Nursing

1. Library Catalog - Find Books, Media and Pamphlets

PCC's online catalog is a database of books, media, pamphlets and course reserves located in the library's collection. To find resources in the library by subject, you will need a call number which is based on the Dewey Decimal Classification System and leads you to the specific item on the shelf. To find the call number, use the library catalog.

Basic Search

Use the Basic Search to look for an item using its exact subject heading, title or author's name (last, first). Select the type in the words.

To find information about a person, use Basic Search by subject.
To find information on a topic, use Basic Search by subject.

To search by subject, select 'Subject Search', then type in the subject heading.

Examples of subject headings:

  • Geriatric nursing
  • Health services administration
  • Medical history taking
  • Nursing -- administration
  • Nursing -- Cross-cultural studies
  • Nursing diagnosis
  • Nursing ethics
  • Nursing plans

Check related subjects too:

  • Interpersonal communication
  • Medical care
  • Medical ethics
  • Pharmaceutical arithmetic
  • Pharmacology 
  • Psychiatric nursing

To search by title, select 'Title', then type in the first few words of the title. Skip the first word of the title if it is an article, e.g. 'a', 'an' or 'the'.

To search by author, select 'Author', then type in the author's last name, then first name, e.g. 'Smith, Sandra F.'

Advanced Search

If Basic Search is unsuccessful use Advanced Search to combine topics.

  • Examples: Medical history taking (phrase, subject) AND nursing (all, keyword)

Use the KEYWORD Search to look for an item using part of the title or to combine topics:
To search by keyword, type in the words you want to search for then select from the menu whether you want to search for ALL THE WORDS, ANY OF THE WORDS (e.g., RNA or ribonucleic acid), or the WORDS AS A PHRASE (e.g., chemical elements). You can also use the KEYWORD search to combine topics.

Book Resource List prepared for the 2005 Accreditation visits

Book Resource List sorted by call number

Nursing Historical Book Collection

[Top of Page]

2. Reference Books

Basically, there are two kinds of reference books: general resources, which are broad in scope and deal with all fields; and specialized resources, which deal with specific disciplines such as Nursing. The titles cited below are only a representative sample of many specialized reference books that are available in the library.

Specialized Dictionaries

  • Black's Medical Dictionary (Ref 610.3 B 2)
  • Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary (REF 610.3 D 1-4)
  • Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health (REF 610.3 M 1-2)
  • Gould's Medical Dictionary (REF 610.3 G 3-2)
  • Heinemann's Dental Dictionary (REF 617.6003 F 1)
  • Mellon's Illustrated Medical Dictionary (REF 610.3 D 2)
  • Mosby’s Medical, Nursing, and Allied Health Dictionary (REF 610.3 M 3)
  • Stedman's Medical Dictionary (REF 610.3 S 1-9)
  • Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary (REF 610.3 T 1)

Specialized Encyclopedias

  • Cecil's Textbook of Medicine (616 C 1)
  • Encyclopedia of Human Biology (REF 612.003 E 1)
  • Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine (616 H 5-4)
  • Magill's Medical Guide (REF 610.3 M 4)
  • Oxford Medical Companion (REF 610.3 O 1-2)

Almanacs and Yearbooks

  • Statistical Abstract of the United States (REF 317.3 U 1)
  • Statistical Record of Health and Medicine (REF 614.0973 S 1)
  • World Almanac (REF 310 W 1)

Handbooks, Manuals, Directories

  • Allied Health and Rehabilitation Professions Education Directory (REF 610.711 A 2)
  • American Hospital Association. Guide to the Health Care Field (REF 610.24 A 1)
  • Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy (REF 615 M 1)
  • U.S. Dept. of Labor. Occupational Outlook Handbook (REF 371.425 O 1)
[Top of Page]

3. Databases and Indexes - Find Articles

  • ProQuest Nursing & Allied Health Source More than 250 full-text articles from journals in nursing and allied health. Includes scholarly journal articles.
  • Salem Health: Magill's Medical Guide Full text access to the’ award-winning health reference work Magill’s Medical Guide.
  • Encyclopedia Britannica Online The complete Encyclopedia Britannica with related web links.
  • Use SIRS, a database of both periodicals and government resources. Look under "Government Reporter", Domestic Affairs, Education, or search by government department (eg. Education Department).
  • Periodical title list : retrieve a subject listing a nursing periodicals and journals available through Shatford Library.
[Top of Page]

4. Resources on the World Wide Web

Finding reliable information on the web can be difficult.
Use the Librarians' Index to the Internet www.lii.org or see recommended websites below.

Hardin MD http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/hardin/md/index.html
Hardin MD Nursing & Nursing Research http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/hardin/md/nurs.html
Health Answers http://www.healthanswers.com/
Interactive Patient http://medicus.marshall.edu/
Martindale's Health Science Guide http://www.martindalecenter.com/
National Institutes of Health http://health.nih.gov/
Merck Manuals http://www.merck.com/mmpe/index.html
World Health Organization http://www.who.int/en/
[Top of Page]

last updated: 10/06/2008 by P. Johnson revision #1