Moses Cone Health
System - Medical Library
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Eligibility for Services
Who can visit the Medical Library locations and the Library Web site?
Answer: Anyone can visit the four MCHS Library locations as well as the Library Web site. Information about Library locations, hours of operation, how to contact us, and your eligibility for various Library services can be viewed by visiting the Library Web site homepage and selecting the link entitled About Us.
2. Journal Articles
How do I find complete (full-text) journal articles?
Answer: Some journal articles are freely available while others must be purchased. The MCHS Medical Library Web site offers several ways for you to locate full-text articles:
- A-Z List of MCHS Online Journals – This A-Z link on the Library homepage is another good place to check for full-text availability once you have located a journal article in which you are interested. Note that although a journal title may be on this list, the publisher may have limits on which journal issues are available in full-text form.
- Library Catalog – There is a link to our Catalog on the Library homepage. The Catalog tells you whether we have a print subscription to a particular journal. Print journals are stocked on shelves in our library locations.
- Databases– The Library homepage has links to databases where you can hunt for journal articles on particular medical and health related topics. Some, but not all, of the articles you locate will be available in full-text form.
3. Books – Online and Print
How do I find health and medical books available to me either in print or online?
Answer:
- Library Catalog: The MCHS Medical Library Catalog is available online and can be reached on our Web site homepage. Search for books in all formats as some are available in print and/or CD-ROM. Also some of the print and CD-ROM book titles are available online in various databases. Please contact library staff for online status of these books.
- Online books– The Medical Library Web site homepage has these links to electronic books:
- Books@OVID – ID and Password are not required when using a computer within Moses Cone Health System to access this collection of medical, nursing, evidence based, and laboratory and diagnostic tests books. Simply click “Start OVID” if you encounter a login screen. MCHS employees and medical staff need to request an ID/Password from any MCHS Library location if you plan to access OVID databases using a computer outside of MCHS.
- Books@STAT!Ref – This collection includes dictionaries, drug information for patients and health professionals, nursing guides and manuals, laboratory and diagnostic tests, DSM, ICD-9-CM, CPT with RVUs data file, psychiatry, and a variety of medical textbooks. These books can be accessed using computers within Moses Cone Health System.
- More Online Books– This link takes you to collections of books in addition to those mentioned above. See above instructions for Books@OVID. Any books within NCLIVE will require an ID and Password that can be obtained from your local public library branch when using a computer that is not located in a participating NC library such as a public or school library or a NC AHEC library such as MCHS Medical Library. Other books are available freely on the Web.
4. Instruction and Orientation
How do I learn how to access and use the resources offered by the Moses Cone Health System Medical Library?
Answer: MCHS Medical Library personnel are glad to assist you with locating resources that meet your information needs. Various methods for contacting our Library locations are featured on our Web site.
- Workshops - We offer workshops at intervals throughout the year. A schedule of these is located in the MCHS quarterly publication entitled, Moses Cone Health System Branch Out and Learn. The Library will arrange workshops or presentations designed to meet the information searching needs of MCHS departments, units, and groups. Community groups also can contact the Medical Library concerning workshops or presentations designed for the public.
- CBLs – The MCHS Medical Library created two modules for the MCHS Computer Based Learning employee program. Both CBLs feature techniques for searching the nursing and allied health literature with OVID - CINAHL. MCHS employees can access CBLs via the MCHS Intranet or using designated computer workstations in our Library locations.
How can I get information on my topic of interest?
Answer:
- Library Catalog –Medical, health, and healthcare related books (print, CD-ROM), audiovisual materials (videos, audiocassettes, CD-ROMs, slides), and print or microfilm issues of journals held in the MCHS Medical Library collections are listed in our online catalog, which is available on the Library Web site homepage.
- Online Databases – The Library Web site’s homepage has links to medical and healthcare databases that index journal articles or the content of online books. Library professionals are glad to schedule time with a MCHS employee or group to answer questions about how to search for information on your topic of interest. Please do not hesitate to ask us for assistance.
