Introduction
This chapter (and Chapter 4, Chapter 5 and Chapter 8) is about gathering information from a variety of sources. The emphasis is on your role in the process – how you can make the material and resources work for you. Gathering information can be broadly divided into two stages:
1. Locating the material.
2. Using the material.
One of the most valuable things you can do is to become familiar with your institution’s library or learning resources centre as soon as possible. Libraries provide access to selected, high-quality information resources in various formats. They also provide equipment, technology and training for accessing information; for example, assistive technologies enabling people with disabilities to access information. Library staff are experienced knowledge navigators and provide training sessions and guidance in locating and making best use of the key information resources required for education, research or clinical practice.
The skills for finding the evidence and literature searching, together with skills to critically evaluate material, have received renewed emphasis in the light of the weight put on evidence-based health care (Sackett et al., 1996), clinical governance and clinical effectiveness (NHS Executive, 1999). Literature searching and information-literacy skills are a vital component of the evidence-based approach in health care. Access to information has been transformed with the advent of the internet, electronic publishing and the arrival of gateways such as NHS Evidence. Therefore, familiarity with information and communication technologies (ICT), a grasp of basic computer skills (see Chapter 4) and information-searching skills are vital.
Learning is nowadays seen as a life-long process and is no longer viewed as something that finishes with leaving school or college. Library and information-gathering skills will be important throughout your working career and beyond.
Critical process
Finding and using information is a process that involves critical thinking, understanding and constant interpretation. It is a questioning process and provides a good foundation for the reasoning skills you need to present a written argument (see Chapter 6).
Guiding principle: be clear about your purpose
Gathering information is done more effectively if you have defined your purpose. Whether you are deciding which database to search or which article to read, keep your purpose clearly in mind. For example, while preparing for an essay, keep the essay question clearly visible to prevent you from straying down interesting but irrelevant avenues (a useful tip for when you come to write it). Information overload means that there is a huge amount of material available and it is easy to be overwhelmed. Knowing your purpose keeps you focused and enables others – for example, library staff – to help you.
Information sources
As a student (and professional) you can expect to use the following:
■ Libraries for:
▪ books: general and specialized texts
▪ journals: also known as periodicals or serials; professional, academic or specialized
▪ audiovisual material: DVDs, videos, multimedia packages
▪ reference material: dictionaries, directories, encyclopaedias, etc.
■ The internet (access via the library or from home) for:
▪ databases: MEDLINE, CINAHL, etc.
▪ publications: electronic or e-journals, e-books, government publications, etc.
▪ patient information: patient organization websites, newsgroups, etc.
■ Professional associations/specialist information centres for:
▪ contacts
▪ specialist information
▪ patient information.
Library resources and services
Why use a library? Many people assume that nearly all the information they require is now available via the internet. However, it is still important to become familiar with the resources and services offered by libraries. It is true that many traditionally library-held resources (books, reports, journals, databases, etc.) are increasingly becoming available, and are easily accessible, online via the internet. Most libraries would describe themselves as being in a hybrid situation at present, i.e. they hold both print and electronic resources.
It is important to remember that not all sources of information have been digitized yet and that access to traditional print resources is still necessary. Newer publications are increasingly being published both electronically and in print form but there are still huge gaps in the literature and, in particular, sources published some time ago will only be available in print.
It is true that libraries are gradually moving away from the concept of being repositories and housing large physical collections of printed documents and journals. In the electronic age, the librarian or information specialist’s role is increasingly concerned with facilitating access and guiding users and researchers to the appropriate resources. We are facing an information explosion in all subject areas, and it can be difficult to know where to begin with your information gathering. Librarians, subject specialists and knowledge managers all have a role in offering guidance through the bewildering amount of information that exists, in whatever format – electronic, print, audiovisual, etc. Many libraries are developing their own portals or websites, which offer guidance to their users on the most useful and appropriate sources of information. These websites typically contain links to the library catalogue (also known as an open-access public catalogue, OPAC), user guides, other useful websites, listings of new resources and contact details. Try to find out whether your library has a website and add it to your Favorites or Bookmarks (depending on which internet browser you use; this allows your web addresses to be saved so that they can easily be visited at a later time).
Library services
The following is a list of services typically offered by libraries. Your library will offer some or all of these:
■ Loans service, reservations, short-term loans for items in heavy demand.
■ OPAC.
■ Document delivery and interlibrary loans (access to resources held in other libraries).
■ Enquiry facilities and subject-specialist librarians.
■ Library website or portal.
■ Photocopying facilities.
■ Computers and printing facilities.
■ Quiet study space.
■ Laminators and binding facilities.
■ DVD/video/CD-ROM viewing facilities.
■ Assistive/adaptive/accessible/enabling technologies for students with disabilities and special needs.
