College of DuPage Library

Within a library collection, materials are typically organized by subject. Librarians assign a call number based on a work's subject and sources are then shelved by that call number so that anyone browsing the shelves will find most of the titles on a subject together.

There are 2 main subject classification systems that translate a work's subject and author or title into a code (call number) that determines where it will be shelved.

• Library of Congress: Used in most college, university, and research libraries because it handles large collections.
• Dewey Decimal: Used in most public and school libraries because it is more effective for smaller collections.

• Library of Congress
• Dewey Decimal
• Superintendent of Documents (SuDocs) (for US government documents)

College of DuPage Geography Academic Program

What is Geography? - from the Royal Geographical Society

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LIBRARY CATALOG

COD LIBRARY CATALOG Find Books and Videos in the COD Library only

Outline of the Library of Congress Classification System (what C.O.D. uses to arrange its books)
I-SHARE (formerly Illinet Online): Get books from over 80 Illinois academic libraries
Interlibrary Loan, to get books and journal articles from other libraries around the country.
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REFERENCE BOOKS

Why Reference Sources?

Is your research topic too big to cover in a short paper?  Is your topic so specific that sources will be hard to find?

Before you even begin your research, start the process with reference sources-- in the Library's Reference Section or online in our databases.  Reference books, like subject encyclopedias, can give you a head start and make your research easier in the long run.  Use reference sources to:

• find a topic
• narrow your topic
• find keywords
• get background information on your topic

Border Disputes: A Global Encyclopedia. (2015)

The Borderlands: An Encyclopedia of Culture and Politics on the U.S. - Mexico Divide . (2008)

Columbia Gazetteer of the World. Reference G103.5 .C65 1998

Cultural Geography: A Dictionary of Key Concepts. General GF 4 .C 858 2005.

Demographic Yearbook [United Nations]. Reference HA 17 .D 45

Dictionary of Geography. Reference G 63 .E 47 2007.

Dictionary of Human Geography . (2009)

Dictionary of Physical Geography . (2000)

Economic Geography Online Dictionary and Glossary.

Elevations and Distances in the United States.

Encyclopaedia Britannica Online

Encyclopedia of Community: From the Village to the Virtual World

Encyclopedia of Geography.

Encyclopedia of Human Geography.

Encyclopedia of Islands (2009)

Encyclopedia of Urban America: The Cities and the Suburbs. (1998)

Encyclopedia of Urban Cultures: Cities and Cultures around the World. Ref. HT 108.5 .E 53 2002

Geography Basics. Reference G 116 .G 475 2004.

Glossary of Flood Terms. (floodsmart.gov)

Glossary of Floodplain Terms.

The Glossary of Globalization, Trade and Health Terms. (World Health Organization)

Historical Dictionary of World Political Geography: An Encyclopedic Guide. Reference D 20 .R 16 2001.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Terminology: A Multilingual Directory.

Key Concepts in Historical Geography. Reference G 141 .M 68 2014

Key Concepts in Urban Geography. (2008)

Merriam - Webster's Geographical Dictionary . (2007)

A Modern Dictionary of Geography. Reference G 63 .W 58 2001 .

Online Dictionary of the Social Sciences.

Political Economy Terms online.

Reading Weather Maps.

Research Guide to Cartographic Resources

Topographic Map Symbols from the USGS.

Water Encyclopedia, Volume 2: Water Quality and Resource Development. Reference TD 345 .L 393 2005 v.2

World Civilizations Glossary: Concepts, Values, Terms.

Online Texts

"The Four Traditions of Geography." William D. Pattison. The Journal of Geography. Volume 63. Number 5. Pages 211-216.

Fundamentals of Physical Geography.

Geodesy for the Layman. U.S. Defense Mapping Agency, 1984.

The Geography of Transportation Systems.

Geologic Maps Guide. From the US Geological Survey and the National Park Service.

Military Geography for Professionals and the Public. Department of Defense, 1998. (Very slow due to all the graphics.)

Using Maps in Geneaology.
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ARTICLE DATABASES

Print journals in the Current Periodicals section on the Lower Level:
American Forests, Geography, Illinois Geographer, National Geographic, National Geographic Traveler, Route 66

You must have a valid College of DuPage library card to access the electronic indexes and databases from off-campus.

Academic OneFile (formerly Expanded Academic Index ASAP). An index to over 2500 magazines and journals covering a variety of topic areas including anthropology. This database provides references, abstracts, and many times the full-text of articles. A COD library card is required for off-campus use.

Academic Search Complete [EBSCOhost]1984 to present; 1990 to present- full text). Abstracts from nearly 3000 journals and full text for 1250 journals including general reference, education, social sciences, humanities, general science, multi-cultural studies, library and information science.

Border and Migration Studies This database has streaming videos and other print content on various aspects of life along borders.

Electronic Journals in Geography List.

Google Scholar. This provides access to many free full-text articles, as well as citations to many other articles.

Handbook of Latin American Studies. Citations-only database from the U.S. Library of Congress.

Illinois Periodicals Online. This database includes full-text articles from "Illinois Heritage", "Illinois History", "Illinois History Teacher", and the "Illinois Municipal Review".

