EPA Web Tool Expands Access to Scientific, Regulatory Information on Chemicals

Environmental Protection Agency Seal (Photo credit: DonkeyHotey)

 

From the 9 September 2013 EPA press release

 

Release Date: 09/09/2013
Contact Information: Cathy Milbourn, Milbourn.cathy@epa.gov, 202-564-7849, 202-564-4355

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has launched a web-based tool, called ChemView, to significantly improve access to chemical specific regulatory information developed by EPA and data submitted under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). 

“This online tool will improve access to chemical health and safety information, increase public dialogue and awareness, and help viewers choose safer ingredients used in everyday products,” said James Jones, assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. “The tool will make chemical information more readily available for chemical decision-makers and consumers.”

The ChemView web tool displays key health and safety data in an online format that allows comparison of chemicals by use and by health or environmental effects. The search tool combines available TSCA information and provides streamlined access to EPA assessments, hazard characterizations, and information on safer chemical ingredients. Additionally, the new web tool allows searches by chemical name or Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) number, use, hazard effect, or regulatory action. It has the flexibility to create tailored views of the information on individual chemicals or compare multiple chemicals sorted by use, hazard effect or other criteria. The new portal will also link to information on manufacturing, processing, use, and release data reported under the Chemical Data Reporting Rule, and the Toxics Release Inventory. 

In the months ahead, EPA will be continuously adding additional chemicals, functionality and links. When fully updated, the web tool will contain data for thousands of chemicals. EPA has incorporated stakeholder input into the design, and welcomes feedback on the current site.

By increasing health and safety information, as well as identifying safer chemical ingredients, manufacturers and retailers will have the information to better differentiate their products by using safer ingredients. 

In 2010, EPA began a concerted effort to increase the availability of information on chemicals as part of a commitment to strengthen the existing chemicals program and improve access and usefulness of chemical data and information. This included improving access to the TSCA inventory, issuing new policies for the review of confidential business information claims for health and safety studies, and launching the Chemical Data Access Tool. Today’s launch of the ChemView provides the public with a single access point for information that has been generated on certain chemicals regulated under TSCA.

View and search ChemView: http://www.epa.gov/chemview

 

 

Related articles

• Web tool expands access to scientific, regulatory chemical information (rdmag.com)
• EPA Web Tool Expands Access to Scientific, Regulatory Information on Chemicals (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• EPA Web Tool Expands Access To Scientific, Regulatory Information On Chemicals (wateronline.com)
• EPA Web Tool Helps Manufacturers Choose Safer Chemicals (environmentalleader.com)
• Reference: EPA Web Tool Expands Access to Scientific, Regulatory Information on Chemicals (infodocket.com)
• Highlights of EPA’s Online Chemical Database (learnatvivid.wordpress.com)
• Commercial Appraiser; FW: News Release: EPA Web Tool Expands Access to Scientific, Regulatory Information on Chemicals (commercialappraiser.typepad.com)

 

How to access journal articles [Repost with additional link]

Some great information that I did not include in a previous post – How to obtain free and low cost medical articles from biomedical journals. Remember, if all else fails, try contacting the author(s). I have about a 75% success rate.

From the Web site How to Access Journal Articles by Partners in Information Access for the Public Health Workforce.

The information resources and service that you became accustomed to using while pursuing your public health training may not be freely available. Leverage the materials that are freely available to you as an employee, an association member, an alumnus/ae or a taxpayer. Contact the National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM) Staff for support with exploring any of the options and resources mentioned below, or other questions you might have.

Additional literature resources including Journal Article Databases, Individual Journal Titles, and Reports and Other Publications, are available on the PHPartners.org Literature and Guidelines page.

Free Full Text Journal Articles

Collections of Full Text

• Directory of Open Access Journals – Public Health Journals – Links to open access full text of 130+ journals that fit into a loose classification of public health. This multinational collection includes journals in a variety of languages.

• Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) – (Department of Education (ED) USA)  – Online digital library of education research and information.

• Free Public Health Online Journals – (Lamar Soutter Library, University of Massachusetts Medical School)

• PMC – (National Library of Medicine (NLM) U.S.)  – PMC, formerly PubMed Central, is a free archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature at the U.S. National Institutes of Health’s National Library of Medicine (NIH/NLM).

