APPENDIX B
Search Questions
PRE-SEARCH QUESTIONS
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Please check the ONE category below that best describes you:
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Primary health care professional
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Health professional specializing in occupational/environmental health
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Emergency medicine or poison control specialist
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Health sciences librarian
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Environmental health researcher or scientist
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Patient or community organization member
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Local, state, or federal public health professional
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Other (please specify)
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Your age —
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How would you describe your level of experience with the Internet?
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None/basic
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Intermediate
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Advanced
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Please indicate your online searching experience.
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No online searching
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General World Wide Web search engines (e.g., Yahoo, Alta Vista)
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MEDLINE primarily but occasionally other online databases
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MEDLINE only
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Numerous online databases
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If you use databases to locate toxicological and environmental health information, which ones do you use? Please check all that apply.
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I haven't used databases to find toxicological/environmental health information
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MEDLINE through Internet Grateful Med
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MEDLINE through PubMed
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MEDLINE through other sources
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TOXLINE
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NIOSHTIC
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Poisindex/TOMES
TOXNET databases:
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CCRIS
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HSDB
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GENE-TOX
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IRIS
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RTECS
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Other (please specify)_____________
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Please check the main ways you use toxicological/environmental health information. Please check all that apply.
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Patient care
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Teaching/education
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Clinical research
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Policy decisions
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Basic research
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Risk analysis
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Worker safety
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Retrieve information for others (e.g., library searching)
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Concerns about my family's health
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Concerns about my health
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Conditions in my workplace
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Community/advocacy
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School work
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Conditions in my area/neighborhood
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Other (please specify)_____________
Search Scenarios
Please conduct searches of the new interface to answer questions 1 and 2 below. Also conduct a third search using a toxicology/environmental question of your own choosing. As you search, please explain to the IOM staff member what you are doing and note any problems you are experiencing or ideas you have on improving the search interface. Thanks!
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What is the potential for vinyl chloride to cause liver cancer in humans?
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What are the potential health effects of working as a dry cleaner?
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Your choice: Please write down your search question.
POST-SEARCH QUESTIONS
1. The problems I experienced were (please be as specific as possible):
General Problem |
Specific Details |
— Selecting a database |
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— Composing a search statement or search strategy |
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— Displaying the search results on the screen |
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— Modifying/rewording the search strategy |
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— Printing search results |
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— Evaluating the search results |
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— Other |
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