Aintree Library Christmas Opening Hours

Aintree Library will be closed from Saturday 22nd December 2007 - Tuesday 1st January 2008 inclusive and will re-open at 8.30am on Wednesday 2nd January 2008.

The Library staff wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

BMJ Topic Collections

The BMJ Topic Collections bring together articles published in the BMJ since 1998 under specific topic headings. A useful resource if you are researching a new topic or just want to keep up-to-date with new articles published in the BMJ in your specialty. Both clinical and non-clinical (statistics, ethics, law) are covered including the following:

CLINICAL
Anaesthesia
Cardiovascular Medicine
Chronic diseases
Complementary Medicine
Critical Care / Intensive Care
Dentistry and Oral Medicine
Dermatology
Drugs
Emergency Medicine
Endocrinology
Evidence Based Practice
Gastroenterology
General Practice/Family Practice/Primary Care
Genetics
Geriatric Medicine
Global health
Haematology ( including blood transfusion)
Imaging Techniques
Immunology
Infectious Diseases
Interactive case reports
Men's health
Molecular Medicine
Neurology
Nutrition and Metabolism
Occupational Health
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Paediatrics
Palliative Medicine
Pathology
Prison Medicine
Psychiatry
Rehabilitation Medicine
Renal Medicine
Respiratory Medicine
Rheumatology
Sexual Medicine
Sports and Exercise Medicine
Surgery
Travel medicine
Women's Health

NON-CLINICAL
Academic medicine
Basic sciences
Communication
Culture
Epidemiology
Ethics
Health Economics
Health Policy
History
Journalology
Management
Medical Careers
Medical Education
Medical informatics
Medicine and the law (incl forensic medicine)
Nursing
Patients
Psychology
Public Health
Religion / Spirituality
Sociology
Statistics and Research Methods

New NLH Specialist Library - Stroke

Stroke Specialist Library

The Stroke Specialist Library was launched at the UK Stroke Forum in December to coincide with the publication of the Department of Health's National Stroke Strategy. Stroke is the third commonest cause of death and biggest single cause of disability in the UK.

The Stroke Specialist Library team has drawn on the expertise of a steering group comprising representatives from a wide range of stakeholders including the Department of Health, Stroke Association, British Association of Stroke Physicians, UK Stroke Nurses' Forum and NHS Institute, together with colleagues from the Neurological Conditions and Later Life Specialist Libraries, to produce a detailed collection development strategy to bring together key, high quality resources that will help NHS staff and patients work together to improve care, complementing the new Stroke Strategy.

The Stroke Specialist Library is being developed to provide high quality, evidence-based information on all of aspects of Stroke. This site is aimed at health professionals with an interest in Stroke. Using the traditional NLH hub approach with information divided into Guidance & Pathways, Evidence, Reference, Education/CPD and Patient Information the Library offers information on the following topics.

NHS Athens, electronic journals, literature searching and critical appraisal workshops 2008

New dates for 2008 workshops at Aintree Library are now available:

Introduction to Critical Appraisal and Study Designs NEW FOR 2008
Introduction to critical appraisal and the key features of common types of study designs. Learn how to identify the research methodology and locate appropriate critical appraisal tools
Friday 8th February 2008 10.00am – 12.00pm

Introduction to Systematic Reviews/Meta-analysis Critical Appraisal Workshop
Learn about systematic review sources, how to interpret forest plots and how to appraise a Systematic Review/Meta-analysis using a practical example and checklists
Monday 17th March 2008 9.30am - 3.00pm

Introduction to Randomised Controlled Trials (RCT) Critical Appraisal Workshop
Introduction to RCT sources and how to evaluate an RCT research article using a practical example and checklists
Wednesday 5th March 2008 9.30am – 3.00pm

Introduction to Qualitative Critical Appraisal
Introduction to the appraisal of qualitative research using a worked example
Thursday 21st February 2008 10.00am - 12.00pm

