HAM-TMC Library
General Information
The HAM-TMC Library was founded in the Texas Medical Center in 1949. At that time, two existing medical libraries -- the Houston Academy of Medicine and Baylor College of Medicine -- combined their collections to better serve the physicians in Harris County and the teaching and research programs of Baylor.
The Houston Academy of Medicine brought nearly 18,000 volumes to the 1949 merger and Baylor brought almost 16,000 volumes. In 1954 the Library moved from the Roy and Lillie Cullen Building of the Baylor College of Medicine into the new Jesse H. Jones Library Building. As the Texas Medical Center expanded through the 60's so did the Library. In 1970 the UT Medical School was established in Houston. With the Operating Agreement of 1970, the Library came under the joint governance of six Participating (later Governing Institutions) Institutions through the Board of Directors and under the operational administration of the Executive Director.
Currently, the Library contains 76,500 square feet of space, and holds over 357,000 book and journal volumes Additionally, the Library has subscriptions to 172 electronic databases and over 9,000 electronic journals. In 2002 the Library added a new facility, the Historical Research Center which houses the archives of the John P. McGovern Historical Collections and Research Center and many of the Library's older books and journals.
The HAM-TMC Library serves as the Regional Medical Library (RML) for the National Network of Libraries of Medicine South Central Region (NN/LM SCR); one of eight RMLs in the US. This designation has been retained by the Library via a competitive process through the National Library of Medicine, since 1991. The mission of the NN/LM SCR is to provide all health professionals with equal access to biomedical information and to improve the public's access to information to enable them to make informed decisions about their health in the five state region of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.
The pace of change in the information sciences world can be daunting, but the HAM-TMC Library continues to respond to these changes. As the demand for seamless access to electronic resources grows, the Library strives to improve services to those trying to reach us from outside the Library proper.
Whether you come to the HAM-TMC Library in person or virtually through our new website, let me be the first person to welcome you. Please do not hesitate to contact any of our staff with comments, suggestions or concerns.
Deborah Halsted, Interim Executive Director
page updated on 11/02/2009
