LibGuides: Research &amp; Publication in Medicine &amp; Health: Research & Publication Home

Carle Illinois Librarians

Megan Sapp-Nelson
Head, Grainger Engineering
Library Information Center
enginlib@illinois.edu

Contact the Grainger Library at:

enginlib@illinois.edu

Guide to Research

Advanced Research at the Library
This guide breaks down how the professionals search for articles, books, and other scholarly works through chasing citations and creating optimal keyword searches. After reading and using this guide, we hope that you will be able to find what you are looking for in the library more effectively and efficiently.
Writing a Research Proposal
A proposal is a request for support for sponsored research, instruction, or extension projects.

What is it that you need to know or do?

TYPES OF RESEARCH	RESEARCH QUESTIONS	DATA ANALYSIS	DISSEMINATING RESEARCH
Literature Reviews	LITERATURE SEARCH	DATA MANAGEMENT	Where to Publish
MedEd Research	Citation Management	Data Sharing	Med Student Publishing
RESEARCH METHODS	Databases	NIH Data Plans	Measuring Your Impact
GRANTS & FUNDING	HUMAN SUBJECTS	RESPONSIBLE RESEARCH	STAYING CURRENT

Research Project Planning

Establish your research question

A preliminary literature search will help you to situate your research in the broader research landscape related to the issue of interest. You can then identify gaps and opportunities for your own research.
The question establishes the nature and scope of the research which will then inform key concepts and methods.

Draft research process or protocol that includes

Problem statement and/or rationale
Research question and objective(s)
Search strategy (determined by the type of research and output)
Inclusion/exclusion criteria as needed
Quality assessment method(s) as needed
Data creation/extraction method(s)
- Outline specifics for data management (file naming, folder & file structure, etc.)
Date synthesis method(s)
Data Outputs
Timeline

Search the literature

Select databases
Identify key concepts, terms and controlled vocabulary as needed (MeSH terms for PubMed for example)
Perform searches

Manage results

Implement Bibliographic Management
Implement Data collection software and processes

Analyze data

Screen (Implement inclusion/exclusion criteria)
Assess quality
Analyze, code, interpret

Write

Reearch Management Tools

Open Science Framework
Cloud-based management for your projects. Manage projects; share files; archive data; control access and collaboration; track workflow. Free and open source.
Research Tools Box
Dr. Nader Ale Ebrahim has collected these sporadic tools under one roof in a collection named “Research Tool Box”. The toolbox contains over 720 tools so far, classified in 4 main categories: Literature-review, Writing a paper, Targeting suitable journals, as well as Enhancing visibility and impact factor.
GoHy
Goal-directed Hypothesis-driven (GoHy) workflow for Applied Science. This workflow is designed for applied science, that is, science that aims to cause a direct improvement in the world.
Equator Network
Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research. Your one-stop-shop for writing and publishing high-impact health research find reporting guidelines | improve your writing | join our courses | run your own training course | enhance your peer review | implement guidelines

Campus Resources

Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee
The USDA Animal Welfare Act and the NIH Public Health Service Policy on the Humane Care and Use of Animals require that institutions conducting research with animals establish an Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC). The IACUC provides oversight and helps ensure compliance with all laws, regulations, and policies governing the care and use of research and teaching animals.
Research Software Collaborative Services
Researchers can request support from the Research Software Collaborative Services Group. Our experts provide access to deeper expertise in the areas of supporting diverse research applications and research software development through successful, meaningful collaborations between the developer and the researcher.
Research Supuport Community
This community is a way to bring all of those experts together, creating a wide support network for one another. All in an effort to streamline the support experience of our campus researchers – getting people to the experts and solutions they need more quickly and easily by working together.
Campus Research Board
The Illinois Campus Research Board was established in 1932 to serve the campus as a conduit for the distribution of funding to support full-time tenured/tenure-track faculty members’ research projects and creative activities.
Illinois Experts
Illinois Experts provides access to over 2,000 Illinois researcher profiles through an online, searchable portal, updated weekly from the Scopus abstract and citation database.
OPRS - Office for the Protection of Research Subjects
The Office for the Protection of Research Subjects (OPRS), while performing administrative functions of the Institutional Review Board (IRB), serves as the official oversight office for human subject research at Illinois. The office is the central point of contact for investigators, research subjects, and regulatory agencies.
OVCR - Office of the Vice Chancellor for Reserach
The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (OVCR) leads, enables, and supports research initiatives, technology commercialization and knowledge transfer at the University of Illinois. The OVCR has policymaking and oversight responsibility for the research mission and works collaboratively with the academic colleges and other administrative units to lead new research initiatives and to facilitate the ongoing scholarly endeavors of faculty, staff, and students.
Office of Technology Management
Office of Technology Management provides responsive, professional services to ensure the results of research are successfully transferred outside the university to drive economic growth in the State of Illinois and benefit the general public.