Latin American Periodicals Tables of Contents (LAPTOC). No full-text articles, just bibliographic citations to articles.

Military and Government Collection of articles. Citations and full-text articles dealing with the military and various governments.

National Newspapers(ProQuest). This includes the Chicago Tribune, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post.

Open Access Journals Directory (DOAJ) (free full-text journal articles)

Policybot. This is a database of over 18,000 public policy reports and documents, most of them full-text & free online.

Project MUSE. This is a collection of thousands of full-text academic articles on a wide variety of topics.

FREE ONLINE JOURNALS

Antipode journal online website, with some FREE CLASSIC and THEMED articles. FULL-TEXT ARTICES are available from 1998 until one year ago in the Academic Search Complete database listed above. This journal is indexed by many databases linked above, but they do not contain full-text articles. Copies of the articles may be requested for free through the Interlibrary Loan Service (click here).

The Industrial Geographer.

Investigaciones Geograficas: Boletin del Instituto de Geografia . Free online journal (2000-) in Spanish from the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM).

Social Geography. A free online journal.

More COD Library journal and newspaper article databases.
Does the C.O.D. Library own the journal that I need? Look up the Journal Title in the Library Catalog.
Explanation of Scholarly Journals
Explanation of the Difference Between Magazines and Journals
How to Read a Research Study Article.
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PLACE NAMES

Introduction to Place Names

Use these reference tools to find explanations of various location names.

Gazetteer of British Place Names.

Gazetteer of Illinois. Reference F539 .P36 1993

Geographic Names Information System: GNIS. U.S. Geoglogical Survey (USGS).

Geographical Etymology: A Dictionary of Place-Names.. (1887)

The Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names Online.

Glossary of Toponymic Terminiology. (from the United Nations.)

A Guide to the Ancient World: A Dictionary of Classical Place Names. General DE 25 .G 72 1986

Historical Gazetteer of the United States. Reference E 154 .H 45 2006

A History of the Origin of the Place Names connected with the Chicago and North Western and Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railways. (1908)

The Illinois Atlas and Gazetteer. Reference Atlas Stand G 1405 .D 4

Lippincott's Pronouncing Gazetteer. A complete pronouncing gezetteer, or geographical dictionary, of the world. Containing a notice and the pronunciation of the names of nearly one hundred thousand places. With the most recent and authentic information respecting ... every portion of the globe ... (1856).

A List of Illinois Place Names. Reference F 539 A 3 1968

Native American Placenames of the United States. Reference E 98 .N 2 B 75 2004

Nicknames of Places : Origins and Meanings of the Alternate and Secondary Names, Sobriquets, Epithets and Slogans for 4600 Places Worldwide. Reference G 105 R 65 2006

The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. (Henry Gannett, 2nd ed., 1905, U.S.G.S.)

Penguin Encyclopedia of Places . (gazetteer) (3rd ed.) (1999)

Place Name Changes, 1900 - 1999. General G 103.5 .R 657 1993

Place Names: How They Define the World. General G 105 .R 36 2001

Place Names in the Midwestern United States. Reference F 351 .58 2000

Place Names of Illinois. Reference F 539 .C 35 2009

Placenames of Russia and the Former Soviet Union. Reference DK 15 .R 66 2014

Placenames of the World : Origins and Meanings of the Names for 6,600 Countries, Cities, Territories, Natural Features, and Historic Sites. Reference G 105 .R 66 2006

Pronunciation Guide for Illinois Place Names. (Donald E. Brown, 1957)

Spring Place Names and Historic Data on Springs, Licks and Selected Water Wells in Illinois : A Two Part Compendium. Reference F 539 .R 44 2008

What do You call a Person From....? Reference PE 1582 .A 3 D 5 1990
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OTHER RESEARCH GUIDES

Anthrolopology (with a section of resources on Ethnic and Culture groups)
Chicago Region and Neighborhoods
Economics
Fake News
Food and Culture
History
Political Science
Psychology
Science and Politics
Sociology
Statistics for Demographics and Business/Economics
Urban Studies
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FINDING COUNTRY INFORMATION

You can try searching our Library Catalog for reference books on countries by doing a keyword search like this:
name of the country AND (encyclopedia OR dictionary)

You can also look up information about various Ethnic/Culture Groups here.

Brazil Today : An Encyclopedia of Life in the Republic. Reference F 2504 .B 73 2012

Countries and Their Cultures. Reference GN 307 .C 68 2001.

Country Information and Statistics, from World Audit.org.

Country Reports.org. A collection of cultural, historical, statistical, and geographic information about countries.

Country Statistics and Reports from the Population Reference Bureau

Country Studies. A series of textbooks on all countries, with chapters on the various features of each country.

Culture and Customs of.... books in a series about different countries and ethnic groups

Eastern Europe: An Introduction to People, Lands, and Cultures . Reference DJK 9 .E 25 2005.

Encyclopaedia Britannica Online . Look up the name of the country, state, or province.

