Resources from the Library - e-books

As a member or postgraduate affiliate of The Royal College of Surgeons of England or The Faculty of Dental Surgery, you are entitled to access our collection of e-books.

This guide provides information on why you should use e-books and how to access them, with login instructions and specific information on resources.

Why e-books?

E-books are invaluable tools for medical and surgical training, offering several advantages over traditional print materials:

Accessibility: E-books can be accessed on multiple devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets, computers), allowing medical professionals and trainees to study anytime, anywhere. This flexibility is particularly useful for those with demanding schedules and on-call shifts.

Up-to-date information: Medicine and surgery are rapidly evolving fields. E-books can be updated more easily and frequently than print versions, ensuring that trainees always have access to the latest evidence-based practices, guidelines, and research.

Multimedia integration: Many medical e-books incorporate interactive features such as videos, diagrams, and quizzes, which enhance learning and make complex concepts more understandable. Surgical procedures, in particular, can be better illustrated through 3D models or video demonstrations.

Searchable content: E-books allow users to search for specific terms or topics instantly, which is crucial when looking up key information quickly during clinical practice or while studying for exams.

Portability: The wider surgical team often moves between hospitals, clinics, and offices. E-books eliminate the need to carry heavy textbooks, as multiple references can be stored on a single device.

Cost-effective and environmentally friendly: E-books allow for institutional licensing, providing access to a huge variety of subjects at reduced cost and impact on the environment.

These benefits make e-books a powerful tool for optimizing learning, improving patient care, and staying current in the dynamic fields of medicine and surgery.

How to access e-books:

You will need a College login account in order to access these e-books. Login at the College website before visiting the library online catalogue and the e-book section, then look for an institutional login link: depending on the site, you will then need to either click on an OpenAthens link or select the College from a list of institutions. Please visit our step by step login guide.

Use the Surgical Library catalogue to search or browse our online and print books. You can search the catalogue by title, keyword, or subject. Our Subject search offers MeSH indexes in, among others, Analytical, Diagnostic and Therapeutic Techniques and Equipment, Anatomy, Diseases, Disciplines and Occupations, Health Care, Phenomena and Processes, Chemicals and Drugs

Specifically:

• You can use the search box on the “Discover” tab to search across all our modern collections; there is also a tab for e-books to make it easier to search for specific online titles, and tabs for other resources.
• Search for specific publications in the “E-books” tab, by using the format “title:(publication title)”, or by using the ISBN.
• Use the “Advanced Search” option below the “Search” button to select specific restrictions on your search, or use the facets to the left of the initial results page to refine your results by source, date or other criteria. You can browse the e-book collection by publication title, by subject, by initial letter and by surgical specialty.
• Once you have located resources of interest available online, you will be able to access them fully through the provider. Some providers may not check that you are logged in with us and will need prompting to do so. Usually, you can use the “Institutional Login” option (by choosing the Royal College of Surgeons of England from a dropdown menu) or the OpenAthens option. Our help pages provide detailed instructions on how to log in.

You can browse e-book titles by surgical specialty. The specialties include:

General Surgery which provides access to over 600 E-Books, including, among others, titles for pancreatic, endocrine, gastrointestinal surgery, transplantation and endoscopy imaging.

Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery providing access to over 450 titles of which surgical techniques for sport medicine, arthroscopy, arthroplasty and reconstructive surgery of extremities.

Ear, Nose and Throat Surgery has over 200 titles available, including head and neck pathology, cochlear implants, facial surgery, otolaryngology and imaging.

Paediatric Surgery includes over 100 titles including fetal and neonatal physiology and surgery, care and nutrition.

Urology which provides over 100 titles including nephrology, andrology, kidney pathology and transplantation.

Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery offers over 350 e-books on, among others, maxillofacial surgery, aesthetics and reconstruction, cleft lip and palate, wound and burn care.

Neurosurgery includes over 300 titles around cerebrovascular surgery, stroke care, brain pathology and trauma.

Cardiothoracic Surgery has over 300 titles on cardiology, organ and stem cell transplantation, oncology and imaging.

Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Dental offers over 200 titles on oral and maxillofacial pathology and surgery, head and neck surgery, dentistry and oral health.

Vascular Surgery provides close to 200 titles including books on endovascular surgery and therapy, diagnosis and treatment of stroke, angiography and atherosclerosis.

Our main provider for e-books is Elsevier’s ClinicalKey, where the majority of our subscribed titles are held. Elsevier's clinical insight engine provides access to over 600 e-journals, 1000 e-books, 17,000 videos and 2 million images. By logging in to ClinicalKey, you can also make use of saved searches and online resource bookmarks. You can browse for books on the ClinicalKey website as well, as our subscription provides access to all of them.

We have access to two collections within the LWW Health Library, “Surgery” and “Orthopaedic Surgery”. There are several dozen titles in each collection, along with videos and case studies.

We also have titles from Oxford Academic, SpringerLink (including Biomed Central), ScienceDirect, Cambridge Core and Wiley Online.

The top 10 e-books titles viewed are:

• Plastic Surgery, Vol. 2: Aesthetic Surgery (Ed. 5)
• Colorectal Surgery: A Companion to Specialist Surgical Practice, Paterson-Brown S. and Garden J.O. (Ed. 7)
• Blumgart's Surgery of the Liver, Biliary Tract and Pancreas. (Ed.7)
• Oesophagogastric Surgery: A Companion to Specialist Surgical Practice (Ed. 7)
• Core Topics in General & Emergency Surgery: A Companion to Specialist Surgical Practice-7th ed
• Cummings Otolaryngology: Head and Neck Surgery, Flint P.W. (Ed. 7)
• Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery: A Companion to Specialist Surgical Practice (Ed. 7)
• Anterior Cruciate Ligament, Prodromos C.C. (Ed. 2)
• Breast Surgery, A Companion to Specialist Surgical Practice, Paterson-Brown S. and Garden J.O. (Ed. 7)
• Youmans and Winn Neurological Surgery. (Ed. 8)

Our e-book collection has a wide range of interesting material representing the latest developments and publishing in research and clinical practice, from respected and peer reviewed publishing sources in all specialty areas.

We hope you will try our e-book resources and will find them useful. You can provide feedback on how you are accessing them and what impact they may be able to offer in your work by contacting us: Please email library.athens@rcseng.ac.uk, or telephone the Library on +44 (0) 20 7869 6556 if have any questions, comments or need help with using the service.

You can also see our other subject guides for e-journals and clinical databases.

“Information snacks”: getting the best out of your e-books access

Using e-books during a short interval in your day is a great way to find focus and make the most of your time. Here are some tips on how to get started:

• Choose the right e-book: Pick a book that suits your specialty and interests. You can add multiple ebooks to a list of desired content and dip in and out when you have a moment.
• Find a comfortable spot: If possible, find a quiet and comfortable place where you can read without distractions.
• Download ahead of time: Ensure your e-book section or chapter is downloaded on your device so you don't waste time waiting for it to load.
• Set a timer: If you have limited time, set a timer so that you can enjoy your reading without worrying about the time.
• Use bookmarks: Digital bookmarks can help you easily find where you left off.
• Take notes: If you like jotting down your own thoughts or adding highlights on particularly compelling passages/useful illustrations or datasets, many e-book readers offer note-taking features.

Maria Christodoulou, Information Assistant