Ebola virus disease related publications which sort of exploded during 2014.

In July Dikra Azoussi was our first job student in over 20 years, working mainly on database quality optimization. In September Anneliese Mertens joined us as a temporary stand-in for Noor Goemaere (maternity leave). In 2014 we were saddened by the decease of Mrs. Lucie Van Steenbergen who served as a dedicated ITM library assistant from 1970 to 1986.

Dirk Schoonbaert

Publication

Alewaeters K, Bruschini C, De Meulemeester A, Discart I, Hansen I, Jacobs A, Schoonbaert D, Sijsmans P. Het VOWB pilootproject voor een gedistribueerd depot van gedrukte biomedische tijdschriftencollecties. Bladen voor Documentatie 2014;47(3):22-9.

2014 in Numbers

* Individual e-books in the library catalog, excl. open access e-books from e.g. WHO or NCBI
** SpringerLink medical and biomedical collections 2005-2010 and Ebsco Clinical Collection