Encyclopedia of Contemporary Latin American and Caribbean Cultures. Reference F 1406 .E 515 2000

Encyclopedia of Contemporary Russian Cultures. Reference DK 510.32 .E 53 2007.

Encyclopedia of India.

Encyclopedia of Modern Asia. Reference DS 4 .L 48 2002.

Encyclopedia of the Developing World. Reference HC 59.7 .E 52 2006

Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Reference DS 43 .E 53 2004

Geography of the World. (Lots of basic facts and figures.)

Legal Systems of the World: A Political, Social, and Cultural Encyclopedia. Reference K 48 .L 44 2002.

Mexico: An Encyclopedia of Contemporary Culture and History. (2004)

Maplandia. Lots of different geographical information available at this site.

Nationmaster. You can use this site to find statistics and make charts.

New Encyclopedia of Africa. Reference DT 2 .N 48 2008.

Rankings of Countries by democratic development, press freedoms, human rights, rule of law, corruption, civil liberties, economic freedom, from World Audit.org.

Regional Studies Sites from the Virtual Library

REGIONAL SURVEY SERIES, arranged by country name, with lots of recent economic and political information.

... Africa South of the Sahara. Reference DT 351 .A 37.
... Central and South-Eastern Europe. Reference D 1058 .C 46.
... Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia. Reference D 1058 .E 37.
... Far East and Australasia. Reference DS 1 .F 3.
... Middle East and North Africa. Referece DS 49 .M 5.
... South Asia. Reference DS 334 .S 68.
... Western Europe. Reference D 1050 .W 4.

U.S. Relations with Other Countries Information

The World Factbook [CIA]. This official government web site has maps and hard data on all the countries of the world.

World Education Encyclopedia: A Survey of Educational Systems Worldwide. . Reference LB 15 .W 87.

World Geographical Encyclopedia. Reference G 63 .E 5213 1995

THE WORLD TODAY SERIES, arranged by country name, with lots of recent economic and political information.
... Africa. Reference DT 1 .D 6.
... East and Southeast Asia. Reference DS 502 .H 53.
... Latin America. Reference F 1401 .L 3252.
... The Middle East and South Asia. Reference DS 44 .N 67.
... Nordic, Central, and Southeastern Europe. Reference DL 1 .N 67.
... Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. Reference DJK 1 .S 452.
... Western Europe. Reference D 901 .W 47.

The Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life. Reference GN 333 .W 67 2009

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FINDING U.S. STATES AND CANADIAN PROVINCES INFORMATION

CANADA
Canada. (The World Today series) Reference F 1001 .C 1225
The Canadian Encyclopedia. Reference F 1006 .C 36 1988.
Canada's Diverse Peoples: A Reference Sourcebook. (2003)
Encyclopedia of Canadian Provinces.
Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador.
.Environmental History of Canada and Arctic North America. General GF 501 .W 96 2007
Statistics Canada. Searchable data from Canadian federal censuses and surveys.

U.S. States
American Ethnic Geography: A Cultural Geography of the United States and Canada

American FactFinder. Searchable statistics and maps from Census Bureau censuses and surveys. Includes census information for the US and US territories.

The American Midwest: An Interpretive Encyclopedia. Reference F 351 .A 534 2007

AMERICAN REGIONAL CULTURES ENCYCLOPEDIAS
...The Great Plains Region. General F 591 .G 75 2004
...The Mid-Atlantic Region. . General F 106 .M 586 2004
...The Midwest Region . General F 357 .M 59 2004
...The New England Region. General F 4 .N 47 2004
...The Pacific Region. . General F 851 .P 1955 2005
...The Rocky Mountain Region . General F 721 .R 74 2004
...The South Region . General F 209 .S 68 2004
...The Southwest Region. General F 786 .S 747 2004

America's Changing Neighborhoods : An Exploration of Diversity through Places.

America's Natural Places: The Midwest.

Black America: A State-by-State Historical Encyclopedia. (2011)

Contemporary Immigration in America : A State-by-State Encyclopedia. (2015)

Encyclopedia of American Folklife. Reference GR 105 .E 53 2006

Encyclopedia of Appalachia. Reference F 106 .E 53 2006

Encyclopedia of New Jersey. (2004)

Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. Reference F 591 .E 4856 2004

New Encyclopedia of the American West . Reference F 591 .N 46 1998

ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY OF...
...Grasslands of the United States. General GF 503 .S 54 2007
...New England and the Midwest. General GF 504 .N 86 C 85 2005
...Northeast and Midwest United States. General GF 504 .N 86 C 85 2005
...Southern United Staes. General GF 13.3 .S 6 S 68 2006
...United States West Coast.

Highpoints of the United States: A Guide to the Fifty State Summits. (2000)

Latino America : A State-by-State Encyclopedia. Reference E 184 .S 75 L 35555 2008

An Outline of American Geography: Regional Landscapes of the United States. (1992)

Political Encyclopedia of U.S. States and Regions. Reference JK 2408 .P 623 2009

State and Local Government web sites directory.

State Maps on File. Reference G 1200 .F 3 1984.

SAGE STATS. A database of recent statistics organized by states and topics.

