NUR 101: Issues and Opportunities in Nursing Course Guide

Introducing Fogler Library and the Science & Engineering Center

• Hours during the regular academic year. Reduced hours during breaks.
• Fogler Library usually changes something (services, resources, locations) over breaks. What's new at Fogler library.
• Most library assignments involve many steps--selecting a topic, searching databases, finding articles, printing or photocopying, reading, and writing. Don't wait until everybody else is trying to do the same thing.
• No library session before the assignment? For a good starting point, see the "My research is in:" portals on the library home page.
• Not sure which tool to use? Want some assistance? Contact a librarian.

Library Assignment 1

Fogler Library is the largest library in the state, and it can be a confusing place. Check the floor plan to find specific library locations.

URSUS catalog

Use the URSUS catalog to find books, journal titles, and other items owned by URSUS libraries (University of Maine, other University of Maine System campuses, Bangor Public Library, Maine State libraries).

Tips for this assignment:

Use OR nurses or nursing

• Select "University of Maine catalog" in the pull-down menu
• Use to find Material Type SERIALS
• Sort by title
• Ignore the "Year" column

Evaluate Your Results BEFORE You Copy (or Print)

Printing and photocopying costs!

• Your MaineCard permits $16 worth of "free" printing ($0.04/page) each semester. Pay for excess printouts using campus funds ("Black Bear Bucks").
• Free printing funds don't carry over between semesters, but campus funds do.
• Photocopies cost $0.08/page (campus funds).

Journals (also called magazines, serials, or periodicals):

• Use journal ARTICLES, not editorials, letters to the editor, or book reviews.
• Read the abstract for a quick summary of an article.
• Other factors to consider:
  • Do you understand the article?
  • Is it really relevant?
  • Is it too short to contain anything useful, or so long that you'll never finish reading it?

Library Assignment 2

Reserve readings

Use the URSUS catalog to find reserve readings

• by course name
• by instructor

Use databases to find citations or references to journal articles.

• CINAHL is the most important database for nursing students.
• For papers in introductory classes, try Academic Search Premier or other general databases.
• For specialized databases about nursing, check the nursing portal.

How to search a database

• Document your research process--list the databases you used, the search terms you tried, etc.
• Try alternative terminology: NP as well as nurse practitioner.
• Try alternative spelling (British as well as American).
• Truncate (use a wildcard) to get variations on a word: obituar* to find obituaries, obituary... Don't drop too many letters when you truncate!

Use AND peplau and obituary

• Try combining ANDs, ORs, and truncation: peplau and (biograph* or obituar*)
• Find more references than you need.
• Use limits, such as English language or "scholarly" ("peer reviewed") journals, to refine your results.

From Citations To Articles, Books, and More

See Finding Items at Fogler Library for details.

Not on the shelf? Not owned by the library? Give us 1-2 weeks lead time, and we can find most items for you.

• Circulation staff can recall a University of Maine book checked out by somebody else.
• Circulation staff can also search for books that are not on the shelf but not checked out.
• Getting items from other libraries:
  • Use the request function on URSUS and MaineCat for books
  • Use Interlibrary Loan (ILL) for books, journal articles, and more.

Created by: Nancy Curtis | Revised: 09/04/2008

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