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Health Sciences Library Orientation

This guide introduces users to library resources and services to support health sciences research.

Welcome

Hello, and welcome to the Foley Library at Gonzaga! We've put together this guide to give a short orientation to finding and accessing library resources and get you started in using medical evidence in your coursework.

In addition to this short orientation, we have a few other resources once you have this part down; if you are ready to jump into more specialized help in finding health science evidence, jump over the Help Yourself!! section.

Introduction to Using Library Resources

Using the Library Website

Screenshot of the Foley website, showing the buttons listed below

  1. BOOKS & MORE: Search for library resources, including books, videos, journal articles and more. Searches the GU collections, as well as other Summit Libraries all over the Pacific Northwest. See the next tab for more information.
  2. COURSE RESERVES: If your professor has placed a book or other physical item on reserve behind the library desk, you can search for it here
  3. PERIODICALS @FOLEY: Search for a specific journal, newspaper, or magazine. If we have it, this tool will tell you where and give you a link to find it. Great for looking up citations!
  4. DATABASES: Search for articles in our databases
  5. PRINTING: Upload to our wireless print queue, or add money to your Bulldog Bucks account
  6. RESERVE A STUDY ROOM: Reserve one of our second floor group study rooms
  7. ILL / INTERLIBRARY LOAN: Request journal articles or books from other libraries
  8. RESEARCH SUBJECT GUIDES: See what resources librarians recommend for your subject
  9. SCHEDULE A RESEARCH APPOINTMENT: Set up a time for one-on-one help with a librarian
  10. CHAT live with a librarian for help right now!

The search box on the library homepage is like Google for the library. It searches across a wide variety of resources, including our physical catalog, electronic resources and many of our databases. Library Search serves as the library catalog and the only way to search for books, eBooks, music, videos, and “things” like puzzles and board games. 

Library Search is a great place to start looking for articles and books on a topic, but for powerful, targeted searches that use subject headings or a controlled vocabulary, try a database specific to your discipline or topic.

ALWAYS SIGN IN! Signing in gives you more complete results, the ability to request items, and the best access to available online resources. The yellow bar across the results screen is an hard-to-miss reminder to sign in.

Research guides are librarian-created guides for the best places to go to research your subject. It's a great place to find out what databases are most useful!

Research Subject Guides Button

This button opens a list of guides. Subject guides provide a collection of resources for that discipline. The librarian who created the guide is also an excellent resource. 

This is what a subject guide looks like: 

Screenshot of a subject guide

When it comes to doing academic research, asking for help can save you hours of time!  Whether you need help with a research project or just have a question about using the library, there are many ways to get in touch with us.

The Chat services is the most popular. It is available 24/7! You can also text a question to 509-730-5979.

Schedule an appointment with a librarian for some great one-on-one help. You can choose to meet in person, over the phone, or in a Zoom video conference with screen-sharing capability. 

This screenshot of the library homepage highlights all the ways you can connect with us.

Screenshot of the library webpage, showing the links described below

1. Get Help: Click this to open the Get Help Menu
2. Ask a Librarian: opens a page with the library chat box so you can talk to a librarian live
3. Tutorials: Guides for how to use all our stuff!
4. Research Subject Guides: See what resources librarians recommend for your subject
5. ATAS: Support for applications like FolioTek
6. Librarian Subject Specialists: See which librarian is assigned to which department
7. Citation Help and RefWorks: Quick guides for major citations styles, and a link and guide to using RefWorks, our research manager and citation generator
8. Schedule a Research Appointment: Set up a time for one-on-one help with a librarian
9. Tutoring and Writing Center Appointments: Links to the appointment pages for our building partners (not part of the library)

Want to try chat? Here you go!

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