STATISTICAL ABSTRACT OF THE UNITED STATES. Latest print copy on Ready Reference HA 202 .U 5 S 93.

Statistics selected by your Geography from Federal Stats/Map Stats.

Worldmark Encyclopedia of the States. General E 156 .W 67
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Illinois Geographic Information

The Illinois State Geological Survey. The main source of cartographic information in the state.

The Illinois State Water Survey. The main source for information on rivers and lakes in the state.

The Artesian Waters of Northeastern Illinois. (1919)

Chicago and Cook County, Illinois - Digital Atlas.

DuPage County Flood Maps.

DuPage County Interactive Map of Communities.

Gazetteer of Illinois. Reference F539 .P36 1993

The Geography of Illinois, by Douglas Clay Ridgeley (1921)

Geography of the Middle Illinois Valley, by Harlan H. Barrows (1925)

Geography of the Upper Illinois Valley and History of Development. (1916)

How to Read Illinois Topographic Maps.

The Illinois Atlas and Gazetteer. Reference Atlas Stand G 1405 .D 4

Illinois Digital Map Library. From the U.S. Geneaology Web project.

Illinois Encyclopedia. Reference F539 .I45 2008

Illinois Fire Insurance Maps from Sanborn

Illinois: A Geographical Survey. Reference F 541.8 .I 45 1996

Illinois Geography quick facts.

A List of Illinois Place Names. Reference F 539 A 3 1968

Origin of the Names of Stations on the Line of the Illinois Central Railroad Co.

A Physiography of the Region of Chicago. (1927)

Place Names in the Midwestern United States. Reference F 351 .58 2000

Place Names of Illinois. Reference F 539 .C 35 2009

The Prairie Province of Illinois: A Study of Human Adjustment to the Natural Environment. (1931)

Pronunciation Guide for Illinois Place Names. (Donald E. Brown, 1957)

Spring Place Names and Historic Data on Springs, Licks and Selected Water Wells in Illinois : A Two Part Compendium. Reference F 539 .R 44 2008
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GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS

What Is GIS???????
GIS DAY in November!

C.O.D. Library materials on Geographic Information Systems

A to Z GIS: An Illustrated Dictionary of Geographic Information Systems. Reference G 70.212 .A 86 2006

ARCUSER online GIS magazine from ESRI.

Bibliography for GIS, from ESRI.

The Center for Spatially Integrated Social Science (CSISS)

Chicago GIS Data.

Dictionary of Abbreviations and Acronyms in GIS, Cartography, and Remote Sensing. (University of California at Berkeley Library)

DuPage County Government GIS department.

Encyclopedia of Geographic Information Science.

Encyclopedia of GIS. (2008)

The ESRI Press Dictionary of GIS Terminology. Reference G 70.212 .E 87 2001.

Geospatial Platform. Lots of information from the Federal Government.

GIS Cafe. Lots of different kinds of useful information.

GIS Commons: An Introductory Textbook on Geographic Information Systems.

GIS Data Depot.

GIS DAY! Always in November.

GIS Dictionary, from ESRI.

GIS Training/Education Community Information Page, from ESRI.

GIS for Housing and Urban Development. U.S. National Research Council 2003.

Great Lakes Information Network (GLIN) GIS Information.

GPS World magazine.

Illinois Geographic Information Systems Association (ILGISA).

Illinois GIS Data.

Key Concepts and Techniques in GIS.

National Historical Geographic Information System.

Spatial Resources for the Social Sciences (CSISS)

Yahoo GIS Directory.
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MAPS FOR YOUR RESEARCH PROJECTS/PAPERS

For maps that you can copy or print off to go with your research papers, you can always look in our multitude of encyclopedias and atlases, in both the Reference and General collections. In addition, you can take a look at these items as well:

African History on File. Reference DT 20 .A 6194 1994.

Asia on File. Reference DS 5 .A 795 1996.

Charts on File. Reference AG 105 .C 44 1988.

Environment on File. Reference QH 541.15 .M 64 E 58 1991.

Geography on File. Reference G 1021 .F 25 1991.

Historical Maps on File. Reference G 1030 .M 37 2002.

Latin America on File. Reference G 1540 .T 6 1995.

Latin American History on File. Reference F 1410 .C 439 1996.

Outline Maps on File. Reference G 1046 .A 1 F 3 2002.

Maps on File. Reference G 1021 .M 3.

Weather and Climate on File. Reference QC 864 .W 43 2001.

