The library has a comprehensive collection of books related to the medical sciences for you to find and read. We recommend using LibrarySearch to search for the books you need. To search for a specific book, just type a few words from the title plus the surname of the author(s) into the search box. You can also search for a topic then filter to Books (or Ebooks) under Format in the left-hand column. If you get stuck – please ask!

We use the Dewey Decimal System to classify the books so it’s easier to find them. Each classmark number refers to a different subject, and can be found in a different location:

• In the Drill Hall Library (Medway), all books are in one continuous order on the ground floor, with 7-day and 4-week loans shelved together. The lowest numbers are immediately next to the library entrance.
• In Augustine House (Canterbury), the lowest numbers are on the first floor and the highest numbers are on the third floor. Remember to check the different areas housing the 7-day loan (open shelves) and 4-week loans (moving shelves).

You will find the majority of the books for medical sciences  at numbers from 610 to 618 in the library. However, there will be useful books elsewhere. Some useful classmarks include:

• 610.72 - Medical research.
• 612 - Anatomy and Physiology.
• 615.1 - Pharmacology.
• 616.025 - Emergency care.
• 616.1 - Cardiology.
• 616.6 - Urology.
• 616.8 - Neurology.
• 617.7 - Ophthalmology.
• 617.91 - Surgery.
• 618 - Obstetrics and gynaecology.
• 808 - Academic writing.

The majority of books for your course will be found in the Drill Hall Library at Medway. However, there are relevant books at all campus libraries. You can request for books to be sent between the campus libraries for collection as inter-site loans. To do this, click the Place Reservation button next to a book on LibrarySearch and specify where you would like to collect it.

Ebooks

Wherever possible, we also obtain all our books as ebooks, which can be accessed on or off campus, 24 hours. Just click on Link to CCCU ebook in the record on LibrarySearch and you will usually have the option to read online or download a copy.

You can also find a collection of medical textbooks from McGraw Hill Medical on AccessMedicine. This includes titles such as Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, Schwartz's Principles of Surgery and Goodman and Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics.

In addition to our academic textbooks, you may wish to explore the Experts by Experience (EbE) and the Professional Reflection collection of e-books and e-audiobooks. The Experts by Experience collection includes texts written by patients/clients/carers which shed light on their illness/condition/situation from their own perspective. The Professional Reflection collection includes texts by healthcare professions which reflect on life in the sector. Visit the Learning Skills Hub module on EbE to explore the collection further and see how to access the texts on the Libby app.

Journals are an important source of scholarly information – think of them as academic magazines that contain articles written by researchers. CCCU library subscribes to journals covering all the subjects taught here.

Print journals
Most journals are online, but you can browse printed copies of some journals on Floor 2 of Augustine House (Canterbury) in the Silent Zone (west wing) or in the Drill Hall Library's Silent Study Zone (Medway). These are shelved in alphabetical order by the journal title. These are for use in the library only.

Online journals
Use LibrarySearch.to see which journals are available to read online. Make sure you Log In first with your CCCU username and password. You can search for journal articles across all the journals simultaneously using the main search bar to search for a topic, then limiting your search results to "Academic journals" under Source Type in the right-hand column.

To find a specific journal try entering the title of a journal into the search box, or use the “Find e-journals by title” link. You can also browse e-journals by subject, using Browzine. This software allows you to read a journal like an e-book, so you can look through the whole journal rather than just individual articles. There is an app so you can use it easily on your phone or other mobile device.

There are hundreds of journals relevant for medical sciences. A few suggested journal titles are:

Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine, British Journal of Surgery, British Medical Journal, JAAPA: Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants, The Lancet, New England Journal of Medicine, Surgery.

Open Access Journals
The Directory of Open Access Journals includes journals such as Stem Cell Research & Therapy. Open access journals are usually scholarly, but the difference is, the publishers of these journals believe in making their research freely accessible to anyone with an internet connection. This means that you (or your institution) do not have to have a subscription to the journal to be able to read the articles they publish.

CCCU library provides research databases which contain articles about the medical sciences. These are all available via LibrarySearch – just click on the “Find databases” link in the left-hand menu and you will see an alphabetical list. Browse the list until you find the one you want. Many of the key databases have guides available, which often include a video demo.

