Fact Sheet
The NLM Gateway

Introduction

NLM Gateway: http://gateway.nlm.nih.gov/

Gateway is "One-stop shopping" for an increasing number of the information resources of the National Library of Medicine (NLM).  It’s targeted for the Internet user who comes to NLM not knowing exactly what is here, or how best to search for it.  A single interface that searches in multiple retrieval systems, Gateway provides a single address, look, and feel.

Gateway Characteristics

The user enters one query that is sent automatically to multiple retrieval systems having different characteristics but potentially useful results.  Results from the target systems are presented in categories (journal article citations; books, serials, and audiovisuals; consumer health information; meeting abstracts; other collections) rather than by database. In some categories, multiple collections are searched.

We expect that users will come to Gateway for an overview scan of NLM's resources. Some will find what they need immediately.  Others may find that one resource, such as PubMed® or MEDLINEplus®, has information they would like to know more about. They may then choose to go straight to that resource for a more focused search. 

Goals

• Provide "one-stop shopping" for many of NLM's information resources
• Offer citations, full text, video, audio, and images
• Link within and across NLM databases on behalf of users
• Make maximum use of the Unified Medical Language System ® (UMLS®).

Gateway now Accesses:

• MEDLINE®/PubMed®
• LOCATORplus -- catalog information for books, serial titles, audiovisuals
• MEDLINEplus -- consumer health information
• ClinicalTrials.gov --  (information for the public about clinical trials)
• DIRLINE® -- directory of health organizations
• Meeting abstracts on HIV/AIDS, health services research, and space life sciences
• HSRProj -- health services research projects
• OMIM -- Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man
• HSDB -- Hazardous Substances Data Bank
• Document delivery through Loansome Doc®
• UMLS® Metathesaurus®.

Future Links:

• Toxnet on the Web (toxicology and hazardous substances information)
• Additional health services research databases (e.g., HSRTOOLS)
• HSTAT (Health Services/Technology Assessment Text)
• Images from the History of Medicine
• Profiles in Science (archives of several prominent biomedical scientists)
• UMLS Knowledge Source Server (comprehensive Metathesaurus records).

The basic Gateway search interface is simple. It takes advantage of the capabilities of the retrieval systems it links to, for example, the advanced query parser and the Related Articles and LinkOut functions in MEDLINE/PubMed. Users can set preferences to adapt the interface to their needs, such as specifying which elements of a record they wish to see in the display of results. A "locker" is used to store selected results and other elements the user wishes to keep across sessions. The user can download, print, or email results.

The design builds on the strength of the intelligent gateway concept: the ability to offer value-added capabilities the user did not know to ask for. In future versions, links within and across databases will be exploited. Searches in clusters of NLM databases (or in all databases) will be offered.

Current Status

The NLM Gateway was released to the public on October 16, 2000. New versions are released periodically.

For information on NLM services, contact:

National Library of Medicine

Customer Service

8600 Rockville Pike

Bethesda, MD 20894

Telephone: 1-888-FINDNLM (1-888-346-3656) or (301) 594-5983

e-mail: custserv@nlm.nih.gov

A complete list of NLM Fact Sheets is available at:

(alphabetical list) http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/factsheets/factsheets.html

(subject list): http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/factsheets/factsubj.html

Or write to:

FACT SHEETS

Office of Communications and Public Liaison

National Library of Medicine

8600 Rockville Pike

Bethesda, Maryland 20894

Phone: (301) 496-6308

Fax: (301) 496-4450

email: publicinfo@nlm.nih.gov