Do you remember what research was like before the Internet? No MEDLINE, CINAHL or Google. Books were often the hot commodities. Although the tendency is to jump online and start typing terms to see if one article describing your specific topic exists, don't discount the value of books for doing research.
In spite of the dictum that 'half of what is learned in medical school will be outdated by the time one starts practicing and that it takes years for new research findings to find their way into textbooks', book resources may still be a good starting point for research. They can help you to define or refocus a topic, or even supply the citations to help launch the research.
MEDLINE articles typically deal with very specialized aspects of a topic or problem. Turn to books for broader, more general information. For example, textbooks can help address the principles of evidence-based medicine, provide an overview of hepatitis C or discuss the role of diabetes in pregnancy.
Scott Memorial Library offers a variety of searchable, full-text books on JEFFLINE, including:
- Harrisons's, the classic internal medicine textbook. The online textbook is continuously updated, offers information on clinical trials related to internal medicine, and has pretests for review of topics that help with preparing for exams.
- STAT!REF, which includes nine clinical references and Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
- MD Consult, which offers access to over 40 core textbooks.
- Books@OVID, which currently includes two textbooks.
So the next time you're faced with a research assignment, don't just rely on MEDLINE or CINAHL. Consider using these book resources for your preliminary research.
Related Links:
