With the majority of students and staff being advised to work and study from home, this is how our librarians are supporting online learning…
I have been with the library since January 2020 and it has been an eventful year, to say the least! Working primarily with the Faculty of Nursing means that my schedule is usually pretty steady but this year it was completely packed! Due to the pandemic, most human-subject research was halted. Many students and faculty members turned their attention to completing systematic, scoping, and other types of synthesis reviews as their main research output. As a health sciences librarian, I work with students and faculty to help them FIND ALL THE THINGS for these projects.
When I work with students, I meet with them at various stages of the process. Some of the common things I get asked about:
- What review type is the best for my research question? What reporting guidelines should I be aware of?
- How do I focus/expand my research topic?
- How do I conceptualize and develop a robust search strategy for various databases?
- How do I select the right mix of databases for my review?
- How do I record my search strategy?
- How do I use software like Covidence/EndNote/Mendeley etc. for my review?
- Where should I publish my review?
Often, when I work with faculty-led teams, I can be more involved with the review and actually come on board the research team as a co-author to design, execute, and document the evidence collection phase of the review. In 2020, I completed mediated searches for these types of reviews almost every other week!
Working with researchers from a distance has been difficult but I am very grateful that we live in the age of Zoom and Google Meet, which definitely helps workflows.
Need feedback and support with your class assignments? Chat with us or book a virtual appointment with a librarian!
French translation of this article can be found here!
