Information Skills & Training
We're here to help you to find and interpret evidence-based information. We can help you to develop your information and research skills via our online guides, self-help materials and our programme of training sessions (available in person or through MS Teams). We also support journal clubs. Contact us today (rgh-tr.libraryhealthcare@nhs.net 01709 427139) for help or to let us know which training you'd like to attend and we'll arrange a time to suit you.
We can help you with:
Finding evidence: |
Understanding research:> Getting involved in research & publication
> Critical appraisal: interpreting the evidence > What are randomised controlled trials? > What is qualitative research? > Introduction to research design > Academic writing: an introduction > How to reference your work > An introduction to poster design |
Using online resources: |
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Using NICE Evidence Search
Use NICE Evidence Search to find high quality online information online. NICE Evidence brings together information from the British National Formulary, Clinical Knowledge Summaries, SIGN, the Cochrane Library and Royal Colleges, Social Care Online and GOV.UK, and gives you quick access to ejournals, ebooks and healthcare databases. You'll need an NHS OpenAthens password to access all resources. > Read our guide to using NICE Evidence Search > Contact us to book onto our course: Using NICE Evidence Search: an introduction |
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Effective Literature Searching: Using Healthcare Databases Biomedical databases such as Medline & CINAHL can be used to find specific published evidence for clinical practice, education or research. > Watch our online literature searching training materials to help get you started. > Our training course explains how to access and search biomedical databases. It will include an opportunity to undertake your own searches with the assistance of library staff. Contact us to book. |
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Using the new NHS Knowledge & Library Hub
The new NHS Knowledge and Library Hub connects NHS staff and learners seamlessly to a range of high quality knowledge and evidence resources all in one place, enabling you to find evidence resources to support your clinical practice, learning and research. From a single gateway you can access journals, books, databases, clinical decision support resources including NICE Guidelines, BMJ Best Practice and DynaMed, and one-click links to full-text. You can run simple searches, and access bibliographic databases to run complex searches. Access guide materials. |
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Finding the Best Evidence: Systematic Reviews and the Cochrane Collection
What are systematic reviews and why they are important? How they are produced and what is their impact? > Access online training material and read our guide to systematic reviews > Our introductory course will explain more about systematic reviews, with an emphasis on practical examples from the Cochrane Library. Contact us to book. |
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Interpreting the Evidence: An Introduction to Critical Appraisal
What is critical appraisal and why is it important? > Access online training material and read our guide to critical appraisal. > Our training course will introduce why it is important to evaluate evidence. It covers how to consider the quality, results and local applicability through using a checklist on a relevant example of research. Contact us to book. |
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Twitter: an overview of this social networking service
Our course on using Twitter provides an explanation of the site and of good practice in the use of social media in general. It covers setting up and using an account with an emphasis on finding quality information. Contact us to book. You may also be interested in the Twitter help pages, the BMA Ethics of Social Media Use and 'A Social Media Toolkit for the NHS' from NHS Employers. |
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Evidence at the Point of Care: DynaMed and BMJ Best Practice
DynaMed and BMJ Best Practice provide the latest research on conditions in an easy to use format. > Read our online guide to DynaMed and our online guide to BMJ Best Practice. > Our training course will show you how to access and search these point-of-care information resources. Contact us to book. |
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How to reference your work
Do you need help with referencing? Find out more about referencing and reference generators in our online guide. Book onto 'How to Reference Your Work' which will give an overview of the importance of referencing, followed by a description of the in text citation and the reference list. Production of the reference list using the assistance of automatic reference generators will be demonstrated. The coverage will be altered depending upon the style of referencing you are using including Harvard, Vancouver and APA. Contact us to book. |
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Introduction to research design
This training session introduces the most widely used types of healthcare research design to answer various questions. Secondary, primary, quantitative and qualitative research will all be included and explained with the assistance of relevant examples. Contact us to book. |
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An introduction to poster design
If you need to produce an academic poster for a conference or for an academic assignment this session will explain the basics of content and layout. Examples of successful poster design will be included. Contact us to book. You can read more about how to get started from Manchester University's tips on creating Academic Posters and Liverpool University's Making an Impact with your Poster. |
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Academic Writing: writing clearly and accessibly
This course covers the different kinds of assignments that you may be asked to undertake as part of an educational course. It will also explain how to structure both the overall assignment and individual paragraphs within it. Contact us to book. Browse our list of online support materials on 'Writing for Publication'. |
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What are randomised controlled trials?
This course explains the basics of this common research design which is the best method for answering “what works” questions. The most important elements such as randomisation and blinding will be described supported by relevant examples. Contact us to book. |
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What is qualitative research?
This course provides an introduction to research that seeks to understand people’s beliefs, knowledge and understanding through methods such as focus groups and questionnaires. The role and limitations of qualitative research will be discussed with the support of relevant examples. Contact us to book. You may also be interested in this overview of qualitative research methodology from Scribbr: https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/qualitative-research. |
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Finding high quality patient information
Do you ever need to suggest health information to patients? We provide a short training session on how to find high quality patient information. It covers how to assess health information for quality together with suggestions of high quality sources. The session takes about forty minutes at a time of your convenience either via MS Teams or face to face in the library. Please contact rgh-tr.libraryhealthcare@nhs.net for more details or to arrange a session. |
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Support for Research and Publication
Read our online guide to how we can support you through the research and publication process: getting started with research, the publication process, writing for publication; choosing a journal, understanding open access and sharing the knowledge. |
How to bookIf you'd like to book training, please contact: 01790 424642/44; rgh-tr.libraryhealthcare@nhs.net) or call in to the Library on D Level. Our training is available via MS Teams/phone and we're still able to offer some limited training in the library with social distancing in place. Typically we are able to offer training in a range of formats:
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Most of our online information resources require an NHS OpenAthens username and password. Find out more about registering and re-setting OpenAthens accounts. |
- Timetabled Group Sessions [currently suspended during Covid-19]
Many of the courses are advertised as part of our training programme across the hospital, Oak House and RCHC. - One to One Sessions via MS Teams or in person
If you wish to have an individual training session on any of the subjects please contact us to make an appointment. This includes GP surgeries and other locations in the community. We can train via MS Teams or phone, and we're still able to offer some limited training in the library with social distancing in place.
- Mediated Literature Searching
If you are preparing for research or an assignment such as a dissertation we can offer you a personalised training session. We can help you formulate your search question using the PICO formula and identify the relevant sources to search. Using your Athens password we can demonstrate the HDAS search interface. With your subject knowledge we can undertake a detailed and specific search and print out or save your results and search history. - Team and Departmental Training
The workshops can also be delivered at in-house training events departmental meetings. The sessions can be tailored to your specific departmental needs and can include a combination of the themes on offer. Please contact us to discuss your requirements. - Journal Club Support Service
The Library and Knowledge Service offer advice and practical assistance on how to setup and run a journal club, providing you with support and resources to help you do this. We can also lead journal club sessions using our knowledge of the research literature and of critical appraisal. Please visit our Journal Club Support Service page for more information.