Health Library News

  In the fast-paced world of healthcare, staying up-to-date with the latest research is not just beneficial—it’s essential. New evidence, research, guidelines, and innovations are published every day, shaping how care is delivered and improving patient outcomes. Finding and filtering relevant information can be a challenge. Your Health Library can help – learn more about our current awareness service. What Is a Current Awareness Service? A Current Awareness Service is designed to help busy NHS professionals stay informed without the need to constantly search for new information. It delivers regular, targeted updates on the latest publications in your specific area of interest. Instead of spending hours trawling through databases or journals, you receive summaries of the most relevant research—straight to your inbox. Why does it matter to NHS staff? Keeping up with evidence-based practice is a core part of delivering high-quality care. The Current Awareness Service helps yo...

  Whether you’re an undergraduate tackling your first systematic search, a postgraduate refining a dissertation, or a researcher navigating complex evidence resources, literature searching can feel overwhelming. Choosing the right databases, building effective search strategies and documenting your methods all take time and specialist knowledge. The Health Library is here to help students and researchers find the evidence they need, faster and with confidence. Our online information skills etutorials are designed to help you build strong searching skills, whenever and wherever you need them. Our bite‑sized tutorials guide you through: Turning your topic into a clear search question Choosing the right health databases Using keywords, subject headings, and boolean operators Searching effectively for articles, reviews and research evidence Saving, refining, and documenting your searches Perfect for students at all levels and busy researchers, the etutorials are flexible, pra...

 Your NHS OpenAthens username gives you access to to excellent healthcare-based resources. Are you using them efficiently and effectively to get the evidence you need? Make the most of NHS resources; develop your skills by making the most of the training opportunities available at the Health Library. Read our latest NHS OpenAthens bulletin below or open the bulletin in a new browser tab . NHSOpenAthens bulletin April 2026 by Cheryl Kent

 Got a reference for an article? Need to find the full-text? Not sure if we have an NHS subscription to the content you need? Do you want to: Get full-text easily Feel confident and calm Impress colleagues Save time Or are you happy to: Search lots of resources Get frustrated Ask colleagues and friends Waste time You can check for your access to full-text articles and journals by using simple tools to search NHS resources. This will give you links straight to the full-text, no matter which platform holds our content. Complete our tutorial Find full-text articles and journals in the NHS to learn how to easily get to the full-text content you need. screen-shot of the etutorial showing avatars Emma and Dan You will learn: How important NHS OpenAthens is The one place to access these easy-to-use tools How to search for the DOI How to use NHS Knowledge & Library Hub How to use the Browzine journals list Why LibKey Nomad is so important How you can make searching on google scholar e...

 Whether you're settling into university life, juggling clinical placements, or stepping into your first professional role, one thing is clear: being able to find, judge, and use information confidently is a game‑changer. That’s where the Health Library’s Information Skills eTutorials come in. These short, practical online modules are designed to help you build the research and information‑handling skills you’ll rely on throughout your studies and your healthcare career—and you can complete them anytime, anywhere, at your own pace. Why bother with information skills? Searching for good information can sometimes feel overwhelming. Databases, keywords, journals, evidence hierarchies, critical appraisal… It’s a lot. But strong information‑seeking skills don’t just make assignments easier—they make you a safer, more informed healthcare practitioner. Reliable evidence underpins everything from clinical decisions to patient education, and the sooner you feel comfortable navigating it, t...

  Make sure you get to the right information you need quickly and efficiently. Learn how to improve your search skills and make the most of library resources such as databases. Elevate your assignments, enhance your career progression and upgrade your literature searching by training at the Health Library. students working at computers in a library We give you a range of training opportunities, designed specifically for students and NHS staff, by experienced, professional librarians. Book a training course Check the courses and workshops we have available to support your skills development: Searching Keele healthcare databases Searching NHS Ovid databases and other resources Critical appraisal skills Learn about health literacy and patient information Get started with MS 365 Copilot chat Sessions can be delivered online or in-person. Book a session for your team, attend an available date or arrange a 1-to-1 session. Complete an etutorial Complete your inducti...

