Digital Research Foundation for the O & P Community Virtual Library Project
The Digital Research Foundation Virtual Library Project has been steadily growing, fueled initially by a lot of volunteer effort. The Board of Directors - Mary Novotny MS, RN; Paul Prusakowski CPO; and Jonathon Shinn - have all contributed countless hours to turn a vision for universal, free access to P&O information into a practical, self-sustaining project.
The mission of the Foundation, which is a 501(c ) (3) non-profit organization, is:
In 2006, the Virtual Library obtained permission and funding to digitize and post the prior edition of the Atlas of Limb Prostheses, which will soon be word-searchable. This basic text complements 16 years of the Journal of the Children's Prosthetic Orthotic Clinics that were first digitized starting in 2000. JACPOC remains a primary source for clinical information about pediatric O&P care. Over time, all 45 years of ACPOC journals and newsletters will become accessible online.
Eighteen years of the Journal of Prosthetics & Orthotics form the core of the current Virtual Library. These free, downloadable, and word searchable issues are in a user-friendly format that encourages scholars, clinicians, patients, family members, and the general public to browse and to learn more about the art and science of P&O.
The newest edition to the Virtual Library will be the complete series of the journal published by the National Academy of Sciences from 1954-1972 titled Artificial Limbs: A Review of Current Developments. The inaugural issue posted is the classic reference on the Syme ankle disarticulation, which will be followed by such historic treatises as the Radcliffe articles that established the foundation for our current understanding of the biomechanics of lower limb prostheses. Thanks to Charles King, CP, sponsors have been found to fund digitization of all eighteen years' worth of Artificial Limbs volumes over time.
Click on www.drfop.org/library/about.asp to learn more about the Virtual Library, including the technical and organizational principles a summarized in Carolyn Blythe's Residency paper. To word search those volumes that have been fully digitized, go to www.drfop.org/library/. If you just want to browse the digital holdings, go to www.oandplibrary.org/.
Finally, if you recognize the historic significance of this massive undertaking and would like to volunteer, make a donation to support future digitization, or suggest an edition to the Virtual Library, click on www.drfop.org/contact/.
