Medical Greats | Libraries

Our resources are available to current faculty, staff, residents and staff of the UAB Huntsville Regional Medical Campus. We do not lend items or provide digital resource access to anyone unaffiliated with UAB. Community physicians who hold an adjunct faculty position with the Huntsville campus have access to all Sparks Library resources as long as they have a Blazer ID and password and are currently teaching UAB Huntsville students or residents.

Many of Sparks Library’s books are available to the greater UAB community through Interlibrary Loan. Books that are not available for loan include current editions of Board Review and Step 2 & 3 books, as well as current editions of select textbooks that circulate heavily for student clinical rotations.

There is no limit to the number of items you may check out, nor are there late fees. We ask that items are returned on time so that others have the chance to check them out. Items that are lost or damaged will be charged to your library account at their original purchase price.

All items checkout for four weeks with one (1) renewal. There are multiple ways to renew; you can email us, use the self-checkout machine, or log in to your account on the UAB Libraries webpage.

Campus members who wish to access a book not currently held by the Sparks Library can browse the e-book collection or contact Alan Backer at alanbacker@uabmc.edu to inquire about ordering the title for the Sparks Library collection.

Access to the library outside of business hours is limited to UAB Huntsville faculty, staff, residents and students with a key fob. We do not provide key fobs to non-affiliates of the campus. Non-UAB health workers and medical students are welcome to visit the library during business hours to study and browse our physical resources, but will not be able to check them out.

Food and drinks are allowed in the library as long as you clean up after yourself.

The Sparks Medical Library is dedicated to providing access to the highest quality medical information for its users. Located on the third floor of the UAB Huntsville Regional Medical Campus, Sparks Library offers an attractive and comfortable space for students and residents to work, study, socialize, or to grab a cup of coffee and take a few moments to unwind and relax in front of the large picture window. In addition, non-UAB affiliated health professionals, students from other colleges and universities, and others from the North Alabama area may utilize library in-house resources. Library staff strive to provide friendly and helpful service to all customers.

The library is available 24/7 to all UAB medical students, residents, full-time faculty, and credentialed volunteer faculty physicians. Library staff are in the office Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m, but anyone with a key fob has library access at all times.

If instructional sessions are needed on how to use or access medical informational resources, the librarian can be available after 5 p.m. on weekdays and on the weekend, by appointment.

In-house book collections of the most current core clinical textbooks and shelf/board review guides are available in all clinical specialties offered on the Huntsville Campus. Check-out of these materials is allowed by medical students, residents, and faculty. The Audio-Digest Foundation's CD-ROM series in family medicine, internal medicine, obstetrics/gynecology, pediatrics, and surgery are available for check out. Sparks Library also has a Virtual Reality space with VIVE Focus 3 and Meta Quest 2 headsets; these are available to all students, residents, faculty and staff on campus.

All UAB affiliated users with a BlazerID and password have access to the electronic resources at Lister Hill Library of the Health Sciences. Access is available from any computer or other device with electronic access anywhere in the world 24/7. This means that UAB Huntsville Campus students, residents, faculty and staff are not limited to use of only the physical resources available within the walls of the library. A few of the many electronic resources available 24/7 through Lister Hill's Library site: