Information Searching in Health Care.

Williams RM, Baker LM, Marshall JG. Thorofare, NJ 08086-9447, SLACK Inc, 1992, paperback, 147 pp, $20.

This short, three-chapter, easy-to-read book is designed to give the reader the necessary skills for locating, retrieving, and critically appraising literature written for the health care field. Many of the examples given are explicit to physical therapy. All of the examples are useful. The authors achieve their goals by providing techniques on how to use library resources, both printed material and computer-based material, so that readers may find information on their desired topic.

The structure, format, and content of the most frequently used printed indexes are addressed in chapter 2. The authors describe the use of the Library of Congress cataloging system and indexes for journals and monographs, such as Index Medicus, Excerpta Medica, and Current Contents. The structure and function of the Science Citation Index is also included; however, only three of the five components of this indexing system are acknowledged.

The authors include explanations of how to use indexes that are accessible by computers located in libraries and indexes that can be used with a home or office computer. They also provide clear descriptions and several examples of search strategies that use printed indexes such as Index Medicus and the use of Boolean operators in computer-based searches.

About one third of this book is devoted to the principle that acquiring information requires an in-depth analysis of the information's validity and applicability. The authors present a series of clinically relevant questions, then describe the search strategies and search results for each question. Guidelines for critically appraising journal articles are given, and examples of analysis are provided.

There are numerous examples throughout the text that successfully reinforce the ideas presented. The book is replete with fine figures and tables that 'highlight the major points in each section.

An appendix containing material on how to read journals so that one is able to distinguish useful therapy from useless or harmful therapy is also included. A short glossary of common terms associated with research design completes the book.

I would recommend this book as a resource for (1) the practicing clinician or assistant who is interested in answering questions that arise during the course of daily practice, (2) the clinician who desires in-depth information on a topic for presentation at in-service programs or as a starting point for clinical research, and (3) the more experienced individual who is involved in research using computer-based searching or Boolean operators, which may be new or confusing to them.

Mary Joan Day, PT Columbia University New York, IVY