Finding information on your research topic

1. Finding Information for your Research

2. Step 1
The library website
To access and use the library resources, go to the UWC website (http://www.uwc.ac.za), and select Library [at the top of the screen] or enter the
UWC Library URL (http://lib.uwc.ac.za/) in the web browser.
This site works best on Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome.
Step 2
Just so you know you are in the right place: the UWC library homepage will look like this (with the uKwazi - library catalogue at the top of the page,
access to the library’s resources and services and the “important notification” in the middle.

3. Step 3
Searching for Literature
The Library subscribes to various databases that assist one to find relevant and current information from a range of
journals, print and e-books via uKwazi (library Search Engine). The databases are ‘academic’ type search engines that
have scholarly journal articles – from a range of local and international journals - that are related to your search.
You can search uKwazi (Library Search Engine) to find information in different types of sources, for example, journal
articles, books (print and e-version), newspaper articles, theses and dissertations. You can search the A-Z Databases to
find journal articles. Please consult a list of relevant databases for Nursing on the School of Nursing Library Guide
under the Search for Journal Articles tab.
If you want to search for literature on a topic, you can also search by either clicking on:
• Databases at the top of the Library web page and Select A-Z Databases to access a number of
subscribed databases, OR
• Databases by Discipline and select Health Sciences to access a list of databases that covers your subject.
Please see next slide how to access EbscoHost – one of the most relevant databases for health sciences

4. Access the Library website and click on
the A-Z Databases
Select the letter E to access EbscoHost,
Click on EbscoHost Web and again on your
righthand side.

5. Authenticating yourself as a registered UWC library user
Please note – that when you start using the actual databases you will be asked to log in to the UWC library site with a Username and
Password. Your Username will be your student number and your Password (your date of birth – yyyymmdd) or ID number when
required.
This prevents the general public from using the databases for which the UWC (and you) pay subscriptions.

6. There are many different types of databases (for example, some are subject-based and others are multi-disciplinary in
their coverage). Some of the databases might only contain journal articles whilst others cover book chapters as well.
You could start off by using these multidisciplinary databases, for example:
Within EbscoHost there are a variety of databases that you can search, or you can select one of the databases, for
example by clicking on Academic Search Complete. You can also select more than one database to search
simultaneously, depending on the coverage of the research topic.
Next, click on the EBSCOhost Web link to take you to the sub databases page.

7. Sub Databases in EbscoHost

8. Selecting the sub databases in EbscoHost
As mentioned previously, EBSCOhost is a multidisciplinary database and consist of sub-databases – which are
listed on this page.
Select the sub-databases, which sound promising and relevant to your topic by ticking their boxes. We suggest
you choose these ones to start off with:
• Academic Search Complete
• CINAHL Plus with Full Text
• Health Source – Nursing/ Academic Edition
• MEDLINE
• SocINDEX with Full Text.
This means you are searching all these selected databases simultaneously.
Click on “Continue” at the bottom left.

9. Conduct a Search in EbscoHost by selecting the Academic Search Complete sub-database
Start off by entering your search words/key words in the search boxes. For example, if you are looking for literature on the topic: Describe your
understanding of the National Health Insurance (NHI) on healthcare in South African.
The search strategy would be national health insurance AND healthcare AND South Africa (See Search Techniques to learn more about Boolean
Operators on the Nursing Library Guide)
Type “National Health Insurance” in the first search box, “healthcare” in the next and “South Africa” in the third.
You may also get the information you want by using the synonyms of words, or combinations of different words that relate to your topic of interest, e.g.
NHI AND health care AND South Africa
If you tick the box Limit to Full Text (left hand column) you should get just those in the original listing that are full text articles .
You can also limit you results list by publication date, for example: 2010-2020.
See example of the above keyword search strategy and results on the next page

10. Results list on the keyword search strategy for
national health insurance AND healthcare AND South Africa

11. What to look out for when you have your search results in front of you
You would be able to view the Abstract if you click the magnifying glass.
On the left hand side you can further limit your results by scholarly journals, source types, and by subject terms.
Once you have an article and its not available in PDF Full Text version, click on SFX icon that will link you to the full
text document or search the Full Text Finder (see Step 5).

12. Step 4
Join EBSCOhost and save your searches and the articles you want to keep
You can set up a personal account that you can use to save searches, retrieve and reuse or and print them as needed. In
order to save the searches will save you time and not then have to repeat the search strategies every time. You can also
organize and manage your search strategies in folders.
It is a good idea to log into EBSCOhost, create a personal profile and save your search results so that you can come
back to them where you have to focus on something else.

13. Save searches and alerts
Click on the Help icon on EBSCOhost in top right
corner to guide to step by step how to perform the
following functions:
1. Saving Searches
2. Saving a Search as an Alert
3. Setting Up a Journal Alert
4. Creating a Search Alert from the Search Screen
5. What is RSS?
6. One-Step RSS Search and Journal Alerts

14. Step 5
Finding a particular reference or search a specific journal on Full Text Finder
Access Full Text Finder underneath
uKwazi on the Library Website.
Searching in Full Text Finder,
you will be able to browse
journal titles by discipline.
You can also Enter the name of
the Journal Title to browse the
content or finding the full text or
an article
If you click on Nursing &
Allied Health, you will see all
the Nursing online journal titles
that the library subscribe to as
well as open access
publications.

15. You can also search for the full-text journal article via Full Text Finder
Now paste the journal title in the Find box and click Search or select the name of the journal from the alphabetical list. If the journal
title is available, click on one of the databases that appears in blue to find the full text of the article.
Strengthening Intersectoral Collaboration for Primary Health Care in Developing Countries: Can the Health Sector Play Broader
Roles? Omokhoa Adedayo Adeleye and Antoinette Ngozi Ofili
Journal of Environmental and Public Health
Volume 2010, Article ID 272896, 6 pages
doi:10.1155/2010/272896
Please see steps on
accessing the full text
article on next slide

16. You will have to select the year, volume and issue number of the journal article. The system will display all the articles
that has been published by that specific volume and issue number. Check for the full text of the article you are looking
for and download.
By clicking on the database you can also search for articles in the journal title or browse the articles by year of
publication.

17. Step 6
Using Inter-library Loans (ILL)
The Interlibrary Loans (ILL) service allows for material (ie, books and journal articles) not held in our
library, to be borrowed from other libraries within the system, or from libraries abroad if not available
locally.
If you are on campus, you can request a book or a copy of a journal article or a thesis which is not in the
UWC Library, by filling out a request form at the ILL counter. You can also do this online by clicking on
Advanced Search underneath uKwazi on the Library website and then ILL Request (Inter Library Loans).
Alternatively email interlending@uwc.ac.za (ILL).
Please see steps on next slide.

18. Books from other libraries in the Western Cape are usually obtained within a few days via the CALICO project, unless they are
out on loan. Books at libraries further afield will take longer.
Step 1
Students should access the library
catalogue and click on Advanced
Search.
Step 2
Once you are on the Advanced
Search page, click on ILL
Request to access the request
form.
Step 3
Complete the form and submit.
Inter Library Loans staff will
respond to your request soon.