To Access the Library Catalog

Click on “Library Catalog”

Library Catalog Login Screen

• Enter the word: suncoast • (not case sensitive) & No password

needed

Using Other Devices

It is also possible to access the library catalog from smart mobile devices. !Smart phones & tablets – for web access !

or download a free app: !

Apple mobile apps for iphone Apple mobile apps for ipad Android apps

There are several ways to search the catalog.

• Regular search • Simple search • Advanced search

Regular Search

Regular Search Options

• The regular search feature has two options at the top of the screen. In the box on the left you can enter various types of search terms such as:

• Title (or part of a title) • Author • Subject • All words (keyword)

Regular Search – All Words

• If you choose “All words” and then enter a search term such as “phlebotomy” (no quotes are needed) – then click the blue button – you will get a result list of four items.

!• Three of these books are about phlebotomy

and one is about I.V. therapeutics (this book has one chapter on phlebotomy techniques).

Example – All words - Phlebotomy

Regular Search - Subject

• Now try the same search but select “Subject” from the drop-down menu.

!• Your result list will now show only three

items because these are the only books in our collection that have phlebotomy as their primary focus.

Regular Search - All words & Subject

• Just to be safe, it is a good idea to try both an “All words” and a “Subject” search to make sure you are finding everything that we might have on a particular topic. !

• The “All words” search looks for your search term anywhere it might exist in the bibliographic record while the “Subject” search only looks for your term in the subject heading fields.

Selecting Search Terms

• Before you begin a search, write down all the words you can think of to describe your topic.

• A term such as “nursing” will yield a long list of

items because it is so broad. !

• If you can narrow down your term to something more specific, you will get better results. !

• If you need help narrowing down your topic, you can email the librarian: library@suncoastcollege.com

Regular Search - Author

• To search by author, enter the name in any order: !

• Examples: Gerard Tortora or Tortora Gerard !or you can just enter the last name: Tortora

Regular Search - Title

!• To find the title: Clinical Skills: The Essence of Caring !

You can enter: essence of caring

or: clinical skills

Regular Search – Sorting the Results• The box on the top right part of the screen allows you

to sort the search results by: !

• title, author, call number, newest first, oldest first, or relevance. !

• If you do not select any of these options then your results will be sorted alphabetically by title. If you are looking for the newest materials on a subject, then you may want to select “newest first”. !

• Sorting by relevance will place items with the strongest match to your search term at the top of the list.

Advanced Searching!!!

• Advanced searching lets you combine terms using the words “AND”, “OR” or “NOT”

!• Click on the boxes with the down arrows

to select the fields you want to combine.

Advanced Searching• You can combine fields such as: keyword (all words),

author, subject, and title

!• Example – combining terms with “AND”

!mental health AND aging

(mental health could be part of a title, or you could choose Subject or All words)

!The results will include items with both terms.

!This is the most specific type of search you can do.

Advanced Search Examples

• Combining terms using the word “OR” • Example:

mental health OR aging !The search results will include materials that address either term. This type of search will give you a much longer list of results. This is the best type of search to do if you are looking for everything we have on both subjects.

Advanced Search Examples

• Combining terms using the word “NOT” Example:

mental health NOT aging !This type of search will provide results that just deal with the topic of “mental health” without a focus on aging.

Advanced Search – Record Types

Advanced Search – Record TypesBesides books, you can also search for DVDs, CDs, VHS tapes, and music sound recordings. !• You can leave “Record Type” set as “All Types” and

enter a search term (or a combination of terms). • Or you can enter a term such as “dementia” and

then select “Visual materials” for record type to find DVDs and VHS tapes on the subject of dementia.

!• Or if you change the record type to “Music Sound

Recordings” you can what type of CD recordings we have on this subject.

Advanced Search – Sorting results

Advanced Search – Sorting results

• You can sort your search results by clicking on the “Sort by” option and making a selection from the drop down menu.

!• Results can be sorted by: title, author,

call number, newest first, oldest first.

Simple Search

Simple Search

• Click on the Simple search icon on the left side of the screen. !

• Then enter your search term(s) in the box and click on one of the icons:

All Words, Titles, Author, or Subjects !!