■ Current awareness and alerting services.
■ Training; for example, copyright and plagiarism guidance, literature searching/information literacy, evaluating and critically appraising information, reference management software.
■ Induction sessions for new students.
■ Library guides and searching guides for specific databases or subject areas.
■ Specialist collections.
■ Outreach services; for example, in a hospital there may be a clinical librarian who gets involved in the ward rounds and who aims to provide quick and easy access to clinical information.
It is important to get to know early on in your studies what services the library offers. These should be listed in the general library guide (available online or in print).
Adaptive technologies
Libraries will do their best to ensure that all their users are able to access the information they need. Various adaptive technologies (also known as assistive, accessible or enabling technologies) are provided to ensure that disabled and users with special needs are able to access information. These technologies include:
■ magnification software
■ screen-reading software
■ text-to-speech software: for people with dyslexia
■ voice-recognition systems
■ text highlighting
■ spell checkers
■ word prediction
■ thesauri.
Training and help with using these technologies will be provided on a one-to-one basis.
Resources
Most libraries will have the resources listed in Table 3.1, which offer material appropriate to different search needs. How do you know which to use when, and how do you access them?
| SOURCE | ACCESS | PURPOSE |
|---|---|---|
| Books | ||
| Textbooks Handbooks Research reports Government publications Theses Guidelines | Online public access catalogue (OPAC) listing details of collections, shelf location and access information, e.g. shelf marks OPAC accessed via library workstation or library website (remote access, e.g. at home) Print, e-books and online | Core reading Background Context Factual Original research details and conclusions Policy documents Skills and guides Historical |
| Reference books | ||
| Dictionaries Encyclopaedias Directories Yearbooks and almanacs Atlases Statistical publications (official and unofficial sources) Bibliographies | OPAC as above Print and online, e.g. NLH, Credo Reference | Definitions Factual information Concise overviews Further reading or bibliographies Contacts Geography Population, socio-economic and numerical data |
| Journals | ||
| Research and popular Print and e-journals (also known as articles, periodicals or serials) | OPAC, as above, or separately printed or online journal list gives titles, length of holding, location, access details Indexed – print or online indexes, internet databases with links to full text Internet | Current and specific material Current awareness Primary research papers Literature review News Information exchange Reviews Contacts Events Jobs |
| Newspapers | ||
| Broadsheets Tabloids | OPAC as above or listed with journals as above Titles, length of holdings, location and access details Indexed Microfilm indexes CD-ROM indexes online Print, CD-ROM or online | Current and contemporary Lay/popular material News and reports of latest research Reviews Factual Statistics Online indexes and full-text |
| Audiovisual | ||
| Videos or DVDs CD-ROMS Audio tape or digital Computerized assisted learning (CAL) packages Online e-learning packages | OPAC as above for titles, holdings, location and access | Instructive and learning packages Factual Visual documentaries TV programmes Current and contemporary |
Table 3.1 gives a general picture of sources, means of access and purpose, but it is not meant to be exhaustive. Your own library may hold other resources. You can probably begin to see how the type of information you need, that is, your purpose, determines which source you use.
Take the two following questions and, referring to Table 3.1, think (for about 5- to 10- minutes) where you would look for the material for the answer to each. There could be more than one source:
Take the two following questions and, referring to Table 3.1, think (for about 5- to 10- minutes) where you would look for the material for the answer to each. There could be more than one source:1. Describe the structure and function of the skin.
2. What causes the skin condition psoriasis and how is it now treated?
Both questions deal broadly with the skin. The first concerns basic anatomy and physiology, factual information that is unlikely to change greatly. Textbooks and audiovisual material (i.e. DVDs, CD-ROMS, videos) would probably provide excellent information for this question.
The second question deals with a specific skin condition and requires current information. Textbooks would provide some material and a medical dictionary would give an introductory definition but you would need to use journal literature to discover the up-to-date treatment and care, and any research, findings or discussion/controversy concerning them. There might also be recent TV documentaries (recorded and held in the library) or relevant, current newspaper reports that might aid your understanding of the more clinical material in the health journals. Look for guidelines, for example, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), the British Association of Dermatologists and Clinical Knowledge Summaries (CKS), and evidence-based summaries; for example, Clinical Evidence (BMJ subscription service), Bandolier, the Cochrane Library (systematic reviews).
What resources does your library offer?
If you don’t already know what your university and/or professional library holds, where books and journals are kept and how you access electronic resources – find out! It’s best to familiarize yourself with such things early in your course before you need them. All libraries should offer induction and tuition in the first few weeks of a course. Make the most of such opportunities – seek them out.
The library catalogue
This resource must be mastered as soon as possible. The catalogue tells you what stock the library has and where it is shelved. The type of material listed will depend on the library but will certainly include books and government publications. Audiovisual materials may well be in the catalogue but there may be a separate listing of journals and newspapers.