- Mediated Literature Searches – MCHS Library professionals can assist or perform literature searches for MCHS and AHEC affiliated staff. The Library also offers mediated literature searching services to agencies located within the Greensboro AHEC region. Fees may apply to some of these situations. Please do not hesitate to check with any MCHS Medical Library location regarding whether your information request qualifies for our mediated literature search services and possible fees.
- World Wide Web Sites- The MCHS Medical Library Web site features compilations of links to other reputable, high quality Web sites that contain information about health, medicine, and the healthcare industry. All items featured as direct links from the MCHS Medical Library Web site’s homepage are critiqued on a regular basis for appropriateness, quality, and dependability.
6. Home/Office Searching
How can I find information and answers to my questions when I cannot come to the Library?
Answer: The MCHS Medical Library Web site is designed to deliver as much information to your computer desktop as is possible. Some information resources in the Library collection are subscription based and guidelines for access and use may apply. All Library resources are available in our physical Library locations to visitors.Additionally, MCHS medical staff and employees can access all Library electronic resources using any computer with access to the World Wide Web. Library issued IDs and Passwords are required for accessing some of the resources when using a computer outside of the MCHS network. MCHS employees and medical staff can contact any Library location with questions about access and necessary IDs and Passwords.
7. AHEC Digital Library
What is the AHEC Digital Library and how do I get there?
Answer: The NC AHEC Digital Library (ADL) is an Internet-based statewide, electronic network of quality resources and services that are designed to support the clinical and educational needs of North Carolina healthcare professionals. Anyone may use the ADL; simply click on the link, Visit the ADL as a Guest located near the bottom of the ADL Web site homepage. Membership is required for access to certain “licensed” resources. Please contact Michael Willet via email or by phone at (336) 832-8213 for information about eligibility for ADL membership.
8. Multilingual/Multicultural
How can I find medical and health related information resources designed for patients and the public in different languages, such as Spanish, and about different cultures?
Answer: The MCHS Medical Library Web site homepage features a link to the Library Catalog, which lists multilingual and cultural diversity books and audiovisual materials that are housed in our Library locations. The homepage also features a link to Multilingual Resources that can be found on the World Wide Web as well as a list in English and Spanish of Spanish Language and Cultural Diversity Books and Audiovisuals in the Moses Cone Medical Library.
9. Continuing Education
How can I locate resources for my own continuing education or for developing educational courses for others?
Answer: The MCHS Medical Library Web site has links to Recommended Internet Resources for nurses, pharmacy, and allied health professionals. The Library homepage also provides a link to the Greensboro Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Web site, which features additional educational resources for healthcare professionals.
10. Adobe Acrobat Reader
Why do I need the Adobe Acrobat Reader, and how do I download it?
Answer: When documents are shared electronically, they are put into various formats that are compatible for this task. Adobe Acrobat is a software product that can be used to create and share a document format called Adobe PDF (Portable Document Format) that accurately represents the original document. Adobe Acrobat Reader is used to open, view, print, and search a PDF of a document. The Reader portion of the Adobe Acrobat software can be downloaded to a user’s computer without charge.
11. PDF/HTML
What is the difference between PDF and HTML full-text?
Answer:
“HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) is a special kind of text document that is used by Web browsers (for example, Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator) to present text and graphics. HTML structures a document into a format that can be displayed properly to viewers hopefully no matter which Web browser is being used. (Information accessed March 2006 at the W3C World Wide Web Consortium – Getting Started With HTML by Dave Raggett.)
“PDF (Portable Document Format) is a cross-platform file format developed by Adobe Systems for delivering documents electronically with original formatting intact. That is, the PDF version of a document should look just like the original, but it can be viewed or printed without access to the application or system used to create it.” (Information accessed March 2006 at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Academic Computing– PDF FAQ.)
Link to the MIT Adademic Computing – PDF FAQ Web page or the W3C – Getting Started With HTML by Dave Raggett Web page for more detailed descriptions.