Institutional Repositories from Universities with Schools of Public Health

• Digital Repository at the University of Maryland: School of Public Health – (University of Maryland)  – Search or browse by title or author in one of five categories: Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Family Science, Health Services Administration, Kinesiology, or Public and Community Health.

• Directory of Open Access Repositories – OpenDOAR – (Centre for Research Communications, University of Nottingham)  – Search for the author’s institution or browse the 100 repositories in the Health and Medicine subject area.

• iDEA: Drexel E-repository and Archives: School of Public Health – Scholars may contribute their papers to institutional repositories. Also search for their individual faculty pages which may provide access to the full text of papers.

Sponsored Special Issues or Open Access Individual Articles

• Access Journal Special Issues – Active Living Research – (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF))  – Funders will often support thematic special issues or supplements on a particular topic to make them available freely.

• Public Health Finance and Public Health Accreditation Special Issues – (Journal of Public Health Management and Practice)  – See issues marked “Free Access.” March/April 2007 – Volume 13- Issue 2 on public health finance and July/August 2007 – Volume 13 – Issue 4 on public health accreditation were sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). However, other issues in other publications sponsored by RWJF are not open access.

 

Strategies to Obtain Journal Articles

Alumni Benefits

• Alumni Services – Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University – An example of a school of public health’s alumni services page that talks about library resource access. Your school may have a similar web page.

• Council on Education for Public Health – The list of accredited Schools of Public Health and Public Health Programs contains the website for each school. See if your school has special benefits for alumni by checking the public health program site or going directly to the academic library site.

Association Memberships

• American Journal of Public Health – (American Public Health Association (APHA) – Current two years are free for members/subscribers only. Older issues are available free online in PubMedCentral. Be sure to activate the online access for the subscriptions to which you are entitled.

• Health Education and Behavior/Health Promotion Practice – (Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE))  – Be sure to activate the online access for the subscriptions to which you are entitled. Other related publications may be offered at discounted rates.

Continuing Education

• Area Health Education Centers Directory – Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) provide continuing education based on the recent literature. Many AHECs also have libraries or resource centers.

• Library Services – University of South Florida Area Health Education Center – The USF AHEC Program provides free library services to health care providers working with the medically underserved in Charlotte, Citrus, DeSoto, Hernando, Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas, Manatee and Sarasota counties. These services include interlibrary loan of journal articles and loan of AHEC-owned books and other materials and ability to access the USF Health Science Center Library electronic resources

International Public Health

• Blue Trunk Libraries – (World Health Organization (WHO))  – The collection, which is organized according to major subjects, contains more than one hundred books on medicine and public health. Blue Trunk Libraries are available in English, French, Portuguese, and Arabic.

• Global Health Library – (World Health Organization (WHO))  – Global and regional indexes tot he scientific and technical literature. Many of the articles found in searches are free online such as those in the Bulletin of the World Health Organization.

• HINARI Access to Research Initiative – (World Health Organization (WHO))  – The HINARI Programme, set up by WHO together with major publishers, enables developing countries to gain access to one of the world’s largest collections of biomedical and health literature. Over 6200 journal titles are available to health institutions in 108 countries, areas and territories.

Libraries

• College and University Libraries – Academic libraries generally are included in WorldCat or have their own online catalog on their website. State university or community college libraries are usually open to the public living or working within that state. Look for a community college with health training programs. Those with EMS Training Programs may have disaster preparedness journals, for example. Most libraries have print subscriptions or license electronic journals to allow on site use. Friends of the Library memberships may be available for a reasonable charge and may allow you to check out materials or receive other information services.

• Directory of National Network of Libraries of Medicine Members – (National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM))  – Searchable directory of a nationwide network of health science libraries and information centers. The directory can be searched by state, type of library, and by services offered to the public including reference services, database search training, and delivery of full text journal articles.

• Law Libraries – Law librarians are experts in finding legal information to support policy making and cases. Law libraries are often open to the public for legal research. Use of resources such as Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw is generally restricted, but a wealth of other information in environmental and occupational health, infectious disease control, animal control and other topics with legal components is available.

• List of Public Health Libraries – (Medical Library Association, Public Health/Health Administration Section)  – This website provides links to international, U.S. government, state and local public health libraries, and to libraries from schools of public health.

• National Network of Libraries of Medicine NN/LM – Your regional medical library can help you locate any type of library of figure out what options you have to efficiently find access to the information you need. The NN/LM also provides training on how to use information resources such as PubMed.

