Our Mission

The mission of the Robert L. Brown History of Medicine Collection is to educate and inform members of the University and global communities about the history of medicine and the health sciences, with a particular focus on Buffalo and Western New York. Founded as a medical school, the importance of medicine as part of the University at Buffalo’s heritage is central toward understanding the development of the University itself. In general, the goal of the Collection is to open a gateway to the history of medicine and the health sciences by acquiring, collecting, preserving, interpreting and exhibiting books, tools and other resources from the past.

Some of the specific goals of the History of Medicine’s mission are to:

• Educate and encourage young people pursuing, or interested in pursuing, careers in medicine and the health sciences by fostering in them an appreciation of how history is interwoven with the present and the future.
• Demonstrate the value of the Collection as an important teaching and learning resource that supports the missions of the Abbott Library, the University Libraries and the University through programs and events within the Collection and through outreach activities.in the community.
• Initiate interdisciplinary endeavors between the History of Medicine other health sciences special collections and other University departments such as History in order to show how medicine and the health sciences play a role in so many aspects of society and everyday life.

The guiding principle of the mission of the Robert L. Brown History of Medicine Collection can be found in its motto: Chart the future by exploring the past.