Focus on our Databases

WHY BOTHER USING ONLINE DATABASES:

==> Databases offer authoritative (reliable) material

==> Cover a wide range of topics

==> Include many formats. eg images. graphics

==> Provide information at different levels

==> include links to recommended websites

==> include increasing NZ content

Exercise for increasing database search competence:

Here's a link to the Database directory on my home library web page. Copy and Paste to Your browser window.

http://www.hastingsdc.govt.nz/libraries/Databases.htm#I

Please note that you need to be a library member with a library card to access this particular database (although not for all the other databases on this page) so this post may be more useful to my home based readers. But also you may have your own access to this database at another library.
The Database focused on is Info Trac OneFile the topic search is for Herceptin a Cancer Drug...

Info Trac OneFile is in the Epic Database group.
In Brief Info Trac is:
"A one-stop source for news and periodical articles on a wide range of topics:
Business, computers, current events, economics, education, environmental issues, health care, hobbies, humanities, law, literature and art, politics, science, social studies, sports, technology and many general interest topic. Millions of full-text articles, many with images. Updated daily"

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InfoTrac OneFile Tutorial:

Do a basic keyword search for herceptin limit the results to full text - how is the information arranged, take a look at each tab? How current is the information? (Sep 2006)

How many hits do you get for academic journals on this subject

Limit this search by clicking on "Expand/Limit" after date 1 January 2006 - how many hits do you get now under academic journals?

Please mark 2 articles just click the box (you do not need to save or submit these they will automatically go into your marked folder items folder) - then start your next question, we will come back to these later...

A customer comes into the library; she is doing some research on wineries in the Hawke's Bay. She has been told there is quite a good article in an Australian publication called Hospitality and thinks it was published in 2005. She doesn't have any other information, but would like to get her hands on the article. Using the information given can you find the information using the basic search, try also using a publication search. What is the title of the Article? (A: Welcome to God's Country)

A nursing student come to the reference desk, he wants an article called "Making a difference to Maori Health" which was in the June 06 issue of Kai Tiaki - can you find this using the basic search on InfoTrac Onefile? (Please mark this article too). Go into the article.

Double click on the word "synergy" in the first sentence then click on dictionary (near the top of the screen) and search, return back to your article.

The student knows that his classmate also wants the same article, using the InfoMark function (top left hand corner) can yuo email the URL to your email address (we'll pretend you are the classmate) - when this arrives in your inbox you will see that this will link you straight into the article. What are the other two options for InfoMarks?

While you are in this article you see the 'Quick Search' function on the left hand side, you decide to do a search for 'diabetes' within this publication, how many hits do you get?

A customer rings up wanting to know if the 5 June 2006 Time Magazine is on the shelf, there's a cover story on East Timor they would like to photocopy? You look on the catalogue and see the issue that they want is checked out. Do you say "I'm sorry that particular issue is out" and leave it there? Or do you try InfoTrac Onefile?

Using the basic search can you locate this article?

Just to throw a spanner in the works - you find that English is the second language of your customer, their first language is French - what could you do to assist them in understanding the article on East Timor? (There is a translation option for French, also Spanish).

Close out of the Translated article and go back into the one in English - you could now email the East Timor article to your customer (practise by emailing to your email address), or explain about remote access (they could do this from home using their library barcode), or you could print the article for them. You have saved your customer the frustration of a: not being able to access the article and b: exceeding their expectations of the local library by delivering the article to their desktop!

Take a look at "Preferences" up near the right hand corner - what does this allow you to do?

Click to "Marked items" - click on how to cite and choose APA and then download the items in HTML

Go up to "Change Databases" - excellent you are back where you started, well done!


Focus on our Databases

Herceptin cancer treatment approved for nine weeks
10:20AM Thursday May 03, 2007
Pharmac has given the go ahead to fund a nine-week course of Herceptin in combination with a taxane drug for women with early HER2-positive breast cancer.
The decision comes after a period of consultation and after a group of women campaigning for a full-year course of the drug said they would seek a judicial review of how Pharmac decided on funding for the drug.
A joint release from Pharmac and District Health Boards (DHBs) said 350 women each year would benefit from the Herceptin funding decision announced today.
Funding will be available from July 1 in a move that represents an investment of $6 million a year by DHBs.
Pharmac's deputy medical director, Dilky Rasiah, said the decision was a positive step for the treatment of HER2-positive breast cancer in New Zealand.
"This way of using Herceptin has been shown to reduce the chances of breast cancer tumours returning as effectively as any of the longer treatment duration studies," Dr Rasiah said.
The shorter treatment was cost-effective and affordable for health boards.
harmac's criteria for decision-making included cost relative to clinical benefit and risks, total cost, the impact on DHB resources and government priorities for health funding.
Funding for 12 months of treatment could not be justified under this criteria.
Wairarapa DHB chief executive David Meates, a spokesman for DHBs on pharmaceuticals, said DHB cancer centres would be able to implement funded treatment from July 1.
- NZPA