Nowadays, libraries have computerized catalogue access, often known as OPAC, WebCat WebOPAC, etc. OPACs can tell you what material the library holds by author, subject or title, where any item is shelved or whether it’s out on loan. Other facilities are dependent on the system used by the library. Quite often it is possible to put a hold or reservation on items via the catalogue. Most university, college (and public) library catalogues are now accessible via the internet, usually via the library’s website.
Journal literature
What is a journal?
Essentially, journals are the way you communicate with your fellow professionals nationally and internationally. All professions and trades have journals. The medical and health professions have thousands. From this you will deduce that your library will not have all of them; more on that later.
You may come across journals referred to as ‘serials’ and/or ‘periodicals’, because they are published periodically and because each issue is part of the whole. A journal may be published weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly (four times a year) or occasionally less frequently. Generally, the issues appearing in one year are described as one volume, each year having one volume number. The Journal of Advanced Nursing is an example of a research journal that is published twice a month and consists (unusually) of four volumes per year (24 issues) with each volume consisting of six parts or issues; for example, there were four volumes in 2003, volumes 41–44. The October 2003 volume started with volume 44 part 1. The standard way of writing this is 44(1). The volume number precedes the issue number, which is in brackets.
How is the material in journals different from that in books?
Journals differ from books in five important ways:
1. Currency: books can take 2–4 years to reach publication; journal literature is usually published within months, depending on the frequency of the journal itself. Increasingly, journals are being published electronically via the internet, making them even more immediately available. Open access journals make the research articles freely available via the internet; for example, BiomedCentral, BMC Nursing, Public Library of Science (PLoS).
2. Specificity: articles are condensed material and are therefore focused on specific areas. When you search the literature, your subject headings can be correspondingly precise.
3. Ongoing: reports of ongoing, long-term research projects are to be found in the relevant journals, information otherwise unavailable for perhaps years.
4. Peer-reviewed: research reports published in academic and scholarly journals are subject to the peer-review process and subject to scrutiny by a panel of experts.
5. Contemporary: literature from journals published in the 1960s, for example, directly reflects the tone, attitudes and knowledge of the time, unmuddied by hindsight.
What sort of material do the different journals contain?
You can expect the more frequent (weekly, monthly) journals to contain current affairs, jobs and listings, and articles that are informative, wide ranging but not necessarily research based. The name of the journal is a fair indication of its broad aim, standards and content. So, the Nursing Times and Nursing Standard aim to inform the nursing profession and will cover anything they consider relevant. The European Journal of Oncology Nursing clearly has a narrower remit; articles are longer, specific and often research based. Published bi-monthly, its material is less immediate and more analytical.
Accessing the journal literature
When you need to find out whether a book contains information on a topic, you use the index at the back. This tells you if the topic is covered, on which pages and in how much detail. The principle is the same with journals, i.e. you use an index. It tells you what articles are available on a subject and in which journal you will find them. The chief difference is that journal indexes are generally published as electronic bibliographic databases accessible via the internet; they also index many different journals simultaneously. Quite often, databases provide links to the full text of selected electronic journals (e.g. services such as Thomson Dialog, Ovid, ProQuest, EBSCO), depending on the services or journals subscribed to by your library or resources purchased on behalf of NHS staff by NHS Evidence.
There are advantages to this. Remember that there are thousands of health and health-related journals, hundreds in nursing and midwifery alone. If these were indexed individually instead of collectively, searching the literature would be an enormous task and you would be restricted to the journals your library held. (The flip side is that using journal bibliographic databases means you will probably require some articles not held by your library or subscribed to electronically; most libraries recognize this and will request articles from other sources via the interlibrary loans system.)
How much information does a database give about articles?
Index information consists of the basic bibliographic details about any one item. For a journal article these details should be:
■ title of article
■ author(s)
■ journal name
■ volume and part numbers
■ date
■ page numbers
■ abstract (not always included)
■ descriptors, indexing terms or subject headings.
This information makes up the citation or reference. Depending on the indexing service used, you may be told more about the article; for example, how much further reading it includes or how many references it has cited, whether the content is research based or statistical, and so on.
Abstracts
Many databases provide a summary of content. This summary is called an abstract. Abstracts help you to make a more informed decision about the value to you of an article, paper or report. They are not a substitute for the original text and must not be treated as such. You must not quote them in your own writing as if you had read the original full-length work. In addition, the indexing terms (descriptors or subject headings) may also be listed. These are the terms used by the person who indexes items and may be useful in helping you to find similar articles.
