RCSI Heritage Collections aims to preserve the institutional memory of RCSI and the record of its contributions to healthcare and society at local, national and international level, and to support RCSI in achieving its broader strategic objectives.
The work of RCSI Heritage Collections can be broken into three core areas: collections management and development, access and participation, and outreach and engagement.
Collections Management & Development
The RCSI Heritage Collections team promotes good stewardship of RCSI’s holdings through collections management activities and adherence to best professional practice and standards. We recognise preservation as a core value of good stewardship, supported by management activities including cataloguing and digitisation as a means of enabling broader access and engagement.
We are committed to building inclusive heritage collections that are representative of RCSI activities and people and that will preserve the legacy of RCSI for future generations.
Notable holdings include:
- The RCSI College Archive
- RCSI Special Collections comprising pamphlets, medical instruments, and rare books
- Papers and private collections of prominent individuals associated with RCSI and Ireland’s medical history.
Explore the RCSI Heritage Collections and digital exhibitions further here.
Access & Participation
The RCSI Heritage Collections team uses its knowledge of the collections and subject matter expertise to support access to and participation in the collections for individuals and communities and to aid analysis of the collections for the purpose of education, engagement and research. RCSI Heritage Collections maintains robust infrastructures and systems that facilitate physical and virtual access to the collections to as broad a community as possible.
Outreach & Engagement
RCSI Heritage Collections aims to support learning at local and national level with the objective of promoting lifelong health and wellbeing and engagement with cultural heritage. We support RCSI to develop and strengthen new and existing reciprocal relationships with communities and partners.
