摘要：In the past several years, libraries and information centers for patients have been established in many hospitals and universities as a measure for disclosure of medical information to the general population. In addition, symposia and lecture presentations on this service have been held in many areas sponsored by various groups and organizations, and the medical service cases have been reported. However, the objects of the service there are still limited to patients and their family members, and few cases are reported on the service of medical information for other users from the general public. Although state and public medical libraries have been opened to the public in principle, visitors are often limited to medical persons, and inconvenience in utilizing the facilities is the actual situation. The library of this hospital, established in 1997, started presenting medical information for the purpose of utilization by the patients and their family members. After extending the service to the general public, , visitors who need specific medical materials have increased beyond expectation, through introduction by the libraries at universities and graduate schools of cultural science course in Kyoto, as well as from the laboratories of commercial enterprises. These visitors to our library complain that there are not sufficient materials on medicine in public libraries and the university libraries of cultural science courses, and that the medical libraries of universities are either unable to be used, or are difficult to use even when access is granted. This paper reports on the status of utilization and the actual materials used when the library was opened to the public at this hospital.
关键词：Information Needs;Medical Information Service;Kyoto Minami Hospital Library
