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Health (Nursing, Medicine, Allied Health)

Guide to research sources and tools for locating health evidence in books, journals, databases.

Database Searching & Strategy Development

Translating Searches Between Databases

Searching in a comprehensive, systematic way requires authors to execute analogous searches in multiple databases, but not all databases accept the same search syntax, and most databases use different vocabulary for subject headings (or don't use subject headings at all).

As such, once a search strategy has been developed in one database, it is necessary to 'translate' it into a form that will work in a different database.

Example:

Here is the same search criteria (diabetes + self management), executed with database-specific search queries for three different databases. 

CINAHL

(diabetes OR diabetic* OR (MH "Diabetes Mellitus+"))
AND
(“self management” OR “self care” OR “self monitoring” OR “self regulation” OR (MH "Self-Management") OR (MH "Self Care+"))

PubMed

(“diabetes”[tiab] OR “diabetic*”[tiab] OR "Diabetes Mellitus"[Mesh])
AND
(“self management”[tiab] OR “self care”[tiab] OR “self monitoring”[tiab] OR “self regulation”[tiab] OR "Self-Management"[Mesh])

Web of Science

(diabetes OR diabetic*)
AND
(“self management” OR “self care” OR “self monitoring” OR “self regulation”)

Resources for Translating Search Queries

Citation Management Tools

For help choosing a citation management tool: 

See comparison list

For help using a citation management tool: 

See schedule of RefWorks, EndNote, and Zotero classes (coded in pink)

Backing Up Bibliographic Data

If you are using a citation manager to store bibliographic data related to your evidence synthesis project, it is recommended that you maintain back up copies of your data.  

Recommended steps for backing up bibliographic data will vary depending on your software of choice (Zotero, EndNote or RefWorks) - more information can be found on the guide for Data Management Planning - Storage & Backup. 

Article Screening - Covidence

Covidence Trainings & Support

Tutorials: Exporting Records from Databases into Covidence

Covidence Knowledge Base: Importing references in Covidence

Video Overviews by Database

PRISMA - Checklist & Diagram

PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) is an evidence-based set of minimum items for reporting information in systematic reviews and meta-analyses.

Specific PRISMA resources include:

PRISMA Checklist

  • A 27 item checklist whose items refer to the preferred content of a for reporting systematic reviews and meta-analyses, including suggested content for the title, abstract, methods, results, discussion and funding.

PRISMA Extensions

  • Extensions to the PRISMA Checklist to facilitate the reporting of different types or aspects of systematic reviews/meta-analyses (e.g., checklists for reporting scoping reviews, individual patient data)

PRISMA Diagram Templates

PRISMA Data Table

Example PRISMA Diagram 

Example PRISMA diagram showing number of records identified, duplicates removed, and irrelevant records excluded.

Source: 

Stotz, S. A., McNealy, K., Begay, R. L., DeSanto, K., Manson, S. M., & Moore, K. R. (2021). Multi-level diabetes prevention and treatment interventions for Native people in the USA and Canada: A scoping review. Current Diabetes Reports, 2(11), 46. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11892-021-01414-3

Video Overview: Filling Out a PRISMA Flow Diagram (2020 Version; 8 minutes, 32 seconds)

Still have questions about constructing a PRISMA diagram using the 2020 template? 

This article, published in the Journal of the Medical Library Association, answers some frequently asked questions about using the PRISMA 2020 format. 

Rethlefsen, M. L., & Page, M. J. (2022). PRISMA 2020 and PRISMA-S: common questions on tracking records and the flow diagram. Journal of the Medical Library Association : JMLA, 110(2), 253–257. https://doi.org/10.5195/jmla.2022.1449 

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