NHS library traffic shows healthy growth

The National electronic Library for Health (NeLH) is reportedly attracting two million visitors per year.

Figures released by the NHS Information Authority in December 2004 show that during November alone the NeLH attracted 300,000 online visits, up by 50 percent from the same period in 2003.

The library was launched in 2000 to provide trusted information for healthcare professionals, managers, patients and carers. The figures were released as part of Health Libraries Week, which saw NHS librarians across the UK promote the wide range of digital knowledge resources now available.

The electronic library is now part of a new more comprehensive service, the National Library for Health.

Nick Rosen, NeLH partnerships manager, said: "We are all delighted with the work put in by health librarians across the UK to raise the profile of libraries and knowledge resources with so many people. They have been instrumental in the success of digital libraries."

He said the most significant finding is that 360,000 people visit the site more than 10 times in a year.

The National Core Content team also reported heavy use of its full text journal service with over 140,894 full text journal articles downloaded during November. This was an increase of over 66 percent on 2003.

The NHS Education for Scotland e-Library also saw an increase, in this case by 25 percent, in usage compared to the same time last year.