The document outlines the differences between PubMed, PubMed Central, Medline, and MedlinePlus, highlighting their specific content and purpose. It includes instructions for using these resources effectively and emphasizes the importance of audience and application in searching for health-related information. Additionally, training resources and evaluation feedback links are provided to enhance user skills and gather insights on training effectiveness.

1. PubMed, PubMed Central,
MEDLINE, MedlinePlus…
What’s the difference?
Annette Parde-Maass
Education and Outreach Coordinator
Creighton University Health Sciences Library

2. Objectives
Participants will be able to:
• Differentiate between PubMed, PubMed Central,
MEDLINE, and MedlinePlus
• Know where to seek help with these resources
• Recognize when to use resources and for which
audience or questions

3. A little introduction
• NLM = National Library of
Medicine
• NNLM = National Network of
Libraries of Medicine
• MCR = MidContinental Region
(of NNLM)

4. PubMed
MEDLINE
PubMed
Central
MedlinePlus

5. MEDLINE
• Core database of citations
and abstracts
• More than 23 million
references to journal
articles
• Life sciences with focus on
biomedicine

6. PubMed
• 26 million references
• MEDLINE database
• In-process or pre-MEDLINE
citations
• Out-of-scope articles from
MEDLINE journals (e.g.
plate tectonics)
• Books on NCBI Bookshelf
• Citations to some PubMed
Central journals
• Links to full-text articles via
PMC and LinkOut

7. PubMed Central
• Full-text archive for
biomedical and life
sciences journal articles
• Some articles from
MEDLINE journals
• Reciprocal links with
PubMed

8. MedlinePlus
• Designed for patients,
families, and other
consumers
• Health topics and
dictionaries
• Links to MEDLINE/PubMed
database
• News
• Links to vetted web
resources
• Also in Spanish

9. PubMed
MEDLINE
PubMed
Central
MedlinePlus

10. Let’s take a quick tour: PubMed
PubMed, Pubmed.gov
• Limit PubMed search to MEDLINE only
• Search for full-text resources
• Find help
• PubMed Online Training
• https://learn.nlm.nih.gov/rest/training-packets/T0042010P.html
• NLM Learning Resources Database,
• https://learn.nlm.nih.gov/
• Help, support, and NLM contacts (any PubMed page)

11. Let’s take a quick tour: MedlinePlus
MedlinePlus, MedlinePlus.gov
• Overview of Home Page
• Videos and Tools
• About MedlinePlus
• Information for Librarians and Trainers page
• Customer Support
• Evaluating Health Information topic page

12. Activity: Let’s search
PubMed.gov
MedlinePlus.gov
1. Epipen
2. “epinephrine injection”
• How many results for
each search?
• How would you describe
the types of results and
resources?
• Who is the audience?

13. Activity: Let’s search again
PubMed.gov
MedlinePlus.gov
1. “stomach flu”
2. gastroenteritis
• How many results for
each search?
• How would you describe
the types of results and
resources?
• Who is the audience?

14. Recap
• Findings
• Ponderings
• Applications
This project has been funded in whole or in part with Federal funds from the Department of
Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine,
under cooperative agreement number UG4LM012344 with the University of Utah, Spencer
S. Eccles Health Sciences Library.

15. Thank you!
Annette Parde-Maass
NNLM MCR
Education and Outreach Coordinator
AnnetteParde-Maass@Creighton.edu
402-280-4156
Provide in-person and online training
Scheduled NNLM webinars
https://nnlm.gov/mcr/training/schedule
This project has been funded in whole or in part with Federal funds from the Department of Health and Human Services, National
Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine, under cooperative agreement number UG4LM012344 with the University of Utah,
Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library.

16. Evaluation
http://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/3529624/2017-
07NCompassLive
Please complete this. It helps me to enhance my
trainings and report on what I do.