Taubman Health Sciences LibraryEdit

The Taubman Health Sciences Library (THSL) is a central hub for medical education, research, and clinical decision support on the University of Michigan campus. Located on the Michigan Medicine health sciences campus in Ann Arbor, THSL serves students, faculty, clinicians, and researchers across the health sciences disciplines. As a core component of the university’s library system, it provides access to extensive print and digital resources, expert guidance from librarians, and services designed to accelerate teaching and discovery. The library bears the name of philanthropist A. Alfred Taubman, reflecting a major gift that helped shape its facilities and capabilities. In operation, THSL integrates traditional information services with modern research support to align with the practical needs of patient care and biomedical innovation. For many users, THSL is the place where classroom learning, laboratory research, and clinical practice intersect, with resources organized to support evidence-based medicine and the biomedical enterprise.

THSL operates within the broader framework of University of Michigan health sciences ecosystem, including the School of Medicine, the School of Public Health, the School of Nursing, and related health science programs. It collaborates closely with Michigan Medicine to ensure resources support both education and patient care, while maintaining access to a wide array of scholarly materials through partnerships with publishers, database providers, and other libraries worldwide. The library’s digital services complement its physical spaces, enabling remote access to journals, databases, and library guidance for students and faculty who are on clinical rotations or at affiliated sites.

History

The history of THSL is tied to the growth of the health sciences programs at the University of Michigan and the expanding need for specialized information services. In the late 20th century, a major philanthropic gift enabled a dedicated facility and enhanced resources that would become the Taubman Health Sciences Library. The library’s naming reflects the donor, and the facility has since evolved with renovations and updates to embrace digital resources, data services, and integrated research support. As medicine and health sciences education shifted toward evidence-based practice and team-based care, THSL positioned itself as a partner in teaching, clinical decision-making, and research collaboration.

Mission and scope

Provide access to authoritative health sciences information, including journals, e-books, databases, datasets, and multimedia resources.
Deliver expert librarianship services, including reference help, literature searching, and instruction in information literacy for students and professionals.
Support research activities through data management guidance, systematic review assistance, and bibliometrics or research assessment services.
Partner with clinical teams to offer information support at the point of care, contributing to evidence-based practice and patient outcomes.
Offer training and programming that reflect the needs of a diverse health sciences community, while maintaining an emphasis on rigorous scholarship and efficient workflows.

Collections and resources

Core collections in medicine, nursing, public health, dentistry, and related fields, including journals, textbooks, and databases.
Digital resources with remote access to licensed content, plus tools such as discovery layers, citation managers, and linking services.
Special collections and archives that preserve historical medical materials and institutional records relevant to the university’s health sciences history.
Open access and author-facing services that help researchers navigate publishing options and retain rights where possible.

Services and user support

Reference and research consultation with health sciences librarians, including embedded or liaison services for specific programs.
Information literacy instruction, classroom sessions, and online tutorials to build students’ and clinicians’ ability to find, evaluate, and apply information.
Research support, including help with literature reviews, study design for evidence synthesis, and data-related inquiries.
Interlibrary loan and document delivery to expand access beyond THSL’s own holdings.
Assistance with data management planning, data sharing, and compliance with funder requirements.

Facilities and access

THSL provides spaces designed to support study, collaboration, and focused work. Quiet study areas, group rooms, computer workstations, and meeting spaces are available to users with appropriate access. The library supports flexible hours, including extended access for students and trainees during clinical rotations and exam periods, subject to campus policies and security considerations. In addition to physical facilities, THSL’s digital presence offers portal access to resources, tutorials, and remote assistance for users who cannot visit in person.

Funding and governance

As part of the University of Michigan Library ecosystem, THSL is funded through a combination of university resources, health system support, and library-licensing arrangements with publishers and vendors. Governance and strategic direction come from the university’s library leadership and the health sciences administration, with ongoing collaboration across schools and institutes to ensure services align with teaching, research, and patient care priorities. Decisions about collections, access models, and service delivery reflect broader university budgeting, national licensing landscapes, and the evolving needs of a large health sciences enterprise.

Controversies and debates

Like many academic libraries serving complex health sciences programs, THSL operates within a landscape of competing priorities and viewpoints. Three recurring topics illustrate ongoing debates, including those often framed from a fiscally conservative or market-oriented perspective:

Open access, licensing costs, and journal budgets: Proponents argue that open access and cost-efficient licensing accelerate discovery and patient care, while libraries must negotiate expensive subscriptions and licensing terms with publishers. Critics on the right side of the spectrum may emphasize budgeting discipline, urging libraries to prioritize essential databases and open-access publishing strategies that reduce long-term costs for students and institutions. The underlying issue is finding a sustainable balance between broad access and the financial realities of academic medicine, with THSL often engaged in complex negotiations and cost-benefit analyses.
Diversify and de-risk: THSL, like many academic libraries, has initiatives aimed at diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in staff recruitment, collections, and programming. Critics from a more conservative viewpoint sometimes argue that these efforts can consume resources that should be directed toward core teaching and clinical support, or that they introduce curricular or collection biases. Advocates contend that inclusive collections and programs better reflect the patient populations served and improve access to information for all users. From a right-of-center perspective, it is common to stress that academic library budgets should maximize value to students, clinicians, and researchers while maintaining academic freedom and avoiding instrumentalization of scholarship for political ends. Proponents of DEI maintain that equity in access and representation improves outcomes and preserves trust in the health sciences. The debate, as it plays out in THSL and similar libraries, centers on resource allocation, academic freedom, and the best way to serve a diverse student body and patient population.
Role in education versus activism: Some observers worry that university libraries can become stages for broader campus activism. A right-of-center lens would emphasize the library’s primary mission—supporting evidence-based teaching, rigorous research, and patient care—while acknowledging the legitimate public-interest role of libraries to host diverse viewpoints. Critics might argue that so-called woke critiques are overstated or misapplied, while supporters stress the importance of ensuring that information literacy includes the ability to navigate bias and propaganda. THSL’s response in this debate typically emphasizes balanced collections, critical appraisal training, and a commitment to scholarly integrity, while recognizing that libraries operate within a campus culture that values open dialogue and academic freedom.

From this vantage point, the controversies surrounding THSL tend to focus on how best to sustain high-quality, widely accessible health information in a financially responsible way, while respecting scholarly independence and patient-centered outcomes. The library’s approach to these issues aims to deliver reliable information, efficient access, and robust support for education and research within the health sciences.