• Public Libraries – Public library subscriptions and services may include remote access to collections of full-text journals and newspaper articles. Interlibrary loan may be available at no charge or a minimal cost. Library cards are generally available to those who live or work in the jurisdiction at no charge.

• State Libraries – State agency libraries may be designated to serve state public health workers. If not, they should at least be open to state residents. State libraries work with public libraries to ensure access to resources for users statewide. Find your state library.

• WorldCat – See what libraries closest to you own the journal you need, just search on the title and include your zip code – one may be close enough to visit in person to print or copy the article. If not, follow the web links to the owning library to see if document delivery services are offered for a fee. Note: Most hospital libraries do not appear in Worldcat.org, so you may need to call your closest hospital library to see if they have what you need.

Organizational Partnerships and Staying Connected with Academia

• College of Medicine Voluntary Faculty – (University of South Florida (USF))  – Example of library services available to voluntary faculty involved in teaching health professional students. Maintain an adjunct faculty role or offer to precept students. The students will have remote access to the university resources, and the academic institution may also be able to provide resources or services to you as a preceptor depending on their licensing arrangements.

 

Paying for Full Text Journal Articles

Ordering Journal Articles

• Loansome Doc – (National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM))  – Arrangements may be made with a health sciences library to provide specific materials you request for a pre-arranged, per-item fee. Prices may be very low, or even free, when ordering from a library mandated to serve health workers in their area.

• Using Loansome Doc® – (National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM))  – Learn how to order full-text articles through a local health sciences library.

Subscriptions to Individual Titles or Packages of Titles

• AHEC Digital Library Annual Subscription – North Carolina AHEC Program (Example) – This is one example of an AHEC that offers digital library memberships for individual practitioners. Check the Area Health Education Centers Directory to find your local AHEC and to see if they offer library memberships.

• Journal of Public Health Management and Practice (Example) – Most journals are available as either individual or institutional subscriptions. If you purchase the journal with organizational funds and intend for it to be used by multiple staff, then you should purchase an institutional subscription. Institutional subscriptions often allow you to set up online access using your organization’s IP addresses so that all on the organization’s network may access the publication. You may also buy individual articles on a pay per view or pay per download model.

• Veterinary Information Network (VIN) – Fee-based knowledge resource center for animal health and infectious diseases that includes many full text journals, conference proceedings and electronic books, as well as online expert forums for veterinarians.

Related articles

• Journal of Young Medical Researchers (docrohan.wordpress.com)
• Elsevier Launches First Video Journal in Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (prnewswire.com)

Some Libraries Resist Assisting ObamaCare – Some Librarians Express Concerns

 Reblogged from 21st Century Library Blog:

While I’ve been busy with other things, I let this issue raised at ALA slip past unnoticed. Issues in library world don’t go unnoticed for very long, especially when they deal with government intrusion. Apparently, during ALA 2013 Conference a video was played in which there was a White House appeal to public librarians to help Americans understand the new Affordable Healthcare Act insurance system that goes into effect whenever – maybe.

Read more… 1,597 more words

I am hoping that the federal government can do a bit more to provide resources for librarians about ACA.

Back in my public library days, it wasn’t easy working with patrons when the topic was against my views!

However, I always tried to address people’s information needs without bias and as completely as possible with factual information.

“ObamaCare” questions are in the same arena.  While librarians cannot advise or fill out forms, they can at least lead folks to factual information. However, this would work best if the federal government would do everything possible to lighten the load for libraries.  This would include providing readable materials for consumers, as well as “pathways” for librarians.

Also, libraries can welcome trained volunteers and organizations to give in-depth information to folks. Many already do this around tax time with IRS trained volunteers.

Here in Toledo, folks from legal aid organizations “set up shop” in public libraries to assist folks. Representatives from the Ohio Benefit Bank do likewise. These volunteers screen people for government assistance programs as SNAP and the Medicare Savings Program.

It sure would be great if government employees and/or trained volunteers could do likewise for “ObamaCare”.  Areas could include the health exchange marketplace, Medicaid expansion, free preventative care, and more.

And with articles as this, there is a real need for information professionals, including librarians!

Ohio insurance department claims Obamacare premium rates to rise 41 percent (Cleveland Plain Dealer, August 1, 2013)

Ohio insurance regulators Thursday released rates for health insurance to be sold on the new state marketplace and said premiums for individuals will rise an average of 41 percent compared with 2013 rates.

