**Publisher:** EBSCO Information Services
**Subjects Covered:** Health, wellness, diseases and conditions, alternative medicine, nutrition, fitness, and patient education

Overview

Consumer Health Complete (CHC) is EBSCO’s comprehensive health and wellness database designed for the general public and patient education. It provides easy‑to‑understand full‑text content from magazines, journals, reference books, fact sheets, reports, and multimedia resources covering both mainstream and alternative medicine. Its goal is to bridge the gap between professional medical literature and public information needs—making it ideal for non‑specialists, educators, and community outreach programs focused on wellness and preventive care.

Scope and Content

• Full‑Text Journals and Magazines: More than 500 consumer‑level and some peer‑reviewed titles.
• Reference Books: Over 1,000 health reference works and encyclopedias.
• Multimedia: Hundreds of health‑related videos, images, and diagrams from sources such as Blausen Medical and Harvard Health Publications.
• Coverage Topics: Diseases and conditions, aging, nutrition, fitness, mental health, drugs and treatments, alternative therapies, and health systems.
• Audience Level: Written at a general/consumer reading level—appropriate for patients, families, and educators.
• Update Frequency: Daily content updates.

Strengths

• Plain‑language summaries accessible for non‑experts and general readers.
• Wide variety of formats—articles, fact sheets, reports, images, and videos.
• Reputable sources including Harvard Health, Mayo Clinic Health Letter, and MedlinePlus.
• Patient‑friendly EBSCO interface with keyword search, topic browse, and age‑group filters.
• Ideal for outreach, wellness education, and health literacy instruction.

Limitations

• Consumer‑level content only; not intended for clinical or academic medical research.
• Limited depth of evidence and lack of detailed methodology.
• Some overlap with Health Source: Consumer Edition and Alt HealthWatch.
• No advanced citation metrics or MeSH indexing; researchers should use PubMed or CINAHL for precision searching.

Best For

• Students and faculty in introductory health, wellness, or public‑health courses.
• Campus wellness programs and student services developing educational materials.
• General readers and community members seeking reliable health information.
• ESL learners or users needing approachable explanations of medical topics.

Complementary Databases

Overall Evaluation

Consumer Health Complete is an excellent consumer‑level resource for understanding health and wellness topics. It fills a vital niche between academic medical databases and public information resources by translating medical language into accessible, credible explanations. For South Dakota Mines, CHC supports wellness initiatives, biology and health instruction, and campus outreach programs. It should be promoted on the A‑to‑Z list as a user‑friendly health information source, with recommendations to use PubMed for academic research.

Ask Digby – Library Help

Need help evaluating sources or accessing databases? Ask Digby, the Devereaux Library’s friendly prairie dog mascot! Digby can assist with off‑campus access, citation tools, and choosing the right databases for your research.

📧 Email: library@sdsmt.edu

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🔗 Library Catalog (Primo): https://sdsmt.primo.exlibrisgroup.com

📍 Devereaux Library, South Dakota Mines, Rapid City, SD