Evaluating and Citing Internet Sources

Pamela Fried, MBA, DirectorDiana Winters, BA, Associate Director

Academic Publishing Servicesand

Gary M. Childs, MSEducation Librarian—Hahnemann Library

Select slide content provided by Stephen Gambescia, PhD, MEd, MBA, CHES, Assistant Dean for Academic and Student Affairs, College of Nursing and Health Professions and Steven Bogel, MLS, Information Services Librarian,

Hahnemann Hospital

Academic Publishing Services (APS) does not serve as legal counsel to Drexel University College of Medicine or to individual authors.  Information received from APS does not constitute legal

advice. Individuals should consult their own attorneys or the Office of the General Counsel, as appropriate, with respect to legal questions or concerns about their publishing activities and copyrights.

Purpose

Evaluate Internet sourcesRank scientific information by

level of evidence Cite Internet sources

appropriately

Evaluate Internet sources

Types of Internet Sources

The Internet is a pathway to depositories of sources.

The Internet allows retrieval of a primary source at another location, e.g., journal (periodical) that is accessed online.

The Internet itself holds information that could be used as a source (usually considered secondary or tertiary source), e.g., Web pages.

Types of Information Sources

Primary information source Must be the original scientific evidence Must conform to acceptable scientific

standards for conducting and reporting such research

Must pass peer review

American Public Health Association: Chiropractic Health Care; Washington DC: What are authoritative sources for scientific evidence-based and peer-reviewed information?http://www.apha-chc.org/vaccinfo/authoritative_sources.htm

Types of Information Sources

Secondary information source Integrates scientific evidence from a

number of original research studies (review article)

Conforms to scientifically acceptable methodological standards for gathering, synthesizing, and reporting the available evidence

Should be peer-reviewedAmerican Public Health Association: Chiropractic Health Care; Washington DC: What are authoritative sources for scientific evidence-based and peer-reviewed information?http://www.apha-chc.org/vaccinfo/authoritative_sources.htm

Types of Information Sources

Tertiary information source Information drawn from primary and

secondary articles that are peer reviewed: e.g., textbook (may or may not be peer reviewed)

Summary of the information available on a topic, selected in an unbiased manner

American Public Health Association: Chiropractic Health Care; Washington DC: What are authoritative sources for scientific evidence-based and peer-reviewed information?http://www.apha-chc.org/vaccinfo/authoritative_sources.htm

Evaluating a Web Site

.com .edu .gov .net .?

Evaluating a Web site

Accuracy Authority Objectivity Currency or timeliness

Rank scientific information by level of evidence

What is EBM*?

EBP marks a paradigm shift from traditional decision making in medicine Intuition Unsystematic clinical experience Pathophysiological rationale

*EBM = evidence-based medicine; EBP = evidence-based practice

What is EBM?

Common definition:

The conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care of individual patients

Integrating clinical expertise with the best available external evidence from systematic research

Thoughtful and compassionate use of patient values

-Sackett, BMJ 1996;312, 71-2

The Evidence HierarchyFrom: http://www.dartmouth.edu/~biomed/services.htmld/EBP_docs/pyramid-loaded.pdf

What Are Systematic Reviews?

Focus on a clinical topic and answer a specific question

Extensive literature search for all studies with sound methodology

Results summarized to answer the question

For example: Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews

--Connie Schardt, Health Science Library, Duke University

What Is a Meta-Analysis?

Takes systematic reviews a step further by pooling data from individual studies as if it was one large study

Synthesizes many studies Uses statistical methods to combine data

from two or more studies

Connie Schardt, Health Science Library, Duke University

What Is a Wiki?

Wiki = piece of server software that allows users to freely create and edit Web page content using any Web browser

Wikipedia and other wikis Most are not peer-reviewed. None publish original research. Anyone can contribute to or alter a page.

At best, most wikis are secondary or tertiary sources—not primary.

Cite Internet sources appropriately

Why Use References?

Documentation Acknowledgment Link to additional information or

resources

Citing Web Sources

Web site content may change frequently.

Web site may disappear. Print and online versions of an article

or publication may differ.

Citing Web Sources

Print a copy Check links repeatedly throughout

publication process Note date accessed Include DOI/PMID* if journal requires

*DOI = digital object identifier; PMID = PubMed unique identifier

Citing Web Sources

Patrias, K. Citing medicine: the NLM style guide for authors, editors, and publishers [Internet]. 2nd ed. Wendling, DL, technical editor. Bethesda (MD): National Library of Medicine (US); 2007 [updated 2009 Jan 14; cited 2009 Mar 23]. Available from: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/citingmedicine

Books and Other Individual Titles on the Internet http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bookshelf/br.fcgi?book=citmed&part=A53625 Journals on the Internet http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bookshelf/br.fcgi?book=citmed&part=A55580 Databases/Retrieval Systems on the Internet http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bookshelf/br.fcgi?book=citmed&part=A57255 Web sites http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bookshelf/br.fcgi?book=citmed&part=A59231 Electronic Mail and Discussion Forums http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bookshelf/br.fcgi?book=citmed&part=A60586

Minimum acceptable data:

Author (organization)TitleName of Web siteURLDate accessed

A URL alone is not sufficient!

Citing a Web site

Let’s Try Searching for Information! Some suggested databases to locate

EBM information are: MEDLINE (using EBM filters)

“Clinical Queries” National Guidelines Clearinghouse (NGC) Turning Research Into Practice (TRIP) The Cochrane Library

For Further Information

Academic Publishing Services Pamela Fried and Diana Winters aps@drexelmed.edu 215-762-1854

Hahnemann Library Resource Department Gary M. Childs gc24@drexel.edu 215-762-3696