Research Guide for Health Education and Community Health
The best way to do research is to think about the whole project while you are doing each step -- how does each thing that you learn relate to everything else you know? It is not like following a recipe where you do step one, then step two, then step three, etc. In doing research, you often find that after step three, you have to go back to step two again, or even step one. The suggestions given here are meant to be used like that.Your topic
What do you want to find out? Write down topic words, aspects of your topic, and very important terms. You will use these keywords to construct your searches. Before you make a final decision about choosing a topic, it's a good idea to do a little preliminary research check that there are some good sources of information for your topic.Make a list
Write an outline of the topics you want to cover and the main points you plan to make. As you do your research, use this like a shopping list to remind you of what you need to get. Keep revising this outline as you work through the other steps!How to search
All searching tools use keywords. Look at your topic to choose your starting keywords. As you get good or not so great results, be prepared to change your keywords.- If the words for your topic are very distinctive, then try using just one or two terms. Example: anemia
- If the words for your topic work together as a phrase, but can mean other things on their own, then try using quotation marks to keep them a phrase. Example: "Grave's disease"
- If you need more than one or two words to describe your topic, start with two or three words that seem most important. As you search, look to see if other words might work better. Example: for violence against women at home, you might start with violence against women, but for some search engines domestic violence or family violence might work better.
- You might add a word for a specific type of information. Example: anemia statistics
- You might add a word for a specific group of people. Example: "Grave's disease" women Notice that the word women is NOT inside the quotation marks.
- As you search, if you get too few results, consider using fewer words or searching for a larger category of information that includes your topic. Example: "thyroid diseases" instead of "Grave's disease"
- Need help? Ask a librarian!
Where to search
Find different kinds of information by looking in different places. A well done course assignment should use two or three different kinds of sources, including periodical articles, government websites, websites for non-profit organizations, and books. Here are some suggested starting points for various kinds of information.- Brief definitions and overview
online encyclopedia: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia online dictionary: MedlinePlus Medical Dictionary print encylopedia: Encyclopedia of Health & Behavior print dictionary: Mosby's Dictionary print guide: American Medical Association Family Medical Guide - In depth background and analysis
books: CityCat subject search CityCat keyword search - Quick background or analysis
goverment websites: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Health Library National Institutes of Health. Health Information Center for Disease Control and Prevention MedlinePlus Health Topics and Overviews WomensHealth.Gov Health Topics periodical articles: Search for health topics at CQ Researcher - Specific aspects of your topic
periodical articles: EBSCO HOST Gale Powersearch Or follow links to Health and Medicine databases on the Find Articles page Get advice about Finding Periodical Articles in Health web pages: Limit domain to .gov or .org in Google Advanced Search
- Careers
websites: Explore Health Careers Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH) California Community Colleges Health Occupations - Controversial issues
periodical articles: CQ Researcher books: Opposing viewpoints series - Epidemiological reports
websites: The WWW Virtual Library: Medicine and Health: Epidemiology - Fact sheets
websites: Center for Disease Control and Prevention National Women's Health Network Fact Sheets - Holistic & alternative treatments
periodical articles: AltHealthWatch website: National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Organizations supporting action or education
websites: Limit domain to .org in Google Advanced Search San Francisco Department of Public Health Community Programs. Especially the link to Community Health Network Centers. - Political action: representatives and legislation
websites: Project Vote Smart. Find your elected federal and state officials District Information. Find your supervisor on the City and County of San Francisco Board of Supervisors Official California Legislative Information. State legislation Thomas at the Library of Congress. Federal legislation - Resarch and new discoveries
periodical articles: EBSCO HOST Gale Powersearch website: National Institutes of Health. - Rumours: are they true?
website: Urban Legends Reference Pages: Snopes.com by Barbara and David P. Mikkelson - San Francisco information
websites: San Francisco Department of Public Health HealthySF - Statistics
websites: National Center for Health Statistics WomensHealth.Gov Women's Health Statistics U.S. Census Bureau Census Tract map for San Francisco, East and Central [PDF file: use tool to zoom in] Census Tract map for San Francisco, West [PDF file: use tool to zoom in] - Textbooks and advice
books: CityCat subject search CityCat keyword search - Volunteer oportunities
websites: The Volunteer Center serving San Francisco and San Mateo Counties San Francisco Community Clinic Consortium Volunteer Opportunities Volunteer Match Set your Interest Area to Health & Medicine
Evaluate your sources
Is each source reliable? It's worth your time and effort to figure out whether health information is really accurate and helpful. For each source, try to answer the following questions:- What are the motives of the publishers and writers? Maybe they have other goals in addition to providing information. Are they selling products? What is their political, social, or religious agenda?
- Are the authors health professionals, journalists, or people writing from their individual experiences? How much expertise do they have?
- How accurate and complete is the information? Does the information include opinions as well as facts? Are conclusions logical? Are there any contradictions or things that don't quite add up? Are there footnotes or citations given to show where the facts came from?
- When was this information written and published? Does it contain facts that might have changed since it was written? Is it missing recent events that are important for your needs?
- Is it clear and easy to understand? Is it too technical? Is it technical enough?
- For more about evaluating health information on the web, try Content Evaluation Guidelines from the Medical Library Association.
Citations
Write the citation for each source as soon as you decide to use it, while you have all the information in front of you. Remember to include these in your finished project.Quick citation guide
Read each source and think about what it tells you.
Use an online or print dictionary to look up terms you don't know.Questions that you have after reading a source can be answered by more research.
For important or surprising facts, try to find more than one source.
Synthesize what you have learned and write your project
Look again at the outline you created at the beginning of this process. Revise it and rearrange it, and then use it as a guide for what you will write about.You can get writing help from the CCSF Writing Lab in the Learning Assistance Center and from your instructor.
revised by Karen Saginor 16 September 2008