You can also choose to display the results in one of three ways: Item, List, and Shelf

Simple Search – Item Display

Simple Search – List Display

Simple Search – Shelf Display

Simple Search – Display Options

• Item Display – shows results in a list with cover photos (when available), Google preview links, call numbers, number of copies, and items currently available.

• List Display – Shows more items on the result

list with cover photos, titles, call numbers, copies and items available. !

• Shelf Display – Displays items in shelf order by library call number.

Individual Item Record

Item Record

• Each individual item record (aka bibliographic record) contains various fields of information that belong to that item such as: author, title, publisher, edition, physical description, notes, and subject headings. !

• Some records have a great deal of information including summaries and google previews while other records are shorter.

Searching by Subject Headings

• From the bibliographic record, you can click on any of the subject headings at the bottom of the screen to find additional materials.

Using the Clipboard

• To make your searching more efficient, as you find items from our collection, you can save them to a virtual “clipboard”. !

• You can do this either by clicking on the “Add to Clipboard” button from the item view list or the bibliographic record view.

Accessing the Clipboard

• You can display items that you have saved to your clipboard by clicking on the clipboard icon on the left side of the screen. !

• Once displayed, you can then review and/or remove items. You can also print this list which you can then take to the library.

Understanding Call Numbers

• The materials that you will come across in our library each have a Library of Congress Call Number (LC Call Number).

!• Call number labels are located on the lower part of the spine

of the book, or CD, DVD or VHS tape cases. !

• Reference materials, in addition, will be marked REF on the call number label. CDs, DVDs and VHS tapes will be marked CD, DVD and VHS in addition to the call number. !

• You can think of a call number as an item’s address on the shelf. The first line in a Library of Congress call number classifies the item by its subject according to the LC Classification System. The entire call number should be noted in order to locate the item.

LC Call Numbers

• LC call numbers are first arranged alphabetically, according to the letter or letters at the beginning of the call number, which correspond to the subject matter of the item. 

Example: Call numbers beginning with R

are followed by RA, RB, RC, etc.

LC Call Numbers

• Within the alphabetical section, books are arranged by the number(s) that follow. Notice that these numbers are regarded as whole numbers. !

• For instance, RA 1200 comes after RA 345. 

Example: RA 56 before RA 234 before RA

234.57 before RA 234.8

LC Call Numbers

• The last line of the LC call number begins with a decimal point includes both letters and numbers.

!Example: RT 41 .P68 before RT 41 .P844 before RT 41 .T54 before RT 41 .W56

LC Call Numbers

• Publication dates will also be listed at the end of the call number.

• Newer editions will be filed after older editions on the shelf.

!Example:

RT 41 .P68 2010 before RT 41 .P68 2012

Suncoast Library Policies

• Students are allowed to visit the library during scheduled library hours.

• (Mon-Thurs 2-5pm, Thurs & Fri 9:00-2:30) !

• Cell phone use is not allowed. • No food or drinks. • No loud talking. • No Internet browsing – library computers are

for assignments only.

Suncoast Library Policies

• Please do not place books and other materials back on the shelves.

!• Library materials removed from the shelves

should be returned to the area designated for “Re-shelving” !

• Materials labeled “REF” are for library use only. CDs & DVDs are also for library use only.

Additional Online Resources

Additional Online Resources

• On the Library page, there are several links you can use to find many types of information. !

• Article Databases Here you can access several collections of full-text articles and citations on nursing and other health-related topics.

Additional Online Resources

• Under “Subject Guides” you will find links to various types of nursing and health related resources organized by subject. !

• Examples: !• anatomy/physiology flash cards, nursing

diagnoses lists, nursing care plans, heart/breath sounds, infection control, Aids, cancer, pharmacology, pediatrics, ethics, and patient safety.

Additional Online Resources

• Under the “Government Resources” link you will find important information such as:

!Facts, statistics and legal regulations, from various government agencies such as the CDC, Florida Board of Nursing, National Institute of Health and the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Additional Online Resources

• Under the “General Reference” link you will find many useful resources such as: !

• APA style guides, medical glossary, dictionaries (English & Spanish), thesaurus, writing guides, statistics guide, test prep for CLEP, GRE & NCLEX exams.

Library Assistance

• If you need help locating books, articles, or other types of materials, please contact the librarian. !!

Deb Cogan, MLS Email: library@suncoastcollege.com