HCSA 205
Computers in Health Care
Avoid plagiarism by properly citing your sources. Please go to the Citations webpage to learn how.
Starting your Research
Most of us start doing research using a search engine, such as Google. Because of the vast amounts of information and misinformation that can be found on the Internet, you must be sure to critically evaluate all information found on websites. Please see Criteria for Evaluating a Website for help with determining if a source is reliable.
If you're going to Google, Google Smart!. Consider using the Google Advanced Search or Google Scholar. You can set-up Google Scholar so that it will link you into articles that the library subscribes to. To learn how, click here.
Using Library Resources to Find Reliable Information
Reliable information may be found in many types of library materials. Some examples are:
- Books that may be found in the Catalog. If you specifically want online books, please click here.
To find books on Healthcare Informatics consider using the Catalog and performing:- A subject search for medical informatics
- A subject search for Information Systems
- Also,consider searching for online books in eBrary, using terms such as medical informatics, health informatics, healthcare informatics, health information systems, etc.
- Encyclopedias and other reference books can also be found in the Catalog, or please see our collection of Online Encyclopedias.
- Articles from Journals, newspapers, newsletters, and more can be found in Databases.
Using FLITE Databases to Learn about Health Informatics
What is a database?? A nice definition is available from the Univeristy of Manitoba, that states that a database is "A collection of information organized in such a way that a computer program can quickly select desired pieces of data. You can think of a database as an electronic filing system." So, if you want to find information on a certain topic, such as HIPAA, you can do a keyword search to find the related files.
Some recommended databases for finding information on health informatics, "the clinical uses of computers and information technology (Hanson, Healthcare Informatics)" include:
General OneFile
This is a general database that will be useful for searching many subject areas. For General OneFile, the default search is a subject guide search. In the subject guide search you can only search one concept at a time. If you are having difficulties finding the proper subject term, switch to the Basic Search or Advanced Search and perform a keyword search, then select a pertinent article to find the proper subject heading. Also use the Basic Search or Advanced Search if combining search terms. In the Advanced Search you can limit your articles to particular journals, full-text, peer-reviewed, etc. Most article in this database are available full text online, but sometimes you will need to use the Find It link. For more information on getting the full text of articles, see the Obtaining the Full-Text of Articles section below.
PubMed with FLITE licensed Journal link-out
This is the largest biomedical database, with over 18 million citations. Search using keywords and then limit your search if necessary using the limits tab, related articles link, or selecting the Review tab to see only review articles. When you are using the Limits tab, you can use the Default Tag drop-down menu to have your keyword searched only in the title or title and abstract. Consider changing your record display to Citation view so that you can see the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH). You can add the MeSH terms to the search box to get a subject-specific search. Also, consider starting your search from the MeSH Database to pick up related terms and add subheadings to your search. Other highly useful resources linked from PubMed include Single Citation Matcher and Consumer Health. To get the full text of articles in PubMed, you must click into the record, then click on the Find It link. For more information on getting the full text of articles, see the Obtaining the Full-Text of Articles section below.
Click here for PubMed Database Tutorials.
CINAHL
The Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health (CINAHL) currently gathers information from more than 1800 journals. Use the CINAHL Headings subtab to get more subject-specific information on various topics. When you have found your subject heading, you may click on it to break your topic down by subdivision. Click on the refine search tab to add limits such as peer-reviewed or publication date limits. You can narrow and expand your search using the options available in this database. Use the Find It link to get to the full text of articles in this database. For more information on getting the full text of articles, see the Obtaining the Full-Text of Articles section below.
Click here for a CINAHL Database Guide.
ABI/Inform Global
This business database is helpful for finding information on informatics, containing content from thousands of journals that help researchers track business conditions, trends, management techniques, and corporate strategies. The Suggested Topics box is often helpful for revising your search. There is a lot of full text in this database, but there are also occasions when you will need to use the Find It link to get to the full text of articles. For more information on getting the full text of articles, see the Obtaining the Full-Text of Articles section below.
Journals Relevant to Medical Informatics:
BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making
eJournal of Health Informatics
Health Informatics Journal
Healthcare Informatics
History of Medical Informatics
Informatics in Primary Care
International Journal of Medical Informatics
The Internet Journal of Medical Informatics
Journal of Biomedical Informatics
Journal of Health Informatics in Developing Countries
Journal of Informatics Education and Research
Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association
The Open Medical Informatics Journal
Studies in Health Technology and Informatics
Obtaining the Full-Text of Articles
In some databases you will see an option for a Text version of the document or a PDF version. In general, the PDF version is preferable as it is most often a scanned version of the original and will therefore contain the graphics. When e-mailing, printing, or saving a group of articles, be sure to select the full-text or PDF option if available.
Some databases contain little full-text, but allow you to link out to Ferris' holdings or the interlibrary loan request form. You will notice the Find it! links following individual citations that will indicate the availability of the article online, in the library, or the need to interlibrary loan the article. Click on the Go button and you will be taken to the online version, library holdings record, or interlibrary loan form to obtain the article you desire. See the example below:
Sample Article Link-Out from the Online Catalog Journals Tab
Evaluating your Articles
The website, Guide to Popular vs. Scholarly Journals, is helpful for determining if the article that you are utilizing is from a scholarly source.
An interlibrary loan reminder, before requesting articles from interlibrary loan, please review the abstract and make sure that the article is on-topic. Also, please insure that the article is in a language that you speak, as some databases, such as PubMed index many non-English articles that have abstracts written in English. After you have evaluated the topical coverage and language of the article, please do not hesitate to request it through interlibrary loan if it is not available on campus.
Informatics Websites:
American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) Emerging Issues
Online Personal Health Records from AHIMA
Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Topics and Tools
Medical Informatics for Better and Safer Health Care from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
Google Health: Yes, Google's trying to get into the online health record business, take a look at an article about this by clicking here
Informatics Associations
AHIMA American Health Information Management Association
AMIA American Medical Informatics Association
HIMSS Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society
Other Useful Library Links
Find Books: You may also want to look at the guide for Finding Online Books.
Citation Help for APA Format: (These are all current guides, as APA recently released an update for citing Electronic Resources)
Northern Michigan University's APA Style Guide: This was the guide shown in class. For Nursing Specific examples, including how to cite books from Stat!Ref, click here.
APA Citation Style Guide Quick Reference Sheet in PDF format
APA List of References: Examples of how to cite different types of sources using APA format.
New APA standards for citing Electronic Resources
Any more questions? Contact: Alison (Ali) Konieczny / Email / Phone: 231-591-3696 / Office: FLITE 315
Don't forget, you are welcome to come to the Oval Information Desk and ask for help any time. You can also call us 231-591-3602 or chat with us.
Last update: Feb. 3, 2009