Make sure your patients have the right information to support their care and help them to make good health decisions. Create your own patient information easily by following these steps - complete our updated online tutorial 10 steps to creating patient information . You'll learn about: Defining what you want to say Identifying who you want to say it to Finding the right format Where to check whether it already exists What type of language you should use How to create readable text How to use images Arranging the layout Why you should add help options Keeping your references Your course avatar provides helpful hints and tips: More tutorials For more online tutorials go to the Health Library Information Skills etutorials web page .

 Did you recently start working at UHNM as a new doctor? Not got round to finding out about the Health Library? Go to our new doctors video wall to get the essential information from our short videos. screen-shot of video wall for new doctors You'll find everything you need and links to resources on the Health Library website . Please contact the Health Library if you need more help.

 We're wishing all Keele students well on their academic journey. We hope that you'll stop off at the Health Library on your way. We're here to help you to succeed on your course. If you are learning at the Clinical Education Centre or are on placement locally within the NHS then we are your essential resource. Whether for a quiet study space, IT facilities, access to specialist resources or training and support we have lots to offer you. Learn everything need to know by completing our short online tutorials. We've put together the essential collection in an easy to access padlet board - Essential tutorials for Keele healthcare students . Essential tutorials for Keele students padlet board You'll find everything you need and links to resources on the Health Library website . Please contact the Health Library if you need more help.

  Have you visited the Health Library recently? We have a wealth of resources for you to search as well as facilities and specialist services to support your studies and work. Take a look at the library before you visit! Learn more about everything we can offer you by completing our online tutorial Using the Health Library . For more help contact the Health Library .

If you are a Keele healthcare student studying at the CEC or on placement within the NHS, make sure you make the most of your Health Library. The Health Library, based in the CEC on the Royal Stoke site, is a joint Keele University / NHS library. Your Keele card is your library membership card. Use our good quality resources and develop your skills to make your studies a success. If you’re studying at the CEC, working on placement or just live near-by, feel free to pop in. Complete our online tutorial Welcome to Keele Students to learn more about what we offer you.

 Make sure you maximise your potential and become the best searcher you can be. This will help you to find the right information quickly and confidently to support your studies, dissertation, professional development, research and ultimately lead to better patient care. Our etutorials will set you on the right path. Go to our Information Skills etutorial page , explore the different sections and complete the etutorials to develop your skills and learn more about our resources: What are digital and information skills? Have you got them? Your digital skills – how can the Health Library help? Information skills to support literature searching Analyse your question to get your literature search off to a good start Develop your search skills with our online tutorials Learn to use the right resource Is the information you find good quality? Make sure you use information ethically Use your digital skills to share the information you find Stay up-to-date with updates in your field More tr...

  The Health Library can help you to find information effectively and efficiently by supporting your information skills development. Get the right information quickly to complete your assignments, start your research or to support your professional development. Check our Information Skills for Healthcare blog for the latest news on resources and training opportunities. We’ve now updated our blog tab pages to help you get to the essential support quickly. Literature Searching - take a look at our etutorials and blog posts to learn about the steps you need to complete to be a successful literature searcher. Databases and more… - find a list of etutorials, help pages and blog posts to help you to get to grip with some of our most popular and key resources. Access Resources - use our good quality, healthcare specific resources to find the evidence you need to support your studies, research and work, to make confident decisions and deliver evidence-based practice. More help ...