Electronic databases
Finding journal article citations used to involve searching through a printed index or abstracting publication. This was very labour intensive and time consuming. With the advent of CD-ROMs and – more recently – the internet, this task is made much easier, more flexible and much faster. Electronic bibliographic databases have replaced the traditional print indexing and abstracting services. The publishers of CD-ROMs and printed indexes now make their services available via the internet, either by subscription services to institutions, or freely available, as in the case of PubMed (the free version of MEDLINE produced by the US National Library of Medicine). It is now possible to perform a literature search and gather source material from an integrated service such as Thomson Dialog, ProQuest or Ovid. Your library will provide its students with access to one or a number of similar services. These enable a search for citations to be run on various databases and from there to link directly to the full-text of journal articles.
Electronic databases allow you to search terms in combination (e.g. ‘breast cancer’ and ‘case studies’ and ‘post-operative care’). Searching electronic databases gives you the advantage of more means of access to the information, and therefore greater control over your search. There are other benefits, including being able to print out your search results, e-mail or download them to disk or to reference management software (e.g. EndNote, Reference Manager), together with the added advantage of being able to access full-text articles in some cases. Your library will most likely provide training sessions, in groups or on a one-to-one basis, on how to use specialist databases, downloading information, copyright, reference software and other aspects of using online resources. Again, find out now what your library offers and start using it!
As mentioned above, there are so many health journals and other types of health literature that no single bibliographic database can cover all the material published. Most are fairly comprehensive and cover a number of subject areas but are designed for specific disciplines. For example, nursing and midwifery databases include the British Nursing Index (BNI) and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL); MEDLINE and EMBASE cover biomedical subject areas, including nursing and midwifery, but have a stronger emphasis on clinical medicine.
It is your information needs that determine which indexes are best and when. Table 3.2 lists some of the databases available in the health-information field, but there are many others. It is always advisable to run a literature search on several databases and not to rely solely on a single source. Despite some overlap between databases, different results will be produced. CINAHL and MEDLINE have some overlap but will also produce unique citations.
| NLH is now known as NHS Evidence | |||
| NAME AND PRODUCER | ACCESS | YEARS COVERED | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|---|---|
| MEDLINE US National Library of Medicine | PubMed (Internet with free access) NLH – NHS National Core Content Clinical Databases Information aggregators, e.g. Thomson Dialog, Ovid | OLDMEDLINE 1953–1965 MEDLINE 1966– ‘In process citations’ are very new citations and provide basic citation International coverage information prior to receiving full indexing and MeSH headings | Indexes 5200 biomedical journals Medicine, nursing, midwifery, dentistry, veterinary medicine, healthcare systems 18 million citations Bibliographic records, abstracts. Uses MeSH subject indexing |
| CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature) | CINAHL Direct Online Service NLH–NHS National Core Content Clinical Databases | 1982– | Indexes 1200 publications, nursing, midwifery and allied health Bibliographic records, with abstracts Uses CINAHL subject headings |
| EBSCO Information Services | Information aggregators, e.g. Thomson Dialog, Ovid | International coverage | |
| EMBASE | Elsevier bibliographic database | 1974– | A biomedical and pharmacological database with strong UK and European coverage |
| Elsevier | NLH–NHS National Core Content Clinical Databases Information aggregators, e.g. Thomson Dialog, Ovid | Indexes 5000 journals 12 million citations Subject indexing using EMTREE (similar to MeSH) Some overlap with MEDLINE | |
| BNI (British Nursing Index) Bournemouth University, Poole Hospital NHS Trust, Salisbury Health Care Trust, RCN | NLH–NHS National Core Content Clinical Databases Information aggregators, e.g. Thomson Dialog, Ovid | 1985– | Nursing, midwifery and community healthcare database Bibliographic but does not include abstracts Indexes 250 journals UK coverage and updated monthly UK coverage |
| AMED (Allied and Complementary Medicine Database) British Library | NLH–NHS National Core Content Clinical Databases Information aggregators, e.g. Thomson Dialog, Ovid | 1985– | Complementary medicine, palliative care, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, podiatry and rehabilitation, speech and language therapy Uses the AMED thesaurus of indexing terms Indexes 400 journals |
| PscyINFO American Psychological Association | NLH–NHS National Core Content Clinical Databases Information aggregators, e.g. Thomson Dialog, Ovid | 1987– | Psychology and the psychological aspects of related disciplines, e.g. medicine, psychiatry, nursing, sociology, education, pharmacology, physiology, linguistics, anthropology, business and law Indexes 200 journals |
| DH Data Department of Health Library (UK) | NLH–NHS National Core Content Clinical Databases | 1983– | Health service and hospital administration, NHS, nursing, primary care |
| ProQuest ProQuest Information and Learning | NLH–NHS National Core Content Clinical Databases | Various dates | Three databases offering access to 1000 full-text journals: ProQuest Medical Library, Proquest Nursing Journals, ProQuest Psychology Journals |
