Director's Reflections...The Library as Place
The transformation of information resources from print to electronic changes the character of the library-as-place, but it does not diminish it. The physical library still plays an important role as a place for inquiry, reflection, and research. It may be an oasis in a hectic work life, a meeting place for students, or a comfortable retreat where patients and families can learn about health issues.
Falk Library of the Health Sciences was designed in the 1950’s, and has undergone modest renovations and reconfigurations in the past years to accommodate new services and programs, new technology, and new staffing patterns. In August 2004, a ceiling leak led to major damage on the upper floor. The construction update article elsewhere in this issue describes how this damaged area was converted to a comfortable casual seating and study area. There is a critical need for small group study rooms, and we are looking for space to add these in some part of the library. In the coming years, we will continue to develop more inviting spaces for individual study and group collaboration, and flexible staff space responsive to the changing roles and responsibilities of library personnel.
Like Falk Library, the WPIC Library supports both the clinical and academic/research communities. The current design of the library dates from the early 1980’s. While the WPIC Library has always included consumer-oriented materials in its collection, there is growing interest in development of a WPIC Patient-Family Resource Center within the existing library that could serve as a comfortable space for families to search for answers to their health questions.
Opened in 2000, the Hopwood and Hillman Libraries at UPMC Shadyside offer a pleasant integrated space for health professionals, patients, and families to study and read in a relaxed setting. We look forward to applying the lessons we have learned at Shadyside to the ongoing design process for the new Children’s Hospital in Lawrenceville. The combined Blaxter and Moulis libraries and the Family Resource Center will be in a spacious area in the new facility. In the meantime, we are adapting the current space on the hospital’s seventh floor to a more comfortable setting for the health professionals, as well as the young patients and their families.
The continuing rapid pace of change in libraries mandates flexibility in library design and use to accommodate emerging technologies and services.
--Barbarba Epstein