Introduction to The Cochrane Library
Beginners guide to searching The Cochrane Library, including the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and the Central Register of Controlled Clinical Trials
Tuesday 26th February 2008 10.00 – 12.00pm

Introduction to Evidence Based Resources NEW FOR 2008
Learn about some of the most useful information resources to support evidence based practice including systematic reviews and guidelines
Wednesday 23rd April 2008 10.00am – 12.00pm

Introduction to NHS Athens and Ejournals
Register for an NHS Athens account and learn how to access electronic journals from work or home
Wednesday 6th February 2008 10.00am – 11.00am
Thursday 13th March 2008 1.00pm – 2.00pm

Library Inductions and Refreshers
Available upon request

MEDLINE
Please note that the National Library for Health (NLH) have purchased a new version of MEDLINE. This new version is due to replace the current access via the NLH Dialog DataStar on 1st April 2008. Therefore there will be no further MEDLINE workshops until after 1st April 2008. In the meantime you can book a one-to-one session on MEDLINE with Michelle. Further details and training dates for the new version of MEDLINE will be made available in Feb/Mar 2008.

All workshops support the NHS Knowledge Skills Framework (KSF), Evidence Based Practice and CPD. Staff employed by University Hospital Aintree, The Walton Centre or Sefton PCT staff can attend.

All workshops are held in the IT Suite in the Library, Clinical Science Centre, University Hospital Aintree. For more information or to book a place contact Michelle Maden, Clinical Information Specialist on 0151 529 6418 or email madenm@edgehill.ac.uk

Overviews of the evidence - Systematic reviews

What are Systematic Reviews?
Systematic reviews attempt to provide an overview of primary research on a particular topic of interest that use explicit and reproducble methods to minimise bias. The main crux of a systematic review is the literature search, if all the evidence (both published and unpublished) is not considered the results of the review will be flawed.


How do they differ from a Review?
A review article may be selective in the choice of research to review in order to support a particular viewpoint. They may not be explicit about the types of studies included.

What are the advantages of Systematic Reviews?

• Aim to minimise the bias of a review (e.g. publication and language bias)
• Explicit in the research process
• Allow control over a mass of research literature
• They can save you time locating all the evidence on a particular topic

What are the disadvantages of Systematic Reviews?

• Can be broad in the nature of the topic under review
• May disguish important differences in individual studies included
• Can be difficult to generalise the results to a specific population because of the scope

Where can I find them?
The Cochrane Library contains 2 systematic review databases - The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews are full text systematic reviews undertaken by The Cochrane Collaboration. Generally they look at examining the effectiveness of health care interventions.

The Database of Abstracts of Effects (DARE) can also be searched via The Cochrane Library (known as 'Other reviews') or via The Centre for Reviews and Dissemination. Short critically appraised summaries of the systematic review are provided.

The Joanna Briggs Institute links to references of systematic reviews, whose eclectic nature is popular with many nurse managers. The focus is on clinically and economically appropriate and effective healthcare outcomes for clients and communities.

TRIP (turning Research into Practice) allows you to filter references to systematic reviews from a wide range of Evidence Based Resources.

The Healthcare Databases (MEDLINE, CINAHL etc) all contain references to systematic reviews. In PubMed you can use the limit function to narrow down your search to Systematic Reviews.

More information on Systematic Reviews including the Research Methodology and Critical Appraisal of Systematic Reviews can be found on the Introduction to Systematic Reviews/Meta-analysis Workshop at Aintree Library (dates to be confirmed at the end of November and will be advertised via the blog).

NLH - Neurological Conditions Specialist Library

Tomorow sees the launch of the new Neurological Conditions Specialist Library at the Association of British Neurologists' Meeting. As part of the National Library of Health, the Specialist Library aims to keep health care professionals and patients up to date with best evidence in neurological conditions and has a UK focus.

Many of you will know Professor Chadwick from the Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery, he is the clinical lead for the Specialist Library and a number of colleagues working at the Walton Centre are also involved in leading on topics within the Library (e.g. Epilepsy).