That average brought immediate condemnation from critics of the Affordable Care Act, with U.S. House Speaker John Boehner, a southwest Ohio Republican, calling it “irrefutable evidence” that the law known as Obamacare is driving up costs and hurting the economy……..

Related articles

• [Repost] The ACA Countdown (jflahiff.wordpress.com)
• Got 1:43 minutes to learn about health exchanges? (jflahiff.wordpress.com)

• US consumers don’t understand health insurance, Carnegie Mellon research shows (Medical News Today, 2 August 2013)

“…only 11 percent of respondents presented with a traditional insurance plan incorporating all four of these elements were able to compute the cost of a four-day hospital stay when given the information that should have enabled them to do so…

“”The ACA deals with the problem of consumer misunderstanding by requiring insurance companies to publish standardized and simplified information about insurance plans, including what consumers would pay for four basic services,” noted lead author Loewenstein. “However, presenting simplified information about something that is inherently complex introduces a risk of ‘smoothing over’ real complexities. A better approach, in my view, would be to require insurance companies to offer truly simplified insurance products that consumers are capable of understanding.”

• What Makes a Good Librarian? (mediabistro.com)
• Perception of the New Librarian (waycrosslibrarian.wordpress.com)
• [Repost] The ACA Countdown (jflahiff.wordpress.com)
• Got 1:43 minutes to learn about health exchanges? (jflahiff.wordpress.com)
• Obama Will Use Librarians To Push Obama-Care (sweetness-light.com)
• Shopping for Health Insurance? Visit Your Local Library For Help With The Exchanges (medicaldaily.com)
• Librarians to Help With Health Insurance Law (infodocket.com)
• WH won’t release video of Obama thanking librarians for pushing Obamacare (bizpacreview.com)
• White House recruits librarians to promote ObamaCare (foxnews.com)
• Louisiana Library workers told they will help ObamaCare Applicants (forum.prisonplanet.com)

Related articles

• Louisiana Library workers told they will help ObamaCare Applicants (forum.prisonplanet.com)

Some Libraries Resist Assisting ObamaCare – Some Librarians Express Concerns

 

I am hoping that the federal government can do a bit more to provide resources for librarians about ACA.

Back in my public library days, it wasn’t easy working with patrons when the topic was against my views!

However, I always tried to address people’s information needs without bias and as completely as possible with factual information.

“ObamaCare” questions are in the same arena.  While librarians cannot advise or fill out forms, they can at least lead folks to factual information. However, this would work best if the federal government would do everything possible to lighten the load for libraries.  This would include providing readable materials for consumers, as well as “pathways” for librarians.

Also, libraries can welcome trained volunteers and organizations to give in-depth information to folks. Many already do this around tax time with IRS trained volunteers.

Here in Toledo, folks from legal aid organizations “set up shop” in public libraries to assist folks. Representatives from the Ohio Benefit Bank do likewise. These volunteers screen people for government assistance programs as SNAP and the Medicare Savings Program.

It sure would be great if government employees and/or trained volunteers could do likewise for “ObamaCare”.  Areas could include the health exchange marketplace, Medicaid expansion, free preventative care, and more.

And with articles as this, there is a real need for information professionals, including librarians!

Ohio insurance department claims Obamacare premium rates to rise 41 percent (Cleveland Plain Dealer, August 1, 2013)

Ohio insurance regulators Thursday released rates for health insurance to be sold on the new state marketplace and said premiums for individuals will rise an average of 41 percent compared with 2013 rates.

That average brought immediate condemnation from critics of the Affordable Care Act, with U.S. House Speaker John Boehner, a southwest Ohio Republican, calling it “irrefutable evidence” that the law known as Obamacare is driving up costs and hurting the economy……..

Related articles

• [Repost] The ACA Countdown (jflahiff.wordpress.com)
• Got 1:43 minutes to learn about health exchanges? (jflahiff.wordpress.com)

21st Century Library Blog

While I’ve been busy with other things, I let this issue raised at ALA slip past unnoticed. Issues in library world don’t go unnoticed for very long, especially when they deal with government intrusion. Apparently, during ALA 2013 Conference a video was played in which there was a White House appeal to public librarians to help Americans understand the new Affordable Healthcare Act insurance system that goes into effect whenever – maybe. This federal initiative to get public libraries involved in assisting people to sign up goes into effect October 1.

