J.E. & L.E. Mabee Library

Nursing Orientation

Objective: Locate and access books, dictionaries, handbooks, current journal articles and other materials for your research projects. You will be instructed on how to search the online catalog. Instructions to search electronic databases relevant to your project will be given.

Outcome: You should be able to successfully search online databases to access desired materials at UIW. These strategies will be transferable to other libraries.

Step 1: Find background information for your research projects
Step 2: Find books and other publications on the online catalogs
Step 3: Find citations, abstracts and the full text of journal articles
Step 4: Find suggested, related World Wide Web ( WWW) sites

Step 1: Find Background information. Reference Area First floor. Dictionaries, encyclopedias and handbooks have articles that summarize topics. Their bibliographic records are available on the online catalog and an R before the call number. These are suggested titles to find background information.

Step 2 : Find books on your research topic on WebVoy‡ge-Endeavor. The library catalog lists all the books owned by the UIW Library. There are several searchable indexes in the online library catalog. Click on the pull-down menu and select the appropriate index: Author, Title, Subject and Call Number. Instruction for the Telnet version of the catalog is available if needed. The library regularly receives and catalogs publications from the American Nurses' Association and the National League for Nursing. These publications are available in the Nursing Vertical File located on the First Floor.

Step 3. Find articles in journals. The library has access to various databases/indexes through our Databases & Indexes page and the WWW. These sources provide indexing of journals and often contain the full text of the articles.

Steps to identify appropriate databases and locate and/or access journal articles

1. Select an appropriate index/database for your research. CINAHL will be discussed to demonstrate locating citations and abstracts. It is accessible through on the library's Intranet page. In comparison, we will look at LEXIS-NEXIS for full-text articles.

CINAHL Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health database provides authoritative coverage of the literature related to nursing and allied health disciplines. Includes over 1,200 health-related publications. These include, journals, health care books, nursing dissertations, selected conference proceedings, standards of professional practice, and educational software.

2. Button Column. The row of small icons such as author, title, journal, etc., control ProQuest's search window. Click any of these buttons to search the corresponding field of the journal articles.

3. Rest your mouse on the tab Search Methods to choose Basic, Guided or Advanced search. The Advanced tab, gives you access to the Thesaurus or Subject Heading (controlled vocabulary terms).

4. When you place your mouse on Results and Marked List tab a pull down will appear which will enable you to see your recent search statements. You may add one or more search statements together in an AND, OR, or AND NOT relationship. Click the Add icon beside the search statement. You can create a new search set that represents the intersection (AND) or union (OR) of two or more previously created sets. You must have at least two sets in your search history to use the Combine command.

Please refer to CINAHL'S Search Guide screens for more information on conducting searches.

5. Cross reference your citations to the UIWâs Periodicals List on the Library's home page to determine if the library has access to the title and in which format. The Periodicals List will direct you to our journal holdings Website or describe the journal as being available as a Bound Periodical. Bound Periodicals are on the second floor, shelved in alphabetical order. If you determine we don't have access to the journal ask for an Interlibrary Loan. You may also go to the library owning the journal and physically access your articles. Interlibrary Loan forms are available at the Reference Desk.

LEXIS-NEXIS Academic Universe provides access to a wide range of news, business, legal, and reference information. LEXIS-NEXIS provides full text articles.

1. Go to the Library Home page and click on the LEXIS-NEXIS link in Databases & Indexes
2. Select the Medical database from the list below Academic Search Forms. Enter your Keyword in the first field. When searching by keyword, documents retrieved will contain your terms in the headline, lead paragraph(s) or indexing terms (Subject Headings).
3. You may limit your search by specifying additional terms or phrases that must appear in the document, or by specifying a date period, before it will be retrieved.
4. To read the article click on the link; the document may be printed, saved or sent via email.

LEXIS-NEXIS provides the following aids: "How Do I", "Site Map" and "Help", which will answer many FAQ's including how to cite references from, LEXIS-NEXIS, in the Modern Language Association (MLA) and the American Psychological Association (APA) writing styles.

Other databases suggested for your research course are: CQ Researcher, Expanded Academic ASAP, Medline with Mesh, ABI-Inform, PsyINFO, and ERIC (EBSCO).

Inter Library Loan

If you determine UIW doesn't have access to the journal, consult the CORAL List for local availability. You are welcome to go to these libraries to consult the journal and/or make copies. If this is not convenient, or the item is not locally available, Interlibrary Loan service is provided--just remember to plan your work to allow plenty of time for an item to be copied or sent from another library (this could take several weeks depending on a variety of factors). In some instances special borrowers' cards through TexShare and the UT Health Sciences Center can be issued to students. The librarian should be consulted for details.

Step 4. Find World Wide Web (WWW) sources.

Suggested Web Sites:

UIW's School of Nursing
http://universe.uiwtx.edu/~norgan/page/Nursweb.htm

American Nurses Association
Nursing World
http://www.nursingworld.org/

Texas Nurses Association
www.texasnurses.org

University of Texas School of Nursing
Academic Journal Directory
http://www.son.utmb.edu/catalog/catalog.htm

University at Buffalo Health Sciences Library
Nursing Sites on the Web
http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/units/hsl/internet/nsgsites.html

Northern Illinois School of Nursing
and Health Related Links
http://www.nursing.niu.edu/

Fedstats
More than 70 agencies in the United States Federal Government produce statistics of interest to the public. The Federal Interagency Council on Statistical Policy maintains this site to provide easy access to the full range of statistics and information produced by these agencies for public use.
http://www.fedstats.gov/

U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances Disease Registry (ATSDR)
U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
U.S. Department of Energy: Environment, Safety, and Health
U.S. Department of Energy: Office of Environmental Management
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OHSA)

Have You Tilted?
Texas Information Literacy Tutorial (TILT) - interactive library tutorial

Last but not least... a great site to consult when you get around to writing the paper. This is a great, how-to, site for beginners. The Nuts and Bolts of College Writing.

Mabee Library Reference Desk Phone Number 829-3835

Robert Trowsdale, MLS Library Liaison to the Nursing School 829-3843