You can browse the topics on the left hand side or perform a simple search to locate guidelines, evidence (including systematic reviews), reference material, education/CPD and patient information. The site also links to the latest medical news in the field of Neurology.

Evidence updates currently available on this site include:

Epilepsy Annual Update (October 2007) highlighting knowledge published in the field of epilepsy since 2005.

Parkinson’s Disease Annual Evidence Update (May 2007) highlighting evidence published within the last two years on concerning the diagnosis, treatment and management of this condition.

Looking for Images or photos to download for presentations?

NHS Photo Library
The images in the NHS Photo Library mainly feature staff and patients in different situations (for example, staff in a meeting, a doctor discussing patient care). All of the people involved have given their consent for the images to be used by NHS or social care organisations. In addition, their are no copyright issues if the images are used within the NHS or social care.

You will need to register for access to the NHS Photo Library. All you need is an email address that ends in either nhs.uk (this would be your work email) or nhs.net. If you don't have an NHS email you need to arrange for a 'sponsor' who does have an NHS email address to confirm that you are employed by the NHS.

National Library for Health Image Search
The National Library for Health Image search is a great way to search across a range of purely medical image collections - including some not available for free on the web. You will need your NHS Athens username to see the full size versions of these.

You get an instant preview and far reduce your risk in terms of copyright. The images include Gray's Anatomy, dermatological images, ECG traces and more - all searched from a single box!

Word of caution using Google images
While you can find images using Google you may well find an awful lot of junk before you find a high quality image. You also need to be aware that using images sourced from the web can leave you in a dubious position in terms of copyright.

National Library for Health - downtime Mon 5th Nov 2007

The National Library for Health will be offline between 5pm-6pm on Monday 5th November 2007 due to an upgrade.

For those of you who access databases this way please use the LIRC website to login.

Writing for publication guidelines

A new website EQUATOR (Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research) is a new initiative that seeks to improve the quality of scientific publications by promoting transparent and accurate reporting of health research.

The website offers guidance for authors on the various guidelines (CONSORT, QUROUM, etc) available for the reporting of different types of research methodologies.

Initially funded by the NHS National Knowledge Service, the website is currently being developed and expanded to include information for authors (e.g. when should you start thinking about writing for publication) and journal editors and peer reviewers.

I read the news today - keeping up with health news

Our friends over at FADE can help you to keep on top of health news published in both the regional and national press in their current awareness 'Another 15 minutes...Health news from FADE'.

You can subscibe to receive daily emails on health news stories from across the UK or even listen to the news updates online.

Managing your references - RefWorks

If you've ever struggled last minute to sort your references to add as a bibliography to a dissertation or literature review, or organise your references for publication in a journal, or even just wondered how to organise your references without having to type in each one by hand then RefWorks is just what you are looking for.

RefWorks helps to manage your references in the same way that Endnote or Reference Manager would. You can download and import your references (including abstracts) direct from the databases (Medline, Cinahl, Cochrane, PubMed) and import them into Refworks. From there you can;

• organise your references into folders
• delete duplicates
• search for authors
• edit your references
• create a bibliography in an output format of your choosing (Harvard, Vancouver, BMJ, etc).

It's easy to use and as it is web-based you can access it from home or the workplace without the need for CDs. Trust staff at UHA, The Walton Centre or Sefton PCT can now access this resource via the library catalogue. RefWorks training will be provided alongside the next group of information skills workshops, dates will be advertised via this blog, the LIRC website, in the LIRC and via T&D. In the meantime handouts on using RefWorks are available in the LIRC.

Keeping up-to-date with new documents on the www - Document Awareness Bulletin

Keeping up-to-date with new policies, guidelines, consultations, statistics, local and national reports, conferences and events of relevance to PCT staff can be a time-consuming process.

The Document Awareness Bulletin aims to keep NHS staff working primarily in the PCTs up-to-date with new reports etc. The Bulletin is compiled by librarians in Merseyside and Cheshire (including myself!) who scan websites (inclusing Department of Health, Health Protection Agency, Every Child Matters, Kings FUnd, NICE, etc.) for new documents and send out via email on a bi-weekly basis.

