About GLOWM

GLOWM is a not-for-profit organization that relies entirely on voluntary expert contributions and is funded by occasional donations and educational grants

OUR ETHOS

Every year, roughly 250 000 women lose their lives from, mostly preventable, complications related to pregnancy and childbirth, not because the interventions to save them don't exist, but because those providing care are often not equipped with the knowledge to apply them. The foundation of The Global Library of Women's Medicine (GLOWM) in 2008 was in part inspired by this fact. With the advent of the internet, it seemed no longer necessary or reasonable that women, who bear an unequal burden of health-related issues, should suffer because their professional carers lacked access to good, practical and expert clinical guidance wherever in the world they happened to be located. With decades of experience in conventional medical publishing, the Founders were aware of the traditional difficulties in delivering books and journals to vast areas of the globe, often to those places that could benefit most from such important and supportive clinical guidance.

So, in the light of the new methods of digital communication that were becoming increasingly effective and available, GLOWM was launched to make some contribution to the enhancement of women's healthcare. All its many online resources, which now number some 20 000 items, are FREE to all users. Our provision of clinical guidance is designed to cover the whole life course of women ranging from early adolescence to the reproductive years, the menopause and old age.

WHAT WE DO

Expert resources

GLOWM offers a wide range of expert resources primarily designed to support doctors, while also providing extensive practical guidance for midwives, nurses and community healthcare workers. In addition, our Welfare of Women program is aimed directly at women. It delivers practical advice on common health issues across the life course and is specifically tailored to overcome barriers such as language and varying levels of literacy.

A cornerstone of our professional education resources is the Continuous Textbook of Women's Medicine, a unique publishing initiative that delivers continuously updated, evidence-based guidance on nearly all aspects of women's health. The series aims to cover the field in 50 online volumes, each consisting of around 10 chapters written by expert teams of specialist authors. Every chapter includes an optional online learning assessment, offering free Continuing Professional Development (CPD) credits and certification. All chapters are fully citable and suitable for academic and clinical reference.

Other resources include a selection of specialist textbooks, clinical films, skills videos and narrated tutorials, all designed to meet the practical needs of healthcare providers in a wide range of settings, from hospitals to remote communities.

For midwives specifically, GLOWM offers the Companions to Management series, consisting of concise, practical reference guides, which address critical clinical topics. Each includes sections on clinical description, differential diagnosis, and step-by-step management algorithms, making them ideal for use in real-time clinical decision-making.

Considering less-resourced regions

In less-resourced regions, where internet coverage is not always available or reliable, our readership has been assisted by some 120 obstetrician/gynecologists who agreed to act as our 'Ambassadors' and used USB drives to download the website's resources onto the computers of local medical schools, hospitals and clinics.

Safer Motherhood app

To extend our outreach, many of our practical resources are available on our free Safer Motherhood app that can be downloaded via Apple, Android or Amazon Firestick.

OUR OVERSIGHT

GLOWM's activities are overseen by our Editor-in-Chief, Professor Kristina Gemzell Danielsson, and Chair, Professor Gian Carlo Di Renzo, with support from an international Editorial Board. GLOWM submits all materials to careful review and can update any part at any time when changes and developments make this appropriate.

SUPPORTING AND FUNDING OUR ACTIVITIES

Voluntary expert contributors

Since GLOWM is a not-for-profit organization that generates no income, it has been dependent from its earliest inception on the generosity and philanthropy of the many experts who have devoted many hours of their time to contribute content without any fee or remuneration.

Over 800 leading specialists in the field of obstetrics and gynecology from more than 30 different countries have contributed their expert input entirely free, and every year more than 150 specialists continue to do so. It is an extraordinary example of professional goodwill and dedication, and their ongoing support is the basis for everything that GLOWM does.

Grants and donations

Direct funding by the Founders was instrumental to GLOWM's establishment and sustainability, and further financial support has been provided by some grant-giving bodies, private donations and unrestricted educational grants from commercial companies. To ensure editorial independence of the content offered, GLOWM does not accept advertising. GLOWM operates on a modest annual budget and none of its officers receives any remuneration for their input.

COPYRIGHT, REUSE AND DOWNLOADING

All material that has been originated by GLOWM is copyrighted by GLOWM but may be downloaded. It may also be reused freely, provided that this is not for commercial purposes and due acknowledgment is given to its source. However, when the material has not been originated by GLOWM itself, but has been supplied to GLOWM by another organization, the permission of that organization is required and must be obtained.

SPECIAL TRIBUTES

We are indebted to the late Professor John Sciarra, formerly of The Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, USA, who was the first Editor-in-Chief of GLOWM. He was key to its initial development and retired as Editor-in-Chief in 2012.

We also extend our deep appreciation to Professor Sir Sabaratnam Arulkumaran, who was our second Editor-in-Chief, from 2012–2018, and whose leadership was inspirational.

We are also particularly grateful to the current Chair of GLOWM, Professor Gian Carlo Di Renzo, for his outstanding contribution in helping to develop our rapidly expanding program and global outreach.

ADVERTISING

There is no advertising on this site.

COPYRIGHT

PRIVACY POLICY

The Publishers are committed to preserving the confidentiality of any personal details that are provided to us. These details will not be passed on or sold to third parties and will be used only by the publishers for general statistical information. Any information supplied to us will be stored securely either in our own databases or in those of our technical partners. Further details about our Privacy and cookie policy.

The Alliance for Global Women's Medicine
3–5 School Lane, Bamber Bridge, Preston, PR5 6QD, UK.

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