Fast FAQs Get You Basic Help with PubMed

Posted in: #CC/Academic List, #Health Interest List, #Health Sciences List, #Public/K-12 List, All Members

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If you are like me and are not working a health-sciences reference desk on a daily basis, you might need occasional assistance with the basics of PubMed, the National Library of Medicine’s research citation database of 32 million items. 

One of several helping tools is the PubMed User Guide, a web page organized in FAQs format that contains brief explanations on many of the basic tasks you will do in PubMed. 

Just skim the FAQ list for the task you want to perform and click on the question – like “How can I cite an article or export citations to my citation management software program?” The link will jump instantly to the answer. 

It’s that simple to save a few seconds. You can learn a whole lot by skimming the questions that others have had, maybe something you never really thought about.  

George Strawley, M.L.I.S., works on providing consumer-level health information and programs through libraries as well as on the planning and implementation of funding aimed at addressing health disparities. A former librarian in both the public and communitycollege settings, he is now based at the University of Utah.