National Library of Medicine
Office of Acquisitions
Functional Statement
(Revised April 21, 2006)
The Office of Acquisitions (OA) serves under the Executive Officer, Office of the Director, National Library of Medicine.
The mission of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) is to (1) assist the advancement of medical and related sciences through the collection, dissemination and exchange of information important to the progress of medicine and health; (2) serve as a national information resource for medical education, research, and service activities of Federal and private agencies, organizations, institutions, and individuals; (3) publish and distribute guides to medical literature and audiovisual materials in the form of catalogs, indexes and bibliographies; (4) develop, produce and disseminate audiovisual materials and systems and other aids to medical education, research and practices; (5) support the translation and publication of biomedical literature; (6) provide support for medical library development and for training of biomedical librarians and other health information specialists; (7) conduct and support research in techniques and methods for recording, storing, retrieving, and communicating health information; and (8) provide technical consultation services and research assistance.
The Executive Officer is organizationally within NLM's Office of the Director. The Executive Officer (1) plans and directs administrative management functions of NLM including financial management, personnel management, acquisitions management, administrative services, management analysis and legislation; (2) advises the Director, NLM, and the Divisions on developments in administrative management and their implications and effects on program management; and (3) coordinates administrative management activities of the Divisions.
The Office of Acquisitions (OA) is responsible for the conduct of NLM's acquisitions programs (both contracts and small purchases). In the execution of its responsibilities, OA:
Pursuant to its delegations of procurement authority, OA is unique among the NIH decentralized acquisitions offices in that it processes a wide variety of requirements for both R&D and non-R&D, a major portion of which are for the acquisition of Federal Information Technology. Acquisitions are processed under both the negotiated and Simplified Acquisition Procedures. OA utilizes a wide variety of complex fixed price and cost-reimbursement contract instruments.
Last reviewed: 02 September 2008
Last updated: 01 December 2006
First published: 04 September 2002
Metadata| Permanence level: Permanence Not Guaranteed