Library Services - Frequently Asked Questions

The most frequently asked questions from our users concerning library services are listed below. For additional information, or to submit a question, please complete Ask a Librarian.

• How do I access the Library's databases from home or off-campus?
• How do I know which database to search?
• How do I find out what databases are available from the Library?
• How do I request a literature search or have a search alert set up for me?
• How do I find out if the Library has the journal article I need?
• How do I find out if the Library has a specific journal?
• I am having problems accessing an online journal. What can I do?
• How do I obtain a journal article, copy of a book chapter, or a book not available in the Library's collection?
• How do I find out what is available in the Library's collection? How do I borrow a book?
• How do I renew the book I have borrowed from the Library?

To access any of the databases (except *UpToDate) or electronic journals that the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Library subscribes to, employees can click on the LOGIN button located at the top right hand corner of the Library's Web page. Enter your user name, which is the same as the log in you use to access your computer at work, and your employee identification number followed by four trailing zeros. If you try to access a database or electronic journal without logging in first, you will be prompted to do so once per session.

*UpToDate may only be used on campus in clinical locations and in the Library facility.

The nature of your research dictates which database to search. For example, MEDLINE and PubMed cover biomedical literature which includes medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, allied health, and preclinical sciences. EMBASE features coverage in drug research, pharmacology, clinical/experimental human medicine, biological research, and biomedical engineering & instrumentation.

Other subject areas for which there are specific databases include evidence-based medicine, biology, nursing and allied health, alternative medicine, and psychology and psychiatry. Additional information about these databases and other Library resources can be found at Training & Tutorials.

To access a list of all databases, eJournals and eBooks, click on the Databases, Journals, Books & more on the left navigation bar. The Training & Tutorials page, on the left navigation bar under All Library Resources, provides descriptions and links to training content.

To request a literature search click on Forms & Feedback, select the Literature Search form, complete this form, and click submit. A reference librarian may call you to discuss your request in greater detail.

If you have obtained the reference/citation to a journal article by conducting a search in a library database, for example, PubMed, click on the Fulltext@MSK button located in the search results, and a menu of options will appear. If the article is available in full text, it will clearly indicate this at the top of the menu. If the article is not available electronically, you will be directed to search Tri-Cat or to order the article from the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Library's Document Delivery Services. You can also check Electronic Journals or Tri-Cat to confirm availability of the journal.

To see if a journal title is available from the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center Library search Electronic Journals or Tri-Cat. For additional assistance contact Reference Services at 212-639-7439 or email Ask a Librarian.

To report any access problems email Ask a Librarian or call Reference Services at 212-639-7439. You will be contacted once we have finished investigating the problem and the issue is resolved. If you need the journal article urgently, please submit a request to Document Delivery Services, and indicate on the request form that you are experiencing problems accessing the journal.

Document Delivery Services is the quickest way to obtain a journal article, book chapter, or book not available at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Library. If you have never used this service before, please complete a one-time registration form. Once completed you will be able to request items. Book chapters and journal articles will be sent directly to your Memorial Sloan-Kettering email address. You will be notified when books borrowed from an outside library are available for pick-up. The Library is located in the Rockefeller Research Laboratories building, Main Floor.

To find out about the Library's print and electronic collections, users can search Tri-Cat (Library catalog),the eJournals page, the eBooks page, or to learn more about the resources that the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Library maintains, review the Training & Tutorials page.

When using Tri-Cat to search for the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Library's holdings click on View Entire Collection and select Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center from the drop-down menu. The catalog allows you to search by keyword, author, title, and call number. Results with an MSK designation indicate the item is part of the Library's collection. It is important to note whether a book is available, on loan, or hold. To place a hold on a book that is on loan, please contact Reference Services at 212-639-7439. A book showing a hold means that another Library user has reserved the item. Library staff will notify you when the book has been returned.

Renewals can be done in person in the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Library or by calling Reference Services at 212-639-7439. If no one has put a hold on the book you will be able to renew for another two week period.