As much as I dislike relying on news media for any valid information, a Washington Times online article “Librarian foot soldiers enlisted to help with Obamacare enrollment” published June 29 states:

CHICAGO — The nation’s librarians will be recruited to help people get signed up for insurance under President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul. Up to 17,000…

View original post 1,492 more words

Fee based health info may be free online through your library’s Web site

The Internet has a wealth of health information from trusted, reliable sites.
(I’ve noted quite a few in this blog and at my Google site – Health and Medical News and Resources)

However, it is not always easy to locate health information, especially on specific topics.

Your local public or academic library just may have the online sources you need.
Although quite a few online resources require paid subscriptions, your library may have included them at their Web site.
All you have to do is register for borrowing privileges (get a library card) at your local library.
Alternatively, you may be able to just go to the library and get access through their computers.

At my local library, I discovered the following…some or all just might be at your library also…ask a reference librarian or check the library’s Web site

• Alt Health Watch 
  Offers information about Alternative Health issues, including complementary, holistic and integrated approaches to health care and wellness. Provides full text articles form a number of sources, including: journals, reports, consumer newsletters, pamphlets, booklets, special reports, original research and book excerpts. This database is provided by OPLIN, the Ohio Public Library Information Network.
• ConsumerReports.org
  Ratings and reviews, recommendations and buying advice for thousands of products and services. Users will also find in-depth advice, tips and trends written by Consumer Reports experts. Frequently updated articles, blogs and video content allow consumers to peruse the latest consumer news — whether they’re looking to learn more about budget-friendly home improvement plans, understanding the benefits and risks of retirement options, or searching for the latest recalls of baby products. This database provided by the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library.
• Health & Wellness Resource Center
  Provides up-to-date reference material as well as full-text magazines, journals, and pamphlets from a wide variety of authoritative medical sources. Includes streaming videos featuring medical experts plus links to key health websites.
• Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition
  Provides scholarly full text journals focusing on many medical disciplines and featuring the Lexi-PAL Drug Guide, which covers 1,300 generic drug patient education sheets with more than 4,700 brand names. This database is provided by OPLIN, the Ohio Public Library Information Network.
• MEDLINE
  Offers medical information on medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, the health care system and pre-clinical sciences among many subjects. This database is provided by OPLIN, the Ohio Public Library Information Network.
• Psychology & Behavioral Sciences Collection
  Covers many psychological topics, including emotional and behavioral characteristics, psychiatry and psychology, mental processes, anthropology, and observational and experimental methods. This database is provided by OPLIN, the Ohio Public Library Information Network.

Related Resources

• How to obtain free/low cost medical and scientific articles(jflahiff.wordpress.com)
  • Some publishers which provide free or low cost articles (via PatientInform)
    • Elsevier Patient Research provides single copies of articles for $4.95. Elsevier publishes over 2,000 journals.
    • AACR’s (American Association for Cancer Research) policy for free patient access to medical articles—“If You Need It, You Can Read It”—can be found under Information for Readers/Subscribers.
    • The Endocrine Society For Patients page provides information on how to obtain free articles from its six endocrine research journals.
• “Summaries for Patients” and other plain language summaries help patients and others understand medical studies and guidelines (jflahiff.wordpress.com)

Related articles

• Search the Office of Minority Health’s Library Catalog Online | Health Information Literacy – for health and well being (jflahiff.wordpress.com)
• A Consumer Health Toolkit for Library Staff and the Rest of Us(jflahiff.wordpress.com)
• Cochrane Reviews – A Great Source for Sound Medical Evidence(jflahiff.wordpress.com)

• Free Databases from the US Government (jflahiff.wordpress.com)
• Health Information from the US National Library of Medicine (NLM)

Reminder: NLM Gateway Changing

Image via Wikipedia

From NLM Technical Bulletin, November 23, 2011 [posted]

Reminder: NLM Gateway Changing

On December 1, 2011, the Lister Hill National Center for Biomedical Communications (LHNCBC) will complete the transition of the NLM® Gateway to the new LHNCBC pilot project. The new site will retain the Web address of the former NLM Gateway. It will have two databases: Meeting Abstracts and Health Services Research Projects in Progress (HSRProj). HSRProj also remains available via a separate search engine through the portal HSR Information Central.

The Meeting Abstracts database contains abstracts from HIV/AIDS, Health Services Research, and Space Life Sciences meetings and conferences. The final update to the Meeting Abstracts database is the addition of the abstracts from the 2010 18th International AIDS Conference which will be completed in December 2011. After this addition, no new meeting abstract data will be loaded.

