LibGuides: Saint Thomas Medical Libraries: Literature Searching

Literature Searching: What and Why?

Literature searching is the systematic review of published articles, data, books and reviews. Sometimes referred to as "evidence", this process is carried out with the intention of supporting or disproving a query.

Evidence based practice (EBP) includes literature searching in response to identified clinical or practice based questions.

It is important that researchers understand the characteristics of the databases within which they are searching.

Scholarly, peer-reviewed articles and quality research manuscripts can be found in databases organized and indexed using biomedical terminology and medical subject headings [MeSH].

National Library of Medicine Videos

The following set of videos, designed specifically for nurses, provides an introduction to searching literature in PubMed. Click on the icon below for a live link:

EBSCOconnect VIDEO On Demand

Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Checklists

is an international not-for-profit, research and development center within the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Adelaide, South Australia. Renown for quality evidence based research and protocols, JBI offers critical appraisal checklists as tools for researchers.

Using boolean operators to connect search terms

Image credit: Dr.Samir Haffar slide deck; https://www.slideshare.net/shaffar75/how-to-search-the-medical-literature-on-the-net

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)

Click on the icon above to access a quick reference for searching in PubMed with MeSH

MeSH and CINAHL

Click on the icon above to access the video

Top 5 Digital Literacies

Find MeSH in Biomedical Literature

Things to Consider

The Center for Evidence Based Managment (CEBMa) recommends that researchers consider the following questions in regard to published research and evidence. The process of evaluating evidence is known as critical appraisal.

1. Is the evidence from a known, reputable source?

2. Has the evidence been evaluated in any way? If so, how and by whom?

3. How up-to-date is the evidence?

CEBMa offers tools to help appraise research studies in the form of Critical Appraisal Checklists; you can set up a free account to access these resources.