The Kirklin Clinic^® at UAB opened a resource library on its second floor on Wednesday, Nov. 1 at 1 p.m., where patients and visitors can learn about diseases and medical conditions in a consumer-friendly environment.

The Patient Resource Library will be located on the second floor of the Kirklin Clinic, 2000 6th Ave. S., on the University of Alabama at Birmingham campus. Both professional and clerical staff will staff it. Librarian Ty Howell said, “Diagnosis is difficult, but learning about the disease doesn’t have to be.”

Resources available include free educational brochures, reference materials and current medical magazines, books, videos, DVDs and computers with Internet access to disease-specific Web sites. The staff also offers customized information packets tailored to specific questions.

The UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center, which previously maintained a part-time library, Kirklin Clinic and the UAB Lister Hill Library for Health Sciences all provided leadership in developing the Patient Resource Library. Funding from a two-year Protective Life Clinical Initiative Award helped make it a reality.

The library will be open weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For more information, call 205-502-9956.