INTERNET SITES

Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) online maps for buses, METRA, and The "EL".
CIA Administrative and Topographic Maps. From the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.
Ditigital Atlas of Chicago and Cook County, Illinois.
DuPage County Flood Maps.
DuPage County Interactive Map of Communities.
Geology.Com.
Gridded Population of the World. Map representations of country or regional population.
Google Maps. Create online maps and view satellite photographs.
Historical Topographic Maps from the U.S. Geological Survey.
Illinois Digital Map Library. From the U.S. Geneaology Web project.
Illinois Fire Insurance Maps from Sanborn
Local RTA Transportation Maps.
Map Machine from National Geographic.
MapQuest Useful for local areas and detailed street maps.
Old Maps Online.
Periodical Historical Atlas of Europe to 1700 A.D.
Show Mapping. This site creates maps to using statistics on various topics to show how the countries or U.S. states rate when compared to each other.
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RESEARCH METHODS

Research Methods in Environment and Society background reading
GIS Research Methods: Incorporating Spatial Perspectives.
Researching Human Geography. General GF 21 .H 64 2002
Social Science Research Methods guide
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GEOGRAPHIC EDUCATION

Careers in Geography. C.O.D. Library Resources.
Geography Education National Implementation Project.
Human Geography course page for Advanced Placement Tests.
The National Council for Geographic Education.
National Geography Standards.
National Geography Standards and Lesson Plans.
National Geography Week.
The Nation's Report Card on Geography 2001 Results. (U.S. Department of Education)
The Nation's Report Card on Geography Homepage. (U.S. Department of Education)
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GEOGRAPHY FACULTY

(click there)
Look at the bottom of the page.

ANYONE can put information on the Internet. ANYONE. As a health care provider, you must carefully select and evaluate medical/health information before using it to treat patients or letting it influence how you perform your duties. Use the evaluating sources section of this guide to help you determine the credibility of Web sites. A great final test is to ask yourself, "Would I want myself or someone that I care deeply about to be treated based on this information?" If the answer is "no," don't include such non-credible information in your academic projects either!

General Medical Information Websites

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
CDC.gov provides users with credible, reliable health information on topics such as: data and statistics; diseases and conditions; emergencies and disasters; environmental health; healthy living; injury, violence and safety; life stages and populations; travelers' health; workplace safety and health; and much more. This site contains information appropriate for adults, teens and kids

MayoClinic.com
Easy-to-understand information on health and medical topics, all reviewed for accuracy by Mayo Clinic experts. Content includes interactive resources and tools, information on specific diseases and disorders, management of particular chronic conditions, suggestions for healthy lifestyles, consumer drug information, first aid, specialists' answers to frequently asked questions about diseases and health decision-making guides. (A service of Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

MEDLINEplus
Provides access to 900+ health topics, medical encyclopedias and dictionaries, and links to self-help groups, clinical trials, preformulated PubMed searches, lists of hospitals and physicians, health and information in Spanish and other languages. Includes listings of diseases & conditions by body system.

MedScape Reference
An online clinical reference providing in-depth drug & disease information and tools to support clinical decision making. Content is designed for practicing medical professionals and includes diagnostic medical images. Free Registration to MedScape is required. To avoid registering and go straight to an entry in this resource, try Googling the word emedicine and your disease/condition (i.e. emedicine pneumonia).

Respiratory & Polysomnography Associations & Organizations

American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC)
Professional membership association for respiratory care professionals and allied health specialists interested in cardiopulmonary care

American Board of Sleep Medicine (ABSM)
"Certification by the American Board of Sleep Medicine (ABSM) stands for the highest standard in sleep technology. Technologists who have achieved ABSM certification have demonstrated to their peers and to the public that they have the skills and knowledge essential for the delivery of excellent patient care"

Board of Registered Polysomnographic Technologists (BRPT)
The organization recognized for the highest standards in sleep credentialing, certification and education.

Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC)
Accredits professional U.S. and international respiratory care degree programs at the Associate, Baccalaureate, and Masters Degree level

Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP)

National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC)

Useful Websites

American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology

American Lung Association

American Thoracic Society (ATS) Clinical Cases
The American Thoracic Society features ATS Clinical Cases, a monthly series devoted to interactive clinical case presentations on all aspects of pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine. It is designed to provide education to practitioners, faculty, fellows, residents, and medical students in the areas of pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine.

Anatomy & Physiology Research Guide
Print and electronic anatomy & physiology resources organized by C.O.D.'s Natural Sciences Librarian

Asbestos Exposure and Cancer Risk
A National Cancer Institute Fact Sheet with links to numerous asbestos-related resources

Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA)
The leading not-for-profit, patient organization for people with asthma and allergies

C.R.I.S. Community Resource Information System [DuPage County]
A fast and easy way to obtain basic information on social service programs throughout DuPage County [ Mozilla Firefox browser is recommended, Internet Explorer sometimes does not display correctly]

ECRI Guidelines Trust
Provided by ECRI Institute (the organization that served as sole prime contractor for the discontinued National Guideline ClearinghouseTM (NGC)), this publicly available web-based repository provides physicians, nurses, other clinical specialties, and members of the healthcare community with up-to-date, clinical practices and guidelines to advance safe and effective patient care. The repository includes evidence-based guidance developed by nationally- and internationally-recognized medical organizations and medical specialty societies. [FREE registration is required to access the database]

Interactive Atlas of Thoracic Viscera
From the University of Washington

Lab Tests Online
Designed to help the patient or caregiver better understand that many clinical lab tests are part of routine care as well as diagnosis and treatment of conditions and diseases. The site is a collaboration of professional societies representing the lab community

Lung Cancer Alliance
The Lung Cancer Alliance is the only national non-profit organization dedicated solely to advocating for people living with lung cancer or those at risk for the disease

National Cancer Institute
Official site for the National Institute of Health's principal agency for cancer research

National Emphysema Foundation
Dedicated to improving the quality of life for people with emphysema, asthma and related diseases

National Lung Health Education Program
Works to increase awareness of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) among the public and health care professionals and to encourage the use of simple spirometry to make an early diagnosis and monitor ongoing treatment

National Sleep Foundation
The National Sleep Foundation is dedicated to improving health and well-being through sleep education and advocacy

Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA)
OSHA creates and enforces workplace safety standards.

