Reference and Research Services
Walk-in reference is currently unavailable. Please call, email, or use chat to contact
a Mulford Librarian.
What CAN Reference & Research do for me?
Reference & Research Services are where we help you find the information you need, whether it's a phone number or address, information on a drug, medical test, or disease, or a list of article references on a topic. We also help you select and use the best resources to find what you need. Whenever you need information and don't know where or how to search, ask for help. Our goal is to make sure that you have the information you need - for patient care, research, administrative decisions and strategic planning, a course assignment, or a personal health concern - in a timely and confidential manner.
We know that it can be challenging finding the information you need for work or course assignments in a timely manner, especially if you don't search for information regularly. At the Mulford Health Science Library, the service desk is the first place to ask for help. Some questions or requests need to be referred to the reference librarian on call. Mulford reference librarians are available to help during these times:
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Monday-Friday |
11:00 am - 4:00 pm |
If you know you liaison librarian you may want to contact them directly. Mulford Reference Assistance is designed to accommodate a variety of work schedules and styles. You can get help in a variety of ways:
In person. You may talk with a reference librarian in person during the above hours. Ask to
speak with a reference librarian at the service desk on the fourth floor. No need
to make an appointment, though you can make one if you want. (A reference librarian can come to your office or lab, or you can come
to the library.)
By phone. Call us at 419.383.4218 any time. If you are transferred to voice mail, please leave
a message with your name, phone number, and a brief message. The first available librarian
will return your call. (If you call over the weekend or on a holiday, we'll return
your call on the next business day.)
By email. Send reference questions and requests by email anytime to MulfordReference@utoledo.edu. Expect to receive a response within two working days. Users not affiliated with
The University of Toledo may be referred to their local library for more direct assistance.
By online form. University of Toledo faculty, staff, and students may send questions and requests
via the online reference question form. Expect a response within two working days.
By chat. Use our chat reference service to reach a librarian. More information can be found
on our Ask a Librarian page.
Literature Search Service
We realize that that you may not have the time or expertise to conduct a literature search yourself, so you can ask to have a librarian to run a search for you. We run literature searches for faculty, administrators, residents, and staff members upon request. (Because The University of Toledo is an educational institution, students are encouraged to learn to search the professional literature on their own. Users who are not affiliated with The University of Toledo will be referred to their local public library for assistance. The Mulford Library provides literature search support for systematic and other reviews. See the Systematic Review LibGuide for details.
Requesting a search
By online form. University of Toledo faculty, residents, and staff may send questions via the online literature search request form.
By phone. Call Reference Assistance at 419.383.4218 at any time. If you are transferred to voice mail, please leave a message with your name, phone number, and a description of the search topic.
By email. Send email to Reference Assistance at MulfordReference@utoledo.edu at any time.
Whichever way the request is submitted, it will be promptly forwarded to the librarian who will be doing the search, who will contact you if clarification is needed.Turn-around time
The turn-around time for general search requests is two working days. Searches for systematic and other reviews take much longer due to their comprehensiveness.
Results
You will receive a list of references related to your topic, from which you can determine which articles you would like to see. We can help you (or your secretary or research assistant) to determine whether an article is at Mulford online or in print. If it isn't, the Library can obtain the article for you. (For more information, see the Interlibrary Services page.) Search results can be provided in either of two ways:
Emailed. All search results, with or without abstracts, can be emailed.EndNote.All search results, with or without abstracts can be provided in a EndNote library.