Research

The Research

"A discovery is rarely, if ever, a sudden achievement, nor is it the work of one man; a long series of observations, each in turn received in doubt and discussed in hostility, are familiarized by time, and lead at last to the gradual disclosure of truth."
Sir Berkeley Moynihan (1865-1936) Surgery, Gynecology and Obstetrics 31:549,1920
"Most of the knowledge and much of the genius of the research worker lie behind his selection of what is worth observing. It is a crucial choice, often determining the success or failure of months of work, often differentiating the brilliant discoverer from the. . . plodder."
Alan Gregg (1890-1957) The Furtherance of Medical Research
"I think your solution is just, but why think? Why not try to experiment?"
John Hunter (1728-1793) Letter to Edward Jenner, August 2, 1775

The Researcher

"The conventional picture of the research worker is that of a rather austere man in a white coat with a background of complicated glassware. My idea of a research worker, on the other hand, is a man who brushes his teeth on the left side of his mouth only so as to use the other side as a control and see if tooth-brushing has any effect on the incidence of caries."
Sir Robert Platt (1900-?) British Medical Journal I:577, 1953
"Many a man who is brooding over alleged mighty discoveries reminds me of a hen sitting on billiard balls."
J. Chalmers Da Costa (1863-1933) The Trials and Triumphs of the Surgeon, Ch. 1.

Books

The UMKC Health Sciences Library has many books on research design and methodology, statistics and epidemiology, ethics in experimentation, etc. Additional titles are available in other University of Missouri libraries; search the MERLIN Library Catalog. See also the Biostatistics guide, and for additional information about drug trials see the Drug Literature guide. A brief list of Health Sciences Library book resources follows: Directories of Research Centers Handbooks of tables, data, formulas, reference values Resources: Equipment, Products, Services Methods and Instruments Evidence-Based Medicine Funding Human and Animal Experimentation Your research may require the approval of the IRB; for more information consult the UMKC Office of Research Administration.
If your research with animals will involve pain levels B or C, you will have to be in compliance with the Animal Welfare Act, which requires in part a literature search. Jeanne Sarkis, Senior Clinical Medical Librarian, is the designated resource person to provide searches for UMKC researchers that will satisfy the Animal Welfare Information Center.
Copies of international codes of ethics concerning medical care and human experimentation, etc. may be found in the appendices of:
HSL Ref QH438.7.E56 Encyclopedia of Bioethics

If you don't find what you need, visit (or call or email) your librarian.

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Journals

Many journals in the Health Sciences Library contain research articles which are indexed in medical databases such as MEDLINE, HealthSTAR, and CINAHL, and others.

Databases

MEDLINE, a bibliographic index of over 3500 medical journals; HEALTHSTAR, a bibliographic index of Health Planning and Administration Literature and an index of Health Services/Technology Assessment Research; and other databases are good sources of research articles. Consult your librarian for information about other potential sources of research information.

MEDLINE Search Hint

Research methods and terms in MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) appear in great numbers in the E5, G3, and H1 trees. Remember that research terms are available as both subject headings and as publication types. It is possible, for example, to search for articles about meta-analysis using the MeSH "meta-analysis," or to search for articles that are meta-analyses by searching for the publication type "meta-analysis."

For more MEDLINE information, read the Medline Search Guide or consult your librarian.

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Internet Resources--World Wide Web


Sources of funding and research assistance include: To locate additional resources, check the Hancock List or the Medical Matrix.
To find the appropriate listservs or newsgroups, you may also search DejaNews or the CataList.

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Updated 3/97 bypfannenstiel@cctr.umkc.edu