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FAQ: National Library of Medicine Guide to Finding Health Information
Printer-friendly VersionNLM librarians can't answer questions about individual medical cases or offer medical advice, because we are not doctors, nurses, or pharmacists. We can help you find health information resources.
Contents
- How Can the National Library of Medicine Help Me with My Research?
- Why Should I Go to a Public Library, and What Can I Find There?
- What Other Resources Can I Find at a Medical Library, and How Do I Find One That is Open to Me?
- How Can I Get Information From Other Government or Health-Related Organizations?
- How Do I Search For Other Medical Information on the Web?
- How Do I Evaluate the Information I Find?
How Can the National Library of Medicine Help Me with My Research?
You can find information from the following NLM health information resources that are free on the Web:
Consumer Health Information Resources- MedlinePlus directs you to authoritative health information on hundreds of diseases, conditions and health topics. This site also includes a medical encyclopedia, drug information, and links to recent article citations from the MEDLINE/PubMed database.
http://medlineplus.gov - Finding Consumer Health Information FAQ has tips for finding information about lab tests, drugs, pet health, doctors, and more.
http://www.nlm.nih.govservices/faqpc.html - ClinicalTrials.gov provides patients, family members, health care professionals, and members of the public with information on clinical trials for a wide range of diseases and conditions.
http://clinicaltrials.gov/ - Tox Town introduces you to toxic chemicals and environmental health risks you might face in everyday places.
http://toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/ - Household Products Database has health and safety information on household products.
http://hpd.nlm.nih.gov/ - HIV/AIDS Consumer Health Info has links to reliable information sources.
http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/hiv.html - Health Hotlines lists toll-free health information hotlines numbers.
http://healthhotlines.nlm.nih.gov/ - DIRLINE is a directory database of addresses, phone numbers and information about health and biomedicine organizations, research resources, projects, and databases.
http://dirline.nlm.nih.gov/ - NLM Gateway database searches TOXLINE Special, MedlinePlus, ClinicalTrials.gov, and DIRLINE.
http://gateway.nlm.nih.gov/
Professional Health Literature Resources
- MEDLINE has more than 13 million citations to research articles published in 4800 biomedical journals. Search MEDLINE using these databases:
http://pubmed.gov/ - PubMed searches MEDLINE (and OLDMEDLINE 1951-1965). See the MEDLINE FAQ page.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/usemedline.html - NLM Gateway simultaneously searches NLM databases, LocatorPlus, and Meeting Abstracts.
http://gateway.nlm.nih.gov/ - Use LocatorPlus an online catalog of all the books, journals, and other materials owned by NLM to identify materials on your topic.
http://locatorplus.gov/
Why Should I Go to a Public Library, and What Can I Find There?
A local public library is a good place to start your research. A public library can:
- provide individualized reference help
- tell you about other local or regional resources
- help you get materials
- provide internet access to health resources
Library Resources may include:
- Basic Medical Reference Sources
- These may include medical or nursing textbooks, dictionaries or encyclopedias, drug information handbooks, and current therapy books.
- These may include medical or nursing textbooks, dictionaries or encyclopedias, drug information handbooks, and current therapy books.
- Medical and Health Directories
- Directories of doctors and medical specialists in your area; and health information directories to find consumer health resources, support groups, and organizations.
- Directories of doctors and medical specialists in your area; and health information directories to find consumer health resources, support groups, and organizations.
- Other Library Resources
- Many libraries have databases that index magazines and newspapers, as well as some medical journals.
- These special resources identify journal articles written for health professionals. They are often the most current source of information on medical topics.
How to get materials that your library does not own: Interlibrary Loan and Loansome Doc
If your library does not own the magazines or journals with the articles you want.
- Ask about getting copies of articles through Interlibrary Loan.
http://www.nlm.nih.govservices/ill.html - Some libraries may charge a fee for this service.
If you want to get articles cited in PubMed, ask a local library about a Loansome Doc account.
- Loansome Doc allows you to order articles directly from PubMed. The articles are sent to you (for a fee set by the library you use).
- To find a local library that is a Loansome Doc supplier, call your Regional Medical Library at 1-800-338-7657.
- For more details on Loansome Doc, please see our Frequently Asked Questions.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/faqill.html#LD
What Other Resources Might I Find at a Medical Library, and How Do I Find One That is Open to Me?
These libraries are usually found at medical, nursing, and dental schools; large medical centers; and community hospitals. They have textbooks (medical, dental, nursing and other specialties), health-related journals and other material used by health care professionals.
- Call your Regional Medical Library at 1-800-338-7657 to find the closest medical library open to the public.
- Find a library you can use in the list of Medical Research Libraries by State.
http://nnlm.gov/members/ - Ask what services are available to you: interlibrary loan, answering reference questions, and performing bibliographic searches.
- Ask if there is a fee for photocopies or services.
How Can I Get Information from Other Government or Health-Related Organizations?
Besides the NLM resources listed above, some good starting points are:
Federal Government- National Institutes of Health (NIH) Health Information page links to health/medical information in publications and fact sheets, databases, and other resources
http://health.nih.gov/ - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC) links to health statistics, travelers' health guides, information on diseases and health topics. There is a Spanish-language version of their web site.
http://www.cdc.gov/ - Food and Drug Administration (FDA) links to background and regulatory information about drugs, food, biologics, cosmetics, medical devices, and radiological health.
http://www.fda.gov/ - healthfinder®links to reliable consumer health and human services information (online publications, clearinghouses, databases, support and self--help groups, government agencies and not-for-profit organizations).
http://www.healthfinder.gov/ - The National Health Information Center (NHIC) is a referral service with information about federally funded clearinghouses and information centers.
http://www.health.gov/nhic - Toll- Free Numbers for Health Information.
http://www.health.gov/nhic/pubs/tollfree.htm
Associations and Voluntary Organizations
- Use MedlinePlus health information pages and DIRLINE to identify associations and voluntary organizations with health information.
http://medlineplus.gov/ - Some organizations:
- Are devoted to specific diseases or conditions, such as the American Heart Association.
- Serve a special population group and provide various information and services.
How Do I Search for Other Medical Information on the Web?
Searching for other health information on the Web can be confusing and overwhelming.
Tutorials on the Web explain how to use search engines effectively:
- The Dartmouth Biomedical Libraries Web site workshop on Web Searching Tips and Techniques.
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~biomed/workshops/search.htmld/index.shtml
How Do I Evaluate the Information I Find?
Some medical information may not be reliable, accurate, or up-to-date (whether from a Web site, book, or article).
Tips for judging information are found on these National Institutes of Health Web pages:
- The National Cancer Institute's How To Evaluate Health Information on the Internet: Questions and Answers.
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Information/internet - The MedlinePlus MedlinePlus Guide to Healthy Web Surfing page
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/healthywebsurfing.html
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http://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/guide.html
Last reviewed: 18 September 2008
Last updated: 18 September 2008
First published: 01 January 2001
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