HealthCommunities.com: lung conditions

Shadow Pictures
A radiology database that includes 1038 individual cases and 270 discussion or teaching documents. All documents have been produced by Ian Maddison, a Radiologist. There are rich cross-links between documents so that readers may decide for themselves the relevance of any listed differential diagnosis.

Sleep.org
Consumer/Patient level sleep information site from the National Sleep Foundation

Sleep for Kids
From the National Sleep Foundation, teaches kids the importance of sleep

Sleep--When You Don't Snooze, You Lose! COD Library workshop web page designed for patients/health consumers that reviews the benefits of sleep, the results of sleep deprivation, tips for improving rest and more (links to numerous consumer/patient level articles on sleep)

The "Virtual" Medical Center - Anesthesiology & Surgery Center
This site provides links to medical dictionaries and glossaries, interactive anatomy browsers, and online medical journals, as well as surgical and anesthesiology sites

Locating Journal Articles

The Library provides access to many online article databases that will help you locate journal, magazine, and newspaper articles. You can search by keyword, subject, author and title.

You must have a valid College of DuPage library card to access the electronic indexes and databases from off-campus.

Newspaper Databases
Includes Chicago Tribune, New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal and more

Databases by Subject
Choose an database according to your subject of interest.

• Begin your research in the Health and Medicine Databases
  

  What databases contain the best Respiratory Care journals?
  

  • Each database contains different resources (journals, e-books, magazines, newspapers, pamphlets, etc.)--Run your search in several databases. Read the database descriptions to locate databases most relevant to your search.

  • Credible, professional respiratory journals like the American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC)'s Respiratory Care can be found online via our electronic databases. Respiratory Care is available full-text online via the COD database CINAHL. Respiratory Care is also available full-text on the Web at http://rc.rcjournal.com/content/by/year.

  • Pay attention to online journal article embargos
  • Some journals are ONLY available in print—the Library has photocopiers and flatbed scanners
  Back to top

  "Best Bet" Health Databases

  Academic Search Complete
  Academic Search Complete contains indexing and full text for 9,100 journals. 7,100 of these journals are peer-reviewed scholarly titles. This collection provides both popular and scholarly journal coverage for nearly all academic areas of study - including social sciences, humanities, education, computer sciences, engineering, physics, chemistry, language and linguistics, arts & literature, medical sciences and ethnic studies.

  Care Notes
  Care Notes helps medical professionals educate patients and their families about certain conditions. Contains 2500 English and 2500 Spanish documents that address patient condition, treatment, follow-up care, psychosocial issues, continuing health, and the most frequently administered drugs.

  CINAHL
  The online version of Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health Literature, CINAHL Complete covers nursing, allied health, biomedical and consumer health journals, publications of the American Nursing Association, and the National League for Nursing. It now includes the CINAHL Thesaurus and full text of over 1300 important nursing and clinical journals as well as over 130 Evidence-based Care Sheets; nearly 170 Quick Lessons providing Overviews of Disease and Conditions; 170 Continuing Education Modules; and full text for 360 Research Instrument Records.

  Gale Ebooks (GVRL)
  A collection of online reference books on a variety of topics including Business, History, Literature, Medicine, Social Science, Technology and many more.
  individual entries from these resources can be printed and emailed.

  Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition
  This resource provides 600 scholarly full text journals focusing on many medical disciplines. Coverage of nursing and allied health is particularly strong. In addition, this database includes the Clinical Pharmacology database, providing access to up-to-date, concise and clinically relevant drug monographs for all U.S. prescription drugs, hard-to-find herbal and nutritional supplements, over-the-counter products and new drugs.

  MedlinePlus
  MedlinePlus has extensive information from the National Institutes of Health and other trusted sources on over 900 diseases and conditions. There are also lists of hospitals and physicians, a medical encyclopedia and a medical dictionary, health information in Spanish, extensive information on prescription and nonprescription drugs, health information from the media, and links to thousands of clinical trials.

  MICROMEDEX Healthcare Series
  Provides full-text information supporting clinical care decisions including: drug monographs and evaluations (including contrast media), drug dosages and interactions, drug product identification, reproductive risks, toxicity management, alternative medicine/herbal preparations information, acute/emergency care guidelines, drug, disease and condition information for patients, laboratory test information, dosage calculators, nomograms, and references

  PubMed
  Provides access to over 12 million MEDLINE citations back to the mid-1960's and additional life science journals. PubMed includes links to many sites providing full text articles and other related sources

  Rehabilitation Therapy in Video
  Rehabilitation Therapy in Video is a collection of video materials for the study of occupational therapy, physical/physiotherapy, and speech-language pathology. The collection allows students and faculty to easily find, cite, and share footage of top clinicians and academics explaining the underlying anatomical and neurological issues in specific patient populations, while demonstrating effective techniques and methods for their treatment.

