The Library associated with the Museological Centre of the Rovisco Pais Colony Hospital brings together the documentary, photographic, and bibliographic collections of the former hospital. Reorganized in 2023, it provides researchers with access to the documentary holdings of the former scientific library of the Rovisco Pais Colony Hospital, which functioned as a centre for the sharing and production of scientific knowledge. Over time, the collection was enriched with works produced by the Hospital’s clinical staff, as well as through acquisitions and donations, notably from leprologists who visited the Hospital or from counterpart institutions in other countries. Since 1947, this collection supported the clinical staff of the former leprosarium in the treatment and study of Hansen’s disease.

The bibliographic collection of the Rovisco Pais Colony Hospital Library is composed of works from the former Scientific Library and the Hospital Laboratory, totalling approximately 4,350 volumes and 740 titles, of which 51% are monographs and 49% are periodical publications, particularly scientific journals and reviews. Chronologically, consultation of these works allows an understanding of the evolution of the health sciences and healthcare practices worldwide, from the late nineteenth century through to the twenty-first century.

The oldest work in the collection, dated 1823, is a second edition of Ensaio Dermosographico ou Succinta e systematica descripção das Doenças Cutaneas by Bernardino António Gomes, author of the first modern census of Hansen’s disease patients in Portugal.

Approximately 40% of the publications in this collection are of foreign origin, from countries such as England, France, Switzerland, Spain, the Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Germany, the former Soviet Union, the United States of America, Brazil, Argentina, Cuba, Mexico, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, India, Angola, among others. These works represent leading authors, associations, and health institutions from these countries, particularly in the fields of Dermatology and Leprology. The collection also includes a noteworthy set of proceedings from international congresses on Dermatology and Leprology. The rarity of some of these publications is evident from the fact that they are not listed in the catalogues of other Portuguese libraries.

The Library also provides, through its Digital Newspaper Library, digital copies of the Hospital’s main publications, including Rovisco Pais: Revista Portuguesa da Doença de Hansen and the patients’ newspaper Luz, as well as other publications issued by the former hospital specialized in the treatment of Hansen’s disease.

Since May 2025, the Scientific Library of the former Hospital has incorporated the collection known as the Professor Doctor António Poiares Baptista Medical Library. This collection, donated by the family, comprises an extensive set of reference works in the fields of medicine, health history, and dermatology, reflecting the remarkable career of Professor Doctor António Poiares Baptista as a lecturer, researcher, and clinician. Born in Ançã, Cantanhede, in 1927, he graduated in Medicine from the University of Coimbra and specialized in Dermatology in Paris. He was Full Professor and Director of the Dermatology and Venereology Clinic of the University Hospitals of Coimbra, having held several prominent positions in national and international institutions and received numerous distinctions and honours.