This project is one of two Wellcome Trust funded projects currently underway at Lothian Health Services Archive (LHSA). It involves the detailed cataloguing of over 26,500 individual patient case notes relating to the pioneering Edinburgh neurosurgeon Professor Norman Dott, who established the first Department of Surgical Neurology in Scotland in Ward 20 of the Royal Infirmary and was also Professor of Neurological Surgery at the University of Edinburgh. This project, which has been underway since September 2012, aims to make a large body of records more accessible to researchers that would otherwise be somewhat hard to access due to barriers such as volume of material, specialised medical terminology and issues surrounding patient confidentiality. These barriers have been tackled and overcome by the development of a methodology to catalogue these valuable records to item level, which includes a high level of indexing to enable detailed searches to be carried out while ensuring the protection of confidential patient information. This project is without known precedent in UK archives and it is hoped that the cataloguing methodology will be applied to other large collections of patient case notes in the future.

Four collections of case notes are being catalogued as part the project and span 40 years of Dott’s career between 1920 and 1960. They cover his early work in private practice, the establishment and development of the Department of Surgical Neurology at the Royal Infirmary and his work during the Second World War at the Brain Injuries Unit at Bangour General Hospital. The case notes contain a wealth a material that give a unique insight into the development of the specialism of surgical neurology in Scotland by Dott and his team and into the lives of his patients. While the project was set up and led by the Project Archivist and is being continued at present by the Project Cataloguing Archivist, it has also benefited greatly from contributions from volunteers and interns, both in terms of aiding the cataloguing process and dissemination of the methodology.

Come along to our pop up session tomorrow, Tuesday 23^rd September between 10 am and 12 pm to hear more about this innovative cataloguing project.

Our story begins in 2011, when the HIV/AIDS epidemic related records held by Lothian Health Services Archive were awarded an inscription on the UNESCO UK Memory of the World Register (the only LHSA collection so far to have the honour). This inscription recognised historical significance and future research potential of the record; which was again recognised by the Welcome Trust in 2012, when they awarded a cataloguing and conservation grant to preserve and make available all 12 collections listed on the inscription.The Project Conservator began in January 2014 and the Archivist came on board in May of the same year.

Some of our promotional post cards

Our pop up session not only highlights the conservation and cataloguing work which has taken place so far, but also showcases the innovative ways in which the project has been managed and expanded beyond it’s original aims and objectives. The records have huge educational potential and this has been tapped into in a range of ways including an established social media programme and plans for an interactive website filled with educational resources to be used in schools across Scotland.

Throughout the project we have also been working in close collaboration with Waverley Care, an HIV/AIDS awareness group working across Edinburgh and the Lothian. It is hoped the two Organisations can work together to put the collections to good use and work to spread the messages contained within the records.

Come down between ten and twelve on the 24^th September to hear about our project and see some of the records we hold, including our unrivalled condom collection!

The Centre for Research Collection is the main space for anyone wanting to access Edinburgh University’s incredibly varied heritage collections, which encompass everything from archives, rare books and manuscripts, to historical musical instruments, art works and even some of the mould from which Alexander Fleming derived penicillin!

On Tuesday the 16^th September we will be holding a pop-up session where you can see some of these great treasures and talk to members of staff about how you can access the collection.

We will be showcasing a 500 year old illuminated Book of Hours, early editions of works by Shakespeare and Tolkien, as well as a “pamphlet battle” from the 1930’s.

Join us from 10am to 12pm on Tuesday 16th September to get a taste of the fantastic items held by the University!

You can also browse our online image collection, or connect with us via Facebook or Twitter.