Library Secrets

aka Help my school has a library, and they want me to use it!

Books, Journals and Internet, Oh My!

Find books in the Library Catalog (A). The Catalog provides details, call numbers, and sometimes links to online editions. Search by title (if you know it) or by keyword when you are looking for books on a certain topic. Journals can also be found in the Library Catalog, or you can use the E-Journal system (B) for quick access. Hint: the E-Journal system will only show you electronic online journals. Some journals (especially older ones) may only be in paper on the shelf at the library.

Call Numbers Finding Books on the Shelf

All library books are arranged by call number. The Briscoe Library uses the National Library of Medicine system (you probably used Dewey in school or Library of Congress at other universities). This is usually more helpful than alphabetical by author that is used in bookstores because most of us dont know author names. Call numbers are organized by subject. Need Nursing visit WY, need Anatomy visit QS, looking for Obstetrics visit WQ. If you can find one good title in the library catalog, look around it on the shelf for related books. The same arrangement is used at Reserve and Reference at the library. Even books that cover more than one field are still given a specific call number. For example, Case Studies in Maternity and Pediatric Nursing is at WY 18.2 G8224c 2009 on the 5th floor.

Searching the Literature

Usually this means you have been asked to find several scholarly articles on a topic that you have chosen or been assigned by your instructor. The best place to begin this search is in a Database (C). Many libraries have dozens of databases from which to choose. When you visit the Database page (C) you can browse or search for databases by subject/topic. Nursing and other clinical or healthcare topic searches usually begin in CINAHL or MEDLINE. CINAHL and MEDLINE are available in the Databases quick menu (D) on the homepage.
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MEDLINE is a biomedical database (meaning that nursing and other specialty areas are part of the content which includes medicine, dentistry, healthcare administration and more) from the National Library of Medicine and NIH that is searchable from many sites (some of which are freely available) o PubMed.gov Both search MEDLINE o Ovid MEDLINE o and more CINAHL is the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, searchable through the Librarys subscription to EBSCO Library tipsheets and tutorial links are available on our website: http://library.uthscsa.edu/2011/11/tipsheetsuser-guides/

Love Google? So Do We
Discover the joys of Google Scholar - http://scholar.google.com and find articles instead of websites! Set your Scholar Settings for Library Links - Full-Text @ My Library or HSC Link buttons and the Import into RefWorks or EndNote option.

Need Items the Library Does Not Have?

Use Interlibrary Loan (ILL)! If you want an item that we dont have online or in paper, request it online (ILLiad): http://library.uthscsa.edu/2011/11/interlibrary-loan/. Usually in under a week, you will get the book, journal or article. If you requested a journal article, you will likely receive it as a PDF file. Regular ILL requests are always free. You would only be charged for Rush (2 business day) requests. If you need help with ILLiad, try the handy tipsheet http://library.uthscsa.edu/2011/11/illiad-guide/ or contact the Library for help.

Access E-Books and E-Journals from Anywhere

The fastest way to use library resources from anywhere is to click on any library link. If you are off-campus, the site will ask you to login. Select your user group and log in. Students will use the same login/password as used for the Inside.UTHSCSA and Blackboard websites.

You Are Not Alone - Get Library and Research Help!

The Briscoe Library has help available when you need it. Librarians are available Monday-Friday from 9am-5pm. You can also make an appointment for individual in-depth help. Come by: Ask at Library Circulation for a librarian or contact directly Call Library Information: 210-567-2450 Email: askalibrarian@uthscsa.edu IM: http://library.uthscsa.edu/2011/10/get-help/ The telephone number at Briscoe Library Circulation is 210-567-2440 and is answered while the library is open.

UT Health Science Center Libraries

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