Help and FAQs

students walking into the library

Help and FAQs

If you are having trouble finding something or need assistance using our services, ask a librarian. We’re here to help! The James F. Winterstein Library also provides in-depth instruction for individuals or groups (e.g., how to search the catalog, how to search a database). If you would like to schedule training, contact us today.

Bibliographies

These lists are intended to provide possible sources of information.

Possible Sources

Streaming Videos

Top streaming videos for each program have been screened and selected by students. Click on the title to watch the video. Find the complete listings of our streaming videos on A-to-Z (select Index from gray menu to find video collections by name, look for “in Video” in title, and click on the Title List to browse programs.)

Government Resources

Citing References

There are many styles for citing bibliographic references. However, most citations contain the same elements, although their order and appearance may differ. If you’re familiar with one style, you can understand other styles with little difficulty.

Journal Articles

Citations to journal articles usually contain the following: author(s), title of the article, title of the journal, volume and issue numbers, date of the journal, and the page numbers.

This is a citation for a journal article:

Beware the prolapsed disc. Lehmann OJ, et al. Br J Hosp Med 1991 Jul;46(1):52.

Books

Citations to books usually contain the following: author(s) of the book, title of the book, place of publication, publisher, and date of publication. If the reference is to a specific chapter in a book, the citation will also contain the author(s) of the chapter, the chapter title, and page numbers.

This is a citation for a whole book:

Stryer L. Biochemistry. 2nd ed. San Francisco: WH Freeman Co., 1981.

This is a citation to a chapter in a book:

The rationale of physiotherapy in chiropractic. pp. 1-14. Jaskoviak PA, Schafer RC. In: Jaskoviak PA, Schafer RC. Applied physiotherapy: practical clinical applications with emphasis on the management of pain and related syndromes. Arlington, VA: Associated Chiropractic Academic Press, 1986.

More Citation Formats

For Scientific Format, model your paper after a recent article in a scientific journal. Most journals include a section on information for authors.

Consult a style guide such as The Chicago Manual of Style, NLM Recommended Formats for Bibliographic Citation, Scientific Style and Format, Medical Style & Format, AMA Manual of Style, or Electronic Styles. (These are located on the Reference shelves under WZ or Z.)

Additional Resources

  • EasyBib – Automatically generate a citation
  • Easy Citation Generator – Automatically create your bibliographies, citations, and works cited lists in the correct format using APA, MLA, Chicago, Vancouver, or Harvard referencing styles — instantly!
  • Getting Published – In-depth citation formatting

Guide to Internet Research

Evaluating Internet Sources

Since it can be difficult to verify the credibility of internet sources, you must critically analyze each web source. Some things to keep in mind when evalulating source include:

  • Author’s credentials, affiliations, and associations
  • Date of publication
  • Edition or revision
  • Publisher
  • Sources used
  • Group or industry affiliations of website

At any step of the research process, you can consult a James F. Winterstein Library staff member for assistance.

Search Engines

There are many search engines available to utilize for your research. The most popular search engines in the U.S. are (in alphabetical order):

You may also find the following websites helpful in addition to search engines.

For a complete list of search engines, see Wikipedia.

Boolean Search Terms

For information on how to use boolean search terms in a search engine, please watch this video: Boolean Searching.

Citing Sources

  • EasyBib – Automatically generate a citation

Overview of Using Media

Books

For understanding a subject. The presentation may be basic or detailed, depending on the purpose and scope of the book. Most books take a year or more to be published, so they generally contain older information than journals and magazines. Use the library catalog to locate specific books or to identify the appropriate subject areas in the collection (e.g., biochemistry, pathology, physiology, pharmacology, etc.). Many books have indexes in the back, which will help you find specific information in the book.

Dictionaries

A specific kind of reference book used for checking the definition and spelling of a word, finding synonyms, and getting a brief overview of a subject. Check a specialized dictionary for technical subjects. For example, Dorland’s Illustrated Medical Dictionary and Stedman’s Medical Dictionary are useful medical dictionaries.

Indices and Databases

Health sciences indices and databases help you find journal articles on a specific subject or by a particular author. Most indices are now available in electronic versions. To use a periodical index efficiently, first check its thesaurus, which is a list of subject terms used in the index. The most important thesaurus in our library is the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH).

The James F. Winterstein Library owns the major English language biomedical journals needed to support the NUHS curricula and many other journals are available over the Internet. Therefore, by making good use of the indices and databases in the James F. Winterstein Library, you will find sufficient information on campus to complete most assignments. However, if you do need an article that NUHS doesn’t have, you may request it by filling out an interlibrary loan request form.

Journals

For current scientific information. Most reputable scientific journals have a peer-review system. Before an article is published, it is reviewed by experts in the field.

  • Journals Holdings List
    Consult this document to find out which print periodicals the James F. Winterstein Library owns and where they can be found. It is also available in notebooks around the Internet and reference computers.
  • Databases, Journals, and eBooks
    This list includes electronic journal subscriptions and journals available through our full-text databases.

Newsletters

For current information. Published at least once per year. Example: Chiropractic Report.

Reference Books

For checking facts and looking up short answers. Examples: Merck Manual is an encyclopedia of diagnosis and therapy. PDR (Physician’s Desk Reference) provides drug information, including dosage, pharmacology, adverse reactions, and precautions. ACP Medicine is updated regularly and offers a good overview of many medical topics including a section on normal laboratory values.

Trade Magazines

For news about a trade or profession, advertisements, editorials, practice management information, etc. Example: Chiropractic Economics.

Web Sites

You can probably find a Web site for any topic. Their ease of updating can make them especially valuable for current information. However, because Web sites are so easily posted by anyone, you must carefully evaluate each site for its credibility, accuracy, and currency. For a starting point, see our list of Useful Sites.