The cost of collecting and providing access to published health information resources has been escalating at a rate much higher than inflation in general, and even than other areas of published knowledge. In 2000, the average cost of a biomedical journal subscription exceeded $500 per year, and some subscriptions topped $15,000. This represents a total increase of 270 percent in the average cost of a biomedical journal over the past decade. The library budget has not kept pace with this level of cost increase. The Health Sciences Library is continuing an aggressive plan to add electronic resources to its collection in addition to printed materials. As the largest health sciences library in the state, and in the Southeast, the library is a resource that healthcare researchers, educators, students, practitioners, and consumers depend on to have the latest and most authoritative information. An endowment to help meet current and future collection needs is vital to the future of the library.

With changes occurring at record speed in information access, technology, biomedical research, and the healthcare environment, continuing education is critical for professional health science librarians to maintain their ability to provide excellent service. While the library's primary users are students, faculty, and researchers on campus, librarians also serve the health information needs of healthcare providers across the state and nation. The purpose of this fund is to support either an existing Health Sciences Library librarian or a visiting librarian scholar for a period of time to conduct research leading to an innovative solution to a library problem or to create an innovative application.