Research Guide | Finding articles | Finding web pages | Finding books | Citations

Finding Periodical Articles in Health

The best way to learn how to find articles is by going to the one hour Workshop B at the Rosenberg Library or taking Workshop B online
The best way to access our periodical databases is from the Library's "Find Articles" page at http://www.ccsf.edu/Library/period.htm.

Choose a database

EbscoHost databases: Use these large databases to find academic journals and magazine articles on any topic. Includes a special database about alternative health care. Try Visual Search to help narrow down from a broad topic.
Gale databases: Use these large databases to find articles from journals, magazines, and reference books. Try the subject search to browse articles by subject and subtopic.
Ethnic Newswatch: News, culture and history from the newspapers, magazines and journals of the ethnic, minority and native press. 1991-present: English and Spanish language.
CQ Researcher: Topical, full text reports on controversial issues; each report features a summary, chronology, and bibliography. Updated weekly. Spanish version also available.

EbscoHost databases

The EbscoHost databases contain periodical articles that were originally published in print in academic journals and magazines. City College is a new subscriber (Fall '08) to this service, so some of the screens may change as we customize them.
To access EbscoHost, start here

Tips on using the EbscoHost Databases:

If you are not on the CCSF campus, you will need to input the barcode number from the bottom of your student registration card. (It will not ask you to login if you are using a City College computer.)
Each choice on the entry screen leads to a group of databases. You’ll probably get the largest number of relevant articles by choosing the first choice for "Research Databases on EBSCOhost"
The advanced search screen is the default. To do a specific search, put each concept into a separate box. You can use the asterisk * to find word variants (like teenager, teenaged, and teenagers). If you ask for TOO MANY CONCEPTS at once, you will get TOO FEW RESULTS.

Your search is shown at the top of the results screen, so you can revise it if you like. The results are shown in the center of the screen. Click on PDF Full Text or HTML Full Text to see an article.
If you'd like to save an article to use later, you can email it to yourself.
Many articles from academic journals start with an ABSTRACT, or short summary of the main points. You can save time by reading the abstract first to see whether the article includes the information you want.
To find particular types of articles, choose a EBSCO database group...

... like the Gender / Sexuality group,

OR click on Detailed View to choose a specific database...
I recommend AltHealthWatch if you are looking a complementary and alternative health perspectives. There are many other specific databases.
Use the SmartText search if you've already found a great paragraph somewhere else and you want journal articles that say something similar. Choose the SmartText mode and then copy the sentences you want to use from some other place and paste them into the larger box. Add the focus concept(s) into additional boxes. If you need scholarly (peer reviewed) jounals, be sure to limit for that. SmartText lets you use words from an unrealiable source like Wikipedia to get more reliable articles.
The Visual Search approach can be used in any EBSCO database. This method is especially helpful if you've started with a broad topic and like some suggestions about narrowing it down.
When you first choose Visual Search, a demonstration video will run.

Gale databases

The Gale Databases (InfoTrac) contain periodical articles that were originally published in print in academic journals, newspapers, and magazines. It also includes some chapters from reference books. Access the Gale Databases by going to the Library"s Find Articles page and following the InfoTrac links. If you are not on the CCSF campus, you will need to input the barcode number from the bottom of your student registration card.

Tips on using the Gale Databases:

If you are not on the CCSF campus, you will need to input the barcode number from the bottom of your student registration card. (It will not ask you to login if you are using a City College computer.)
The advanced search screen is the default. To do a specific search, put each concept into a separate box. You can use the asterisk * to find word variants (like pollute, pollution, and polluters). If you ask for TOO MANY CONCEPTS at once, you will get TOO FEW RESULTS.

When you are looking at a list of citations, notice the tabs! In this example, you are seeing a list of Magazine articles. There are also articles from Academic Journal, News, and Multimedia that are not shown on this page. Click the tab to see those types of articles.

When you find an article you like, you can print it or email it to yourself by clicking on the icons in the Tools box. Other tools include citation help and computer-translation. For some articles, Related Subjects are shown on the left which can lead you to more articles.
Another way to search is by using "Browse Subjects". Type the most important word(s) for your topic into the search box. This method is especially helpful for narrowing topics which use common words, or for finding related topics. In the Results column, it shows how many articles the database has in each category.

You can Change Databases along the upper edge of most screens to find particular types of articles.
For example use Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center for pro and con views on controversial issues.

Ethnic Newswatch

Ethnic Newswatch contains articles from the newspapers, magazines and journals of the ethnic, minority and native press. Some of these article are written in Spanish.
If you are on a CCSF campus, you can access Ethnic Newswatch here. If you are off campus, start here.

Tips on using the Ethnic Newswatch

If you are not on the CCSF campus, you will need to input the barcode number from the bottom of your student registration card. (It will not ask you to login if you are using a City College computer.)
The opening screen for Ethnic Newswatch provides a description of the database. Just click on Continue to proceed to a search screen.

One of the helpful features of Ethnic news watch is that you can focus your search on articles by/for a particular demographic group.

CQ Researcher

CQ Research provides reports on controversial issues; each report features a summary, chronology, and bibliography. A new report is added each week. Spanish version also available.
If you are on a CCSF campus, you can access CQ Researcher here. If you are off campus, start here.

Tips on using the CQ Researcher

If you are not on the CCSF campus, you will need to input the barcode number from the bottom of your student registration card. (It will not ask you to login if you are using a City College computer.)
Type a keyword or two that best describe your topic and click on Go.
In the list you get back, the top articles will use the word(s) you type the most times. If these are older articles and you want to see the newest articles first, click on the down arrow in the Date column. Choose an article you want to see by clicking directly on its title.
Notice the sections listed on the left. You might want to go straight to the Overview section, the Chronology or the Maps/Graphs. Like our other databases, you can email these articles to yourself, or print them.
The CiteNow! tab can help you create a correct citation.

revised by Karen Saginor October 2009