  Science Direct
  **Be sure to select "Subscribed Journals" from the Source drop-down menu**
  Indexing and full-text of 175 journals in science, chemistry, earth science, biology and other related disciplines.

  Browse all COD Library Health and Medicine databases
  

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  Database (and Library catalog) Advanced Search Tips

  • Use the features of the database (print, navigation) before using your browser's back or print buttons
  • For keyword searching, use the advanced search feature so that you can use multiple terms and set limits (date range, peer-reviewed, full text, etc)
  • Remember that databases require you to spell correctly
  • To limit your search results to journals with editorial boards (or some type of article review process by qualified health professionals prior to publication) look under the “limit” section of the initial search page. Select the option to limit to peer reviewed (some databases also call them refereed publications). Refereed publications and peer reviewed are synonyms for board-reviewed or scholarly journals. Don’t forget to set your date limits too!
  • When creating your search strategy, take a moment to write down your key words and any synonyms (alternative words meaning the same thing) that might be used. Also think about how you connect your key words together.
  • Connect different concepts with the word AND indicating that you want both concepts to appear in each retrieved article.
  • Connect variations (different words could be used for the same thing) with OR indicating that at least one variation should occur in the articles retrieved.
  • Put parentheses around actions that you want to be done first (just like you may have done in an algebra class).
  • Here are some examples of synonyms and “nesting” (using parentheses):
  • ("respiratory care" OR "respiratory therap*" OR respiratory)
  • ("artificial respira*" OR "mechanical ventilation")
  • Put the key concepts together like this example:
    ("respiratory care" OR "respiratory therap*" OR respiratory) AND ("artificial respira*" OR "mechanical ventilation")
  • capitalize connecting words (AND, OR) to let the database know that you are giving a command not just listing a word to be found
  • Use an asterisk (*) to find all possible endings. For example, ventil* finds ventilate, ventilates, ventilated, ventilation, ventilator, ventilators
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Browsing the Collection

Use the Library catalog to search the COD Library's collection of books, videos, e-books, and streaming media. Use your COD Library card to check these items out or access them online.

Call Number Searching

Another strategy is to search by call number. Health-related materials are shelved in the "R" section of libraries that use the Library of Congress classification system.

Respiratory Care books are located in several call number areas.

Some respiratory books are located in other areas of the "R" section if they deal with specific age groups (ie. pediatric respiratory therapy books may be found in the RJ section). Respiratory care books may also be classified according to specific regions of the body (i.e. chest) or by disease/condition (i.e. lung cancer). Use the Library catalog to locate the call number areas for these types of physical therapy resources.

There are two locations for "print" or physical material (videos or software) in the C.O.D. Library: the reference collection (items don't leave the Library) and the general stacks (items that you can take home). Library staff members will be happy to help you find books in either section--just ask!

Reference Materials

Reference materials are well indexed, up-to-date, concise, and highly credible. They provide overviews, definitions, specific information (such as causes & symptoms, diagnosis, treatments, prognosis, etc) or addresses. Types of reference books include: directories, dictionaries and encyclopedias, basic health books (describing diseases and conditions), and drug resources. Since you cannot normally take these materials home, remember that you will have to photocopy, or write down the information that you need. Some reference materials are available full text, online via our databases. Below are some examples of the types of reference books found in the C.O.D. reference collection.

Some of these resources are designed for consumers (such as the Johns Hopkins or Mayo Clinic health books), some for health students and consumers (the Gale Encyclopedia series), and some for health professionals (Cecil or Harrison's), so the type and level of information differs to suit each audience. Some reference works are available in Spanish language versions.

Reference Best Bets

Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary
REF R 121.D73 2012 (Ready Reference--located at our reference desks)

Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine
REF RC 41 .G35 ONLINE ACCESS*
* This link will allow you to simultaneously search all of the specialized Gale Encyclopedias available in the Gale eBooksdatabase

Melloni's Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 4th edition
REF R121 .D76 2002

Merriam-Webster Online Medical Dictionary (select medical reference, includes audio pronunciations)

Goldman's Cecil Medicine
REF RC46 .C423 2016

Conn's Current Therapy
REF RM101 .C87

Current Medical Diagnosis & Treatment
REF RC71 .A14

Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine
REF RC46 .H333 2015

Streaming Health & Medical Videos

You must have a valid College of DuPage library card to access these video databases from off-campus.

Academic Video Online
A diverse collection of full-length streaming videos. A wide-range of disciplines are included. Most useful is the Health & Health Care collection. Also included in the subscription are full transcripts of each video program that are keyword searchable, easy playlist and clip making functionality, permanent embeddable URLs for easy use in online courses.

Nursing Education in Video
Nursing Education in Video is an online collection of videos created specifically for the education and training of nurses, nursing assistants, and other healthcare workers. All of the videos in the collection have been created with the guidance of the Medcom-Trainex advisory board, and are regularly reviewed for accuracy, currency, and compliance with US Federal regulations from agencies such as OSHA and CMS.