Some databases which are particularly useful for Medical Sciences include:

• MEDLINE, also available via Pubmed - one of the biggest biomedical databases in the world, searching the contents of medical journals. 
• EMBASE - a large medical database with particular strengths in pharmacology and medical technology. 
• The Cochrane Library - this includes databases of systematic reviews and clinical trials. Cochrane are viewed as world leaders on evidence-based information.

Additional databases you may wish to explore:

• ASSIA - a social sciences database which is useful for finding information on topics such as public health and health promotion. 
• Business Source Premier: Although primarily seen as a resource for the Business School, this database covers areas including professional development and leadership, so can be extremely useful for research relating to health and medical leadership.
• CINAHL - a database for nursing and the allied health professions, useful for research in multi-disciplinary fields.
• Coronavirus Research Database - a resource searching published articles and other research on COVID-19.
• ERIC - an international database of educational research, which can be useful when researching issues relating to medical education and training.
• Maternity and Infant Care - a key database for midwifery and neonatal care. Useful for topics relating to obstetric and gynaecological surgery. 
• PsycInfo - large database with a focus on peer-reviewed information in mental health and behavioural science. Often the best starting place for mental health, psychiatry and psychology topics. 
• Scopus covers the sciences and the social sciences, including health and medicine, and has useful citation tracking features. Probably searches the greatest number of different journals.
• SportDiscus - useful for topics relating to exercise and fitness, rehabilitation from sports injuries, and orthopaedics.
• TRIP database - a tool for discovering clinical evidence, including systematic reviews, guidance, primary research and much more. Based in South Wales.
• Web of Science - an interdisciplinary database, this can be particularly useful for in-depth literature reviews or for topics which cross boundaries between different disciplines. 

See also our Anatomy and Physiology guide for information about useful tools for learning A&P.

Although we often advise students and staff to use resources from the university library, there are many useful websites which can provide high-quality information for your study. When using information from the web, be careful to check who wrote it and how up-to-date it is.

Free online databases:

• Centre for Reviews and Dissemination - provides access to three important databases, which are no longer updated: NHS Economic Evaluation (up to 2015) covers evaluations of a range of health and social care interventions; DARE (Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, up to 2015) covers a wide range of systematic reviews on many health-related topics; HTA (Health Technology Assessments, up to 2018) is a global database of technology assessments, many of them not published in journals.
• DORIS - Database of Research Into Stroke - for guidelines, systematic reviews, clinical trials and related evidence concerning treatments for stroke.
• The EPPI Centre provides access to two databases for health promotion - the Database of Promoting Health Effectiveness Reviews and the Trials Register of Promoting Health Interventions. 
• Global Index Medicus - hosted by the World Health Organization, this database allows you to search "literature produced by and within low-middle income countries". It often includes a link to the full version of the paper.
• International Health Technology Assessment Database - searchable information about completed and ongoing assessments of technologies used in health.
• REHABDATA - for research on disability and rehabilitation. 
• Stem Cell Evidence - search through around 10,000 articles relating to stem cell transplantation, with a focus on guidelines, systematic reviews and RCTs.
• Transfusion Evidence Library - search through evidence-based information about transfusion medicine - systematic reviews, RCTs, economic evaluations and expert commentaries.

The library generally does not provide access to legislation or to statistics, as these are maintained on freely-available sites. A few of the most useful are:

• Acts of Parliament and other legislation
• Publications and records of parliamentary business, classified by staff of the House of Commons Library.

• NHS England: Statistics
• Public Health Profiles - useful health-related stats
• Office for National Statistics: UK’s largest independent producer of official statistics.

In addition to reading texts, you can find a wide range of visual and audio sources and media through the library.

• Box of Broadcasts (BoB) is an on-demand TV and radio service and includes most major UK channels, including BBC, Channel 4 and Sky channels. Record programmes to watch back and create your own playlist. Find via LibrarySearch/Find Databases. Sign In with your CCCU log in details to register.
• Kanopy is a large, curated catalogue of over 30,000 educational documentaries and classic films. Find via LibrarySearch/Find Databases.