Research and Reference Resources

Quick Guide to EBSCOhost Health Resources

Want information on a prescription’s side effects? Need to know more about a medical condition? Crave a copy of an article that appeared in Prevention Magazine? Give EBSCOHost’s Health Resources a try. This database, which includes full text to nearly 300 consumer health periodicals, covers topics such as AIDS, cancer, diabetes, drugs and alcohol, aging, fitness, nutrition and dietetics, children's health, sports medicine, women's health, and more.

• How do I access Health Resources?
• How do I conduct a search?
• Are there examples?
• What's unique about searching Health Resources?
• Saving your search

How do I access Health Resources?

To connect to Health Resources, go to the Madison Public Library web page. By choosing Research > Databases > Health Resources from the Madison Public Library web page, you will be able to access the database from anywhere. Or, access the database here.

If you are using the database from home, you will need to enter your full library card number without the spaces.

How do I conduct a search?

Searching Health Resources is like searching most EBSCOhost databases. After choosing from 1 or all 6 databases by checking next to the database title and clicking Continue, you’ll choose from Basic, Advanced, and Visual. For detailed information on how that works, visit Searching in EBSCOhost or ask a librarian for assistance.

As with all Ebsco databases, searching can be as simple or as involved as you’d like it to be. For example, try simply typing H1N1 into the basic search box and you’ll get thousands of results. Looking to the right and left of the center results box, you’ll see ways to effectively narrow your search, restricting by date, type of publication, full text, company, etc.

Are there examples?

I need information on the medical condition Rosacea.

Enter rosacea in the search box. Click Search.

Can I get peer-reviewed, full-text articles about stomach cancer that were published within the last year?

Click Advanced Search. Under Limit Your Results, check the boxes next to Full Text Articles and Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals. Use the drop down menus in the Published Date from to get the dates you’re interested in. Click Search.

My doctor mentioned both Lexapro and Celexa as medications for me. Can I find out which of those would be best for me?

Go to Advanced Search. Enter Celexa in the first Search box (all text). Make sure and is the choice in the drop down box. Enter Lexapro in the second Search box (all text). Click Search.

I’d like some consumer health information about fibromyalgia and depression.

Note: At any time, you can change the databases you’re searching within by clicking on Choose Databases at the top of the page. For this search, make sure you’re searching within Consumer Health Complete, Health Source, and MEDLINE.

Go to Advanced Search. Enter fibromyalgia in the first search box and select Subject from the first drop down menu. Make sure and is the choice in the drop down box. Enter depression in the next search box and select Subject from the drop down menu. Click Search.

What's unique about searching Health Resources?

The Merriam Webster Medical Health Dictionary can be especially helpful. To locate, click More > Dictionaries on the blue bar located across the top of search page. Enter a word to learn the correct pronunciation and/or meaning of a medical term.

Saving your Search

Once you find and click on an article, click on the appropriate icon to print, email, save, or get the correct format for a citation. Also, look for the Add to folder icon if you’d like your searches collected in one place.