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| Working Group of Scientific Medical Libraries (AGMB) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Working Group of Scientific Medical Libraries (AGMB) |
| Native name | Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Wissenschaftlichen Medizinischen Bibliotheken |
| Formation | 1970s |
| Type | Professional association |
| Headquarters | Germany |
| Region served | Europe |
| Language | German |
Working Group of Scientific Medical Libraries (AGMB) The Working Group of Scientific Medical Libraries (AGMB) is a German-based professional association connecting academic and research libraries in the fields of medicine, biomedical sciences, and health sciences. Founded amid developments in postwar Helmut Schmidt-era science policy and European integration, the AGMB has fostered collaboration among institutions such as the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, the Heidelberg University Hospital, and the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich to coordinate collections, standards, and services. Its members include representatives from major centers like the Max Planck Society, the German Research Foundation, and university libraries across Berlin, Munich, and Heidelberg.
The AGMB traces origins to cooperative efforts among German medical libraries during the reconstruction of research infrastructure following World War II, influenced by initiatives tied to the Max Planck Society, the Federal Republic of Germany's science policy, and European frameworks such as the European Federation of Library Associations and Institutions. Early milestones involved exchanges with organizations like the Wellcome Trust Library, the National Library of Medicine, and archival collaborations with the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz. Through the 1970s and 1980s, the AGMB expanded alongside developments at institutions such as the Robert Koch Institute and partnerships with the World Health Organization that emphasized bibliographic standards and interlibrary loan frameworks inspired by systems like MEDLINE and projects affiliated with the European Molecular Biology Laboratory.
AGMB is structured as a membership body representing university medical libraries, hospital libraries, and research institute libraries, including affiliates from the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, the University of Freiburg, the Technical University of Munich, and the University of Cologne. Its governance often mirrors models used by the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions and includes committees comparable to those in the German Library Association and the Association of European Research Libraries. Membership categories reflect institutional alignments with the Max Planck Society, the Helmholtz Association, and city libraries in Hamburg and Frankfurt am Main while liaison roles engage with national bodies such as the German Research Foundation and regional authorities like the Bavarian State Library.
AGMB activities encompass cooperative cataloging initiatives, digitization projects, and open access advocacy, aligning with international efforts such as the Budapest Open Access Initiative and platforms like PubMed Central. Notable projects have included collaborative digitization with partners akin to the Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek, metadata harmonization inspired by Dublin Core practice, and interlibrary loan consortia resembling the ARL model. The group has piloted repository integration initiatives parallel to work at the European Organization for Nuclear Research and information services interfacing with terminologies used by the World Health Organization and databases similar to EMBASE.
AGMB produces guidelines, best-practice documents, and newsletters circulated among libraries such as the University of Tübingen Library and the University of Bonn Library. Outputs include cataloging standards influenced by the International Standard Bibliographic Description and resource lists comparable to bibliographies from the Wellcome Library and the National Library of Scotland. AGMB resources often reference frameworks advocated by the European Commission for research data management and mirror repository policies seen at the Max Planck Digital Library.
AGMB organizes annual meetings, workshops, and symposia that attract speakers from institutions like the Robert Koch Institute, the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, and the European University Institute. Conferences address topics similar to sessions at the International Congress on Medical Librarianship and involve collaborations with national events hosted by the German Library Association and regional academic gatherings in Bonn and Frankfurt. Workshops have focused on digital curation techniques comparable to those promoted by the Digital Preservation Coalition and training modules modeled on programs by the National Institutes of Health Library.
The AGMB maintains partnerships with national and international entities including networks akin to the European Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, research organizations such as the Max Planck Society and the Helmholtz Association, and regional archives like the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin. Cooperative agreements have paralleled alliances with the Wellcome Trust, the British Library, and the National Library of Medicine to improve access to biomedical literature and to coordinate interlibrary loan, digitization, and open science initiatives.
AGMB has influenced standards for medical bibliographic control, cooperative collection development, and the adoption of digital repositories across German-speaking academic centers comparable in scope to reforms driven by the Association of Research Libraries and the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions. Its advocacy for open access and integrated discovery has shaped policies at institutions such as the University of Heidelberg and contributed to national dialogues involving the German Research Foundation and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research on research information infrastructures.
Category:Medical libraries Category:Library associations