 Of course we’d be glad to meet you, but you don’t have to visit the Health Library to use our resources and services. You can access a wealth of online resources from your workplace or home. You can make the most of our services by making online requests. Our online service provides you with the information and support you need for your work, professional development and best practice: Access ebooks online – no waiting for that key text to become available Check our journal collection online – get easy access to full-text articles Search online databases – find the latest research and best evidence Use clinical tools – for guidelines and best practice, to help you make confident decisions Complete an online form – to make a request and get help finding the information you need Staff at UHNM can complete our online tutorial NHS Online Library for UHNM Staff to learn more about how to access the online library, register for an OpenAthens account and search online resources. ...

  Do you make the most of the facilities, services and resources available at your Health Library? We’re here to support your work, professional development and patient care. We can save you time and effort to get straight to the evidence you need.   Didn’t know you had a Health Library?   Here’s our short online induction. Complete it to learn more about what we can offer you.     No time to visit the Health Library?   Don’t worry! We have services and resources that you can access online. Follow this presentation to find out where everything is online.     Feeling overwhelmed by all the fantastic resources available to you?   Read our blog post Avoid information overload - Key resources for foundation year doctors to learn more about the essential resource s you’ll need at the start of your career .     Need more help?   Please contact the Health Library for any help finding the information you need.  

  Have you missed your NHS Health Library induction? Not sure if you can remember everything? Don’t worry! We have an online version that you can take your time with. Complete our NHS Online Library induction to learn: Why you need the Health Library – oh yes you do! What you need to be able to access online resources Which resources will be most useful to you Which resources you can use on your mobile phone What help you need to become a confident searcher How we can find information for you Complete our NHS Online Library induction –  make sure you setup your settings in the tutorial first so that you get the correct information for the NHS organisation that you work for. screen-shot of the settings available  in the induction etutorial What did you think of our online induction? What would you change? Did we miss something out? Let us know. Please complete our feedback form so that we can improve our service. You can find more etutorials on our w...

  Get support for your studies, professional development, research and patient care from the Health Library. NHS staff working for our partner NHS organisations can join the Health Library , You’ll benefit from: Study space Enjoy our welcoming library space where you can: Use NHS computers and laptops Study alone in quiet pods, study together on shared desks or study in silence Print, photocopy or scan documents Connect your personal devices to the wifi Relax in our wellbeing area and casual seating Complete our etutorial Using the Health Library to learn more about the facilities we have. Collections and resources Make the most of the wealth of healthcare specialist resources we provide. From books, journals, databases and clinical tools, you can access specialist content to get the evidence you need: Search healthcare specialist databases for the latest research Find best practice, recommendations and guidelines to support your care and practice Borrow bo...

  Do you make the most of the facilities, services and resources available at your Health Library? We’re here to support your work, professional development and patient care. We can save you time and effort to get straight to the evidence you need. Here's some help for NHS staff...   Didn’t know you had a Health Library? Here’s  our short online induction for NHS staff. Complete it  to learn more about what we can offer you.   No time to visit the Health Library? Don’t worry! We have services and resources that you can access online. Follow  this presentation  for UHNM staff to find out where everything is online.   Feeling overwhelmed by all the fantastic resources available to you? Read our blog post  Avoid information overload - Key resources for foundation year doctors  to learn more about the essential resources you’ll need at the start of your career.   Need more help? Please  contact the Health Library  for any help...

 Keep your skill set up-to-date with the Health Library Information Skills etutorials . Check out our latest poster below for more details. eTutorials A4 poster by Cheryl Kent

 You live, work and study in a digital world. It is so important that you develop the right skills to maximise your potential to achieve success in your studies, work and for your patients. The Health Library can help you to develop, demonstrate and deliver your digital skills. We have been showcasing how the Health Library can support you in developing your skills. Please explore these blog posts which detail the training and development opportunities available to you: What are digital and information skills? Have you got them? Your digital skills – how can the Health Library help? Information skills to support literature searching Analyse your question to get your literature search off to a good start Develop your search skills with our online tutorials Learn to use the right resource Is the information you find good quality? Make sure you use information ethically Use your digital skills to share the information you find Stay up-to-date with updates in your field More traini...