Getting Started
There are many ways to finding credible medical information. This guide highlights some good starting points.
Getting Help
If you need any help or advice on your research, feel free to contact Nicole Campbell, your subject librarian. She is happy to meet with you about your assignment. Alternately, you can contact the reference desk at: 360-546-9686 or library@vancouver.wsu.edu.
Key Medical Websites
- Medline PlusCollection of information on variety of health topics. (From the National Library of Medicine)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- World Health Organization
- National Center for Health StatisticsCollections of health-related statistics. (From the CDC)
- American Heart Association
General Interest Medical Websites
Finding Research Articles - Databases
There are many ways to find research articles on a given topic. One method is to search databases that contain citations/abstracts and sometimes also include fulltext articles. Some databases are subject-specific; others deal with multiple disciplines. Here are some suggestions:
- Pubmed (WSU)Index of biomedical literature, life science journals and online books. (From NIH) -- This version includes Find It @WSU links and requires authentication from off campus.
- PubMed (free)Index of biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books. (From NIH)
- Science Citation IndexCitation index that includes research from a wide range of fields. Also includes the social sciences and humanities. (WSU subscription database -- authentication required off campus).
- Google Scholar
- More Biology DatabasesList of more databases that cover the biological sciences. (WSU subscription database -- authentication required off campus).
Finding Research Articles - from a citation
What if you have a citation for an article and you just need to get your hands on it?
For example, let's say you are looking for: Hersh AL, Stefanick ML, Stafford RS. National use of postmenopausal hormone therapy. Annual trends and response to recent evidence. JAMA 2004;291:47-53.
You can search one of the many databases available (such as Pubmed or Science Citation Index) using information from the citation. Or you can search the Library's catalog to see if we have the journal (either in our library or online).
To see if our Library has access to a specific journal:
- Go to the Library's homepage.
- Choose Find a Journal @ WSU.
- Search for the journal title in the catalog to see what access is available to WSU. The catalog includes information for print collections and fulltext access. For example: search for JAMA. Browse the results for JAMA online to see our online access or JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association.
Ordering Materials (Interlibrary Loan / ILLiad)
Journal articles that are not available full-text or in the Library can be ordered from other libraries using ILLiad, an online interlibrary loan system. Books and other items not available through Griffin and Summit can also be ordered. There is no cost to you for the service.
Ordering: To order something, create an account in ILLiad and fill out a request form.
Delivery time: Books can take several days to arrive, depending on where they come from (e.g. Pullman vs. Oregon). Journal articles are delivered electronically in approximately 48 hours.
Subject Librarian |
 Nicole Campbell |
Off Campus Database Access
To access the library’s databases from off campus, you will be asked to authenticate after you choose a database. You will be prompted to enter your network ID and password. (This is the same user-name and password used in zzusis.)
If you are having difficulty authenticating, try a different database. If the system still does not allow you in, give us a call.
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