Development of methodologic tools for planning and managing library services. I. Project goals and approach.

In July 1966, the Institute for Advancement of Medical Communication began work on a project aimed at developing methods for collecting objective data suitable for planning and guiding local, regional, and national programs to improve biomedical libraries and the biomedical information complex. This article constitutes an introduction to a series of reports on the methodologic tools that have been developed. It describes the overall purpose and initial goals of the project, gives the general plan of the work, and presents five basic concepts that underlie the project's approach and structure the entire effort.