Also included in the Bulletin are abstracts of selected research articles (with a PCT focus) published in peer-reviewed journals. Full text can be obtained upon request.

A sample of this week's items include:

Investigating drinking behaviours and alcohol knowledge amongst people resident in the Linacre and Derby wards of Sefton: interim report (17th September 2007)
This reports evaluates the impact of Sefton Primary Care Trust's social marketing campaign, which aims to raise awareness of the negative consequences of excessive alcohol use.
http://www.cph.org.uk/cph_pubs/reports/CH/Sefton Social Marketing Interim Report.pdf

How to put NICE Guidance into practice (24th September 2007)
This guide aims to help organisations: implement NICE guidance and other national policy; comply with core and developmental standards set in Standards for better health; meet the Healthcare Commission’s expectations. This guide is split into three parts – the first two focus on organisations directly responsible for implementation, and the third focuses on commissioning organisations.
http://www.nice.org.uk/download.aspx?o=455522

Why Your Child's Weight Matters (updated 13th September 2007)
The Government has developed a booklet for parents: "Why your child’s weight matters", which includes information on the National Child Measurement Programme, why maintaining a healthy weight is important, and the steps that parents can take to help their family develop a healthy lifestyle.
http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/idcplg?IdcService=GET_FILE&dID=148513&Rendition=Web

GP Profiles on NHS Choices (13th September 2007)
Letter from Mark Britnell, Director General of Commissioning and System Management, outlining a proposed initiative to enable GPs to directly change online information on the NHS Choices website.
http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/idcplg?IdcService=GET_FILE&dID=148542&Rendition=Web

To sign-up to the Bulletin email Michelle at madenm@edgehill.ac.uk

TRIPping through the evidence

TRIP (Turning Research Into Practice) is a free database that allows 'health professionals to easily find the highest-quality material available on the web - to help support evidence based practice'.

In addition to searching UK (NLH Guidelines) and international guidelines resources, clinical question and answering services (Primary Care Query Answering Service), patient information and image resources, TRIP currently searches 52 evidence-based synopses and critical appraisal resources including BestBETs, Bandolier and the Evidence Based Journals from the BMJ.

TRIP has a simple search facility (see below) and categorises the results making identification of different types of information (guidelines, patient information leaflets, evidence based synopses, etc) easy!

As an added bonus TRIP Evidence Reviews offer 'evidence blasts' allowing clinicians a quick and easy way of seeing the best new research published in the last 2-3 years.

A few words of caution...TRIP is very useful at quickly identifying useful resources but should not be substituted for a search of the healthcare databases (Medline, Cochrane, etc) if you undertaking a literature review. Bear in mind also that TRIP searches both UK and international resources, this is particularly important to consider when looking for guidelines or patient information.

Prefer to search PubMed? You can still link to access NHS Core Content Journals

If you prefer to use PubMed when searching rather than Medline via Dialog DataStar and the National Library for Health you can still link into the full text journals made available by the National Core Content.

When you search PubMed you will see a results tab for 'NHS England Full Text'. If you click on this you can then view all the records which you can then access with your NHS Athens.

Click here to search PubMed and link into NHS Core Content full text.

However, this does not include links to full text which have been bought locally and are available via Aintree LIRC. In addition to the National Core Content journals Aintree LIRC have purchased ejournals specifically for our Trust staff. Click here to see if you can access your ejournal full text via Aintree LIRC. If it does not appear in the A-Z list then check the library catalogue as we may hold the journal in print on the shelves.

What's the fuss with Athens?

What is Athens?
An Athens account is a username and password that will allow you remote access to selected electronic resources. In other words, you can access selected databases and other electronic resources from your workplace or home computer. NHS Athens will allow you to access all the resources in the National Core Content, including the healthcare databases (Medline, Cinahl, etc), electronic journals, e-books, the British National Formulary and more.

