Select Databases
PubMed is the primary health database and has articles about any health topic, but depending on your focus, another database might be better. Specialized databases cover more journals in specific health disciplines and may even offer unique limits (filters) that make it easier to find information.
If you want to find articles about stress in college students that have a medical focus, PubMed is best. For a more of a psychological focus, search PsycInfo, or if you are interested in the nursing perspective, try CINAHL.
Choose the database you think fits your topic the closest. If you don't find enough articles, you can always try another. Don't be surprised if you see the same citation in different databases. Popular journals will be included in many different databases.
Key Databases
- PubMedScholarly journal articles about health and medicine, nursing, audiology, and biology.
- CINAHL Plus with Full Text
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Scholarly journal articles about nursing and allied health including nursing interventions, education, theory, and history as well as physical and occupational therapy.
- ScopusScholarly journal articles and conference papers on any topic in science, technology, medicine, social sciences, and arts & humanities. Includes cited references and h-index information.
- PsycInfo (APA PsycInfo)
Scholarly articles in psychology, plