DHYG 118
Dental Hygiene Research
Finding Library Materials
The snapshot of the Library Homepage below highlights the Find menu which is a good starting point to find various library resources, such as books, articles, journals, subject guides, etc.
To find books, journals, videos, and other library materials, you may go to the library's homepage and use the Find link, pictured above. This will allow you to:
- Find Books, videos, and more using the online catalog. The online catalog is set-up so you can perform keyword searches, subject searches, title searches, etc.
- Find Articles using databases. You can select Health and Medical Resources if you are specifically searching a health-related topic, or select other subject areas as necessary.
- Find Journals using the online catalog journals tab. Journals may be available online, in print, or in microform. You can search by the full journal title, title words, or by subject. You will then need to click on the journal title, and link out to the journal information (see the example below in Obtaining the Full-Text of Articles)
- Find Online Encyclopedias, Handbooks, and other Reference Books using the Online Reference Resources.
- More options under the Find link
Finding Articles in Databases
To find articles pertinent to your topic, it is essential to use the appropriate databases that provide access to many citations and full-text articles. If you are doing research from off-campus, you will need to log-on to use databases licensed by FSU. You can log-on to the databases using your MyFSU username and password. Click here for more information on off-campus database access.
Stat!Ref
Stat!Ref is an excellent starting point for researching medical topics. Enter your search term into the search box and you will obtain a rank-ordered list of results taken from various medical encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks, and other medical reference books. A very helpful feature of this database is the Related Concepts box to the left of the results that will provide you with synonyms for your topic. These related concepts or synonyms can be used to enhance your searches in this database, as well as the other databases.
Click here for a Stat!Ref Database Guide.
CINAHL
The Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health (CINAHL) currently gathers information from approximately 3000 journals. Once you've run a search, use the options on the left-hand side to narrow your date range, and consider scrolling further down the results screen and using Subject: Major Heading to limit your search to major topics of interest.
To get the full text of the articles, you will need to 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 a CINAHL tutorial
Health & Wellness Resource Center
This database is by default oriented towards consumer health information and is a good place to find resources that would be directed at patients, but also contains much information oriented towards health care professionals. Information in this database includes medical encyclopedias, journal articles, pamphlets, videos, and health assessment tools.
PubMed
This is the largest biomedical database, with over 21 million citations. Search using keywords and then limit your search if necessary using the Limits link, Related Citations link, or selecting the Review link to see only review articles.
Note: You must click into the article record to see the Find It link that will attempt to link you out to the article (see the example below under Obtaining the Full-Text of Articles)
Click here for PubMed Tutorials.
General OneFile
This is a general database that will be useful for searching many subject areas. Health Reference Center is a subset of General OneFile and operates in the same manner as General OneFile. For both General OneFile and Health Reference Center, the default search is a subject guide search. In the subject guide search you can only search one term 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.
MedlinePlus
Made freely available by the National Library of Medicine (as is PubMed), this is an excellent patient information resource that connects users to reliable health information.
Cochrane Library
The Cochrane Library is a valuable resource for evidence-based medicine. This library is growing, so be sure to check back at a later time if you are not currently finding information on your topic. You can search using keywords such as dental hygiene, or browse Cochrane Reviews by topic.
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 image below.
Sample Journal Link-Out:
Evaluating your Articles
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.
Other Useful Library Links
Find Articles in Databases:
Choose your topic area, and proceed from there.
Find Journals:
Look for journals by doing title, keyword, or subject searches.
Find library materials in the Online Catalog:
Look for books, videos, and other library holdings.
APA Citation Style Guide:
Learn basics about APA style, a prevalent citation format in the medical field.
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: March 20, 2012