Thomas Söderqvist As you can see from the comments on yesterday’s post, the closing of the Wellcome Centre for the History of Medicine seems unbelievable (or a April Fools Day prank). The Centre’s outreach historian, Carole Reeves, has asked for the following message to be posted:
It is with regret that the Wellcome Trust and University College London announce the decision to work towards closure of the Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine at UCL.
Both the Wellcome Trust and UCL acknowledge the significant achievements of the Centre over the years. The decision follows discussions between the senior staff of both organisations and consideration by the Board of Governors of the Wellcome Trust.
In accordance with Trust practice, the closure of the Centre will be phased over a two year period, allowing time for discussion and planning with regard to the current staff.
The Wellcome Trust remains firmly supportive of the study of the history of medicine and the medical humanities. It is keen to ensure that there is continued access and accommodation available for academics wishing to use the facilities of the Wellcome Library.
I regret that yesterday’s post about the closing of the Centre could be misinterpreted: I wrote that “The decision probably doesn’t come as a surprise to those of us who have followed the Centre closely during the last couple of years”. It’s more accurate to say that “The decision probably doesn’t come as a surprise to those of us who have followed the policy of the Wellcome Trust closely during the last couple of years”.
