How to access eye care resources  Peer-reviewed journals Evaluating research findings published in peer-reviewed journals and using them to make the best decisions for patients is an important part of eye care practice. These journals can also be a useful source of review articles, case histories and editorials on key issues in practice. Most peer-reviewed journals are now available online, although access may be limited to subscribers or to members of the organisation or association that publishes them. Most publishers allow some level of access to journals, although the full text of papers may not be available without charge. Abstracts of papers published in peer-reviewed journals are available free of charge at the journal’s website. The Vision Care Institute™ regularly reviews journal articles, comments on their relevance and suggests how you might use them in eye care practice. Click on the link in each What’s New in the Journals? item to view the abstract. If access to the full text or PDF of the paper is also freely available, a link will be provided. To view abstracts of all papers in a given issue, visit the journal website and click on ‘Current issue’, ‘Archive’ or ‘Table of contents’. Alternatively, if there’s a particular paper you want to find, go to PubMed (see ‘Search facilities’) and search by author’s name or topic. Related articles are listed alongside each abstract in PubMed. The full text of papers can also be accessed via the journal website or PubMed, although there will normally be a charge. Some papers are available free online ahead of publication, or selected papers may have free access. Athens is a service that allows you to access to a range of electronic resources from any computer. College of Optometrists members can access 16 ophthalmic journals by logging in with an Athens username and password. The College provides this service at no charge to its members. Email [email protected] to subscribe. Athens is not available to other UK optometrists or dispensing opticians at present although in future this may be possible. Publishers also run their own full text databases, examples being ScienceDirect and Ovid (see ‘Search facilities’). Other journals are accessible free to members of the various associations that publish them. Examples among the UK journals are Ophthalmic & Physiological Optics and Optometry in Practice, which are available online to College members. BCLA members receive free printed copies of Contact Lens & Anterior Eye and free online access; Libraries are also a way of accessing the full text of papers. Some of the associations will supply the full text of papers for a small charge. The British Library also offers this service. Some useful peer-reviewed journals Journal Contact Lens & Anterior Eye Ophthalmic & Physiological Optics Optometry in Practice Frequenc y Six issues per year Bimonthly Quarterly Website Association/Publisher Full text Athens www.contactlensjournal.com British Contact Lens Association College of Optometrists College of Optometrists Members/ subscribers Members/ subscribers Members/ subscribers Yes Email alert No Yes No No No American Academy of Optometry Contact Lens Association of Ophthalmologists Optometrists Association Australia Association for Research and Vision in Ophthalmology American Optometric Association American Academy of Ophthalmologists The Cornea Society Members/ subscribers Members/ subscribers Members/ subscribers Members/ subscribers Yes Yes No (Ovid) Yes Yes No Yes Members/ subscribers Members/ subscribers Subscribers No Yes No Yes Yes Subscribers No (Ovid) Yes Subscribers Yes Yes Members/ subscribers Yes Yes http://www.wiley.com/bw/journ al.asp?ref=0275-5408 http://www.collegeoptometrists.org/index.aspx/pc ms/site.membership.Member_ Benefits.Optometry_in_Practic e/ http://journals.lww.com/optvis sci/pages/default.aspx http://journals.lww.com/claojou rnal/pages/default.aspx http://www3.interscience.wiley. com/journal/118487520/home http://www.iovs.org/ Optometry & Vision Science Monthly Eye & Contact Lens: Science and Clinical Practice Clinical & Experimental Optometry Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science Six issues per year Six issues per year Monthly Optometry Monthly Ophthalmology Monthly Cornea 10 issues per year Monthly http://www.optometryjaoa.com/ home http://www.ophsource.org/peri odicals/ophtha/home http://journals.lww.com/corneaj rnl/pages/default.aspx http://archopht.ama-assn.org/ Monthly http://bjo.bmj.com/ American Medical Association BMJ Publishing Monthly http://www.nature.com/eye/ind ex.html Royal College of Ophthalmologists Archives of Ophthalmology British Journal of Ophthalmology Eye No Yes  Practitioner journals Non-refereed practitioner journals are an important source of news and information on developments in eye care, as well as supplying useful features and review articles. Access to these journals can help you keep abreast of current thinking in eye care. Some useful practitioner journals Journal UK Optician (incorporating Contact Lens Monthly, first week of each month) Optometry Today Dispensing Optics US Contact Lens Spectrum Review of Optometry Review of Cornea and Contact Lenses Frequency Website Association/Publisher Full text Email alert Weekly www.opticianonline.net Reed Elsevier Yes Yes Fortnightly Monthly www.optometry.co.uk www.abdo.org.uk Association of Optometrists Association of British Dispensing Opticians Yes No Yes No Monthly Monthly Monthly www.clspectrum.com www.revoptom.com www.revoptom.com Wolters Kluwer Jobson Jobson Yes Yes Yes Yes No No  Search facilities Abstracts and full text of papers in peer-reviewed journals can be accessed via various search facilities and portals. Some useful search facilities / portals Search facility / portal Website PubMed MyAthens British Library ScienceDirect Ovid OphSource http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/ www.athensams.net/myathens/ www.bl.uk www.sciencedirect.com www.ovid.com www.ophsource.org  Other useful resources ‒ contact lenses and anterior eye Some useful news services, websites and organisations for information on contact lenses and anterior eye News service / website BCLA News Update Contact Lenses Today Silicone hydrogels website and newsletter I-site newsletter Contact Lens Research Reference Sight Website / address for details www.bcla.org.uk www.cltoday.com www.siliconehydrogels.org [email protected] www.contactlensresearch.com www.referencesight.com Description Monthly summary of CL/anterior eye news Weekly e-newsletter from Contact Lens Spectrum Resources on silicone hydrogel contact lenses e-newsletter on RGP lenses Online lectures of recent research in contact lenses Searchable database on CLs and anterior eye Organisation British Contact Lens Association Association of Contact Lens Manufacturers International Association of Contact Lens Educators Medical Contact Lens and Ocular Surface Association Tear Film and Ocular Surface Society Keratoconus Group Scottish Contact Lens Society North East Contact Lens Society www.bcla.org.uk www.aclm.org.uk www.iacle.org www.mclosa.org.uk www.tearfilm.org www.keratoconus-group.org.uk www.scls.co.uk www.necls.org Membership organisation for CL professionals Publishes ACLM Contact Lens Yearbook Global organisation for educational standards Membership organisation for ophthalmologists News and events on tear film Support group for practitioners and patients Regional organisation for CL professionals Regional organisation for CL professionals