Rehabilitation Therapy in Video
Rehabilitation Therapy in Video is a collection of video materials for the study of occupational therapy, physical/physiotherapy, and speech-language pathology. The collection allows students and faculty to easily find, cite, and share footage of top clinicians and academics explaining the underlying anatomical and neurological issues in specific patient populations, while demonstrating effective techniques and methods for their treatment.

Sports Medicine And Exercise Science In Video
Sports Medicine and Exercise Science in Video is the most extensive video collection ever assembled in the areas of fitness and health assessment, disease management, injury treatment, nutrition, medical fitness, sport science, work-site wellness, exercise adherence, and much more.

Remember that additional DVDs, CD-ROMs and health-related multimedia resources can be found by searching the COD Library catalog. Use your COD Library card to check these items out for in-library, home viewing, or online access (depending on availability).

Anatomical Models

Anatomical Models are available at the Library circulation desk.

For even more assistance with anatomy & physiology, check out the COD Library's Anatomy & Physiology Research Guide!

Every library is organized for the best use of its primary customers.

• Public libraries support the recreation, business, and citizenship needs of their communities.
• Special libraries support the information needs of their employers (law firms, corporate research & development, hospitals, etc.)
• School library and media centers support the classroom activities of elementary and secondary school students.
• Academic libraries (undergraduate libraries and the libraries of small colleges and universities and community colleges) support the course work of their students.
• Research libraries are maintained at large research universities and support both student course work and faculty research. These are typically the world's largest libraries.

To make finding sources easier, librarians categorize materials using various characteristics, such as format (video, book, Web site), source type (reference, fiction), and subject (engineering, social work, sports). These collections may be arranged by room, floor, Web page, or building. Explore the sample library sections below.

Books

Reference

Digital Collection

Microfilm

Maps

Special Collections

Audio/Visual

Periodicals

This guide is a starting point for locating Respiratory Care Assistant, Polysomnography, and Respiratory Therapy books, videos, journal articles, images and credible websites.

The menu on the right will help you research, locate, evaluate and cite resources in APA style.

Ask Your Health Science Librarian

Do you need help finding information on a specific topic? In addition to using our face-to-face, online and phone Ask A Librarian options, you may call or email me to set up an appointment or to explain what you need (I can often help you via email). Please remember that while I can assist you in finding information and can educate you about locating and citing quality health resources, I cannot diagnose or recommend treatment for specific conditions or diseases. I also cannot interpret assignments--ask your instructor! I will always refer specific medical and assignment-related questions back to your health care provider or instructor. Your questions will be kept in confidence and your privacy will be respected.

Polysomnography & Respiratory Care Journals (print & online)

COD Library Respiratory System-Related Journals

Introduction

This unit will introduce criteria for evaluating your research strategies and for evaluating information sources.

Objectives

• Develop a basic set of criteria for evaluating your search strategy
• Develop a basic set of criteria for evaluating information sources

Library Learning Outcomes

(Click for full list of learning outcomes)
After this module, the student should be able to:

3d. Analyze the search results and determine whether the search should be refined.
5a. Use the components of a citation to choose those sources most suitable for the research project.
5b. Evaluate among various information sources using established evaluation criteria to determine reliability, validity, authority, currency, and accuracy).
5c. Evaluate information sources with an understanding of context, intention, and audience (bias, opinion, satire, inflammatory, balanced).

Introduction

This unit will show you how to find and get your hands on actual sources.

Objectives

• Determine the nature of a source from a citation
• Use citations to find physical sources
• Locate sources using classification systems
• Understand library collections and services

Library Learning Outcomes

(Click for full list of learning outcomes)
After this module, the student should be able to:

2a. Determine available resources and services at the College of DuPage Library.
2b. Understand the characteristics and value of different types of resources (books, periodicals, Web sites) and their different formats (print, electronic).
3b. Identify the components of a citation and differentiate between types of sources, such as book or periodical.
3c. Use the components of a citation to choose those sources most suitable for the research project.
4a. Determine whether sources are in the Library, online, or available by alternate means.
4b. Understand the different ways that resources are organized.
4c. Retrieve locally owned resources in a variety of formats such as books, articles, microform, and full-text.

Introduction

This unit covers how to choose and use a database correctly, and how to craft your research question (and related vocabularies) into search queries that can be understood by computers.

Objectives

• Distinguish a database from other types of information collections
• Identify the coverage of a database
• Understand the concept of field, or advanced searching in a database
• Construct effective search queries using logical operators and related strategies

Library Learning Outcomes

(Click for full list of learning outcomes)
After this module, the student should be able to:

2d. Select information resources (catalog, databases, search engines) appropriate for the research topic.
2e. Use various search techniques such as keywords, controlled vocabulary, limiters, Boolean operators, and truncation to find relevant items.
3a. Understand that search results may be presented according to various ordering principles (e.g. relevance ranking, author, title, or date).
3d. Analyze the search results and determine whether the search should be refined.