For additional information on the transition to the pilot project, see the article NLM Gateway Transitioning to New Pilot Project Site.

========

May 27, 2011 [posted]

NLM Gateway Transitioning to New Pilot Project Site

On December 1, 2011, the NLM® Gateway will transition to a new pilot project from the Lister Hill National Center for Biomedical Communications (LHNCBC). The current version of the NLM Gateway provides search access across multiple databases; however, all but one of these databases is available from other NLM sources, and most users of those databases search them directly and do not use the NLM Gateway. Only one database, Meeting Abstracts, is uniquely located on the Gateway system. Although NLM has invested in and supported the NLM Gateway for eleven years, based on current budget limitations and the results of evaluations of the use of NLM Gateway, the Library has recently decided to discontinue this service, as currently configured, and transition to a new pilot project site.

The new site will focus on two databases: Meeting Abstracts and Health Services Research Projects in Progress (HSRProj). A forthcoming NLM Technical Bulletin will provide more information on this new service from the LHNCBC. Once the new pilot system is available in December, the current Gateway URL will redirect any visitors to the new Web site. The Meeting Abstracts database will still be unique to this site, while HSRProj will continue to be accessible from its home site.

The Meeting Abstracts database contains selected abstracts from meetings and conferences in the subject areas of AIDS, Health Services Research, and Space Life Sciences. The last update to the Meeting Abstracts Database is anticipated to be the addition of the 2010 18th International AIDS Conference, which is expected to be loaded in the fall of 2011. After this addition, the Meeting Abstracts database will still be accessible, but no new data will be loaded.

All of the other resources currently accessed through the NLM Gateway will be available through their individual sites (see Table 1). The home sites for these systems are listed on the NLM Databases & Electronic Resources page. This directory of resources is easily located by clicking on the “All NLM Databases” link in the Databases column on theNLM homepage.

Table 1: The NLM Resources, and homepage URLs, that will no longer be available through the NLM Gateway.

NLM Resources Formerly on the NLM Gateway	URL
Bookshelf	http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books
Chemical Carcinogenesis Research Information System (CCRIS)	http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/htmlgen?CCRIS
ClinicalTrials.gov	http://clinicaltrials.gov/
Developmental and Reproductive Toxicology Database (DART)	http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/htmlgen?DARTETIC
Directory of Health Organizations (DIRLINE®)	http://dirline.nlm.nih.gov/
Genetic Toxicology Data Bank (GENE-TOX)	http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/htmlgen?GENETOX
Genetics Home Reference	http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/
Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)	http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/htmlgen?HSDB
Household Products Database	http://hpd.nlm.nih.gov/
Images from the History of Medicine	http://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/ihm/index.html
Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS)	http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/htmlgen?IRIS
International Toxicity Estimates for Risk (ITER)	http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/htmlgen?iter
MEDLINE®/PubMed®	http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/
MedlinePlus®	http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/
NLM Catalog	http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog
Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM)	http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/omim
Profiles in Science®	http://profiles.nlm.nih.gov/
TOXLINE® Subset	http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/htmlgen?TOXLINE

If you are accustomed to the NLM Gateway cross file searching function you may want to try using the cross database features provided by TOXNET® and by the NCBI Entrez system.

The search box on the TOXNET homepage offers a cross database search function for the databases in the Toxicology Data Network (see Figures 1 and 2).

Figure 1: TOXNET homepage with “Search All Databases” feature.

Figure 2: TOXNET Search All Databases Results Page.

The NCBI global query feature on the NCBI homepage provides a cross database search feature for all of the Entrez databases (see Figures 3 and 4). Selecting “All Databases” in the search box will return a summary search page identifying possible results across all of the NCBI Entrez databases, including PubMed, PubMed Central, BookShelf, NLM Catalog, and the genetic and protein databases such as Gene, OMIM, BLAST, dbGaP, and others.

You can simply bookmark the Web page http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gquery to access the global query search feature. However, going to the NCBI homepage may be the easier way to access this function; the NCBI logo on the top left corner of any Entrez-based system links to the NCBI homepage.

Figure 3: NCBI homepage and “All Databases” option in the search box.

Figure 4: Entrez global query search results page.

By David Gillikin
Bibliographic Services Division

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• NLMplus is Featured by the NLM (scienceroll.com)
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