The Global Library of Women's Medicine (GLOWM) is a free and public[1] online reference library launched on 20th November 2008[2] at the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists[3] in London. Its purpose is to provide expert support to obstetricians, gynecologists and reproductive health professionals in their care of women.
This site is contributed to by over 750 specialists and its main feature is 442 specially commissioned chapters on most aspects of Women’s Medicine. The affiliations of each author are clearly shown. A special feature of the chapters is that they can be constantly updated and the actual date of any revision is shown at the top of each chapter. Other content of the site includes a section on Laboratory Tests, a Video Library of surgical procedures, a collection of color Atlases of visual medicine and a section on Safer Motherhood.
The Safer Motherhood section is a major feature which presents an increasing volume of knowledge with emphasis on practical guidance, with a specific focus on providing appropriate clinical information for less-resourced countries. The Safer Motherhood section includes, amongst other things, a 53 chapter 'Textbook of Postpartum Hemorrhage' (Christopher B-Lynch et al) and a Textbook of Fistula Surgery, plus an extensive video demonstration of fistula surgery.
There is also an interactive option, allowing specialists to submit their own commentaries for peer review.
The publishers state that nothing is accepted for inclusion on the site without it being peer reviewed by at least one other expert. They also state that additional chapters and other material will be regularly added whenever appropriate and possible.
The Editor-in-Chief of The Global Library of Women’s Medicine is Professor John J. Sciarra, Professor and Chairman Emeritus, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA. Professor Sciarra is a past President of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO)[4] and a former Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics. He is supported by an International Editorial Board consisting of gynecologists from the USA, Europe and other countries.
The website has been reviewed by Health On the Net Foundation[5] who have confirmed that it is “fully compliant with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health information” and that www.glowm.com is now HONcode certified.