I already have an Athens account, can I use this?
You may already have a Athens account from an academic institution, or other NHS library which will allow you to access the resources that institution or library has bought specifically for its users. You can register for a NHS Athens account via the LIRC webpages, providing you are employed by University Hospital Aintree, Walton Centre or Sefton PCT. This will then allow you to access both national resources and in addition, journals and e-books bought specifically for our Trust staff. For other Trust staff you will need to contact your local library or Athens administrator

I've forgotten my username/password, what should I do?
If you are University Hospital Aintree, Walton Centre or Sefton PCT staff you can call the LIRC helpdesk on 0151 529 5851 and we will let you know your details. If you are not a member of any of the Trusts above you will need to find the contact details of your local Athens administrator

My Athens won't let me access the resources, what is wrong?
Either your Athens account has expired, in which case ring the LIRC Helpdesk on 0151 529 5851 and they will renew your account (provided you are still working at the above Trusts), you are entering your account details in the wrong place (for EBSCO journals you need to look for the blue Athens login and click on this to enter your details), or you are trying to access a resource which you are not entitled to access with your Athens.

Can I change my password?
Yes, If you don't like the password you've been given, visit the MyAthens pages, login, and then follow the link to 'change password'. Your password must be over six characters long, and must be a mix of letters and numbers.

Further assistance with Athens
For UHA, Sefton PCT and Walton Centre Trust staff, further assistance on Athens can be obtained by calling the LIRC Helpdesk on 0151 529 5851.

Literature searching, accessing ejournals, NHS Athens and critical appraisal training

Dates are now available for the following training courses for Aintree University Hospital, The Walton Centre and Sefton PCT staff:

Introduction to Systematic Reviews/Meta-analysis Critical Appraisal Workshop
Learn about systematic review sources, how to interpret forest plots and how to appraise a Systematic Review/Meta-analysis using a practical example and checklists
Wednesday 12th September 9.30am - 3.30pm

Introduction to Randomised Controlled Trials (RCT) Critical Appraisal Workshop
Introduction to RCT sources and how to evaluate an RCT research article using a practical example and checklists
Tuesday 18th September 2007 9.30am – 3.30pm

Introduction to Qualitative Critical Appraisal
Introduction to the appraisal of qualitative research using a worked example
Tuesday 2nd October 2007 2.00pm – 4.00pm

Introduction to Literature Searching using Medline and The Cochrane Library
Beginners guide to searching the two most useful sources of medical literature. Aims to save you time locating research articles by creating effective search strategies
Wednesday 5th Sept 2007 9.30am – 3.30pm

Introduction to MEDLINE using Dialog (via the National Library of Health) part 1
Beginners guide to Medline via Dialog
Thursday 11th October 2007 10.00am – 12.00pm

Introduction to MEDLINE using Dialog (via the National Library of Health) part 2
Further searching tips on searching Medline using MeSH and other techniques to quickly locate relevant articles (Experience of searching Medline via Dialog or attendance at part 1 is essential)
Wednesday 24th Oct 2007 10.00am – 12.00pm

Introduction to NHS Athens and Ejournals
Register for an NHS Athens account and learn how to access electronic journals from work or home
Thursday 13th September 2007 10.00am – 11.00pm
Thursday 11th October 2007 1.00pm – 2.00pm

For further information or to book a place on the workshops contact Michelle, Clinical Information Specialist on 0151 529 6418.

Clinical Information Service

The Clinical Information Service aims to save NHS staff time by providing a literature search service and information skills/critical appraisal skills training.

So if you are undertaking research, supporting guideline/care pathway/protocol development, writing for publication/presentation, involved in journal clubs or just simply want to know how to access electronic journals from your workplace or home with NHS Athens then contact Michelle on 0151 529 6418 or email madenm@edgehill.ac.uk

Welcome to the Aintree LIRC blog

This is our new library blog designed to keep you up-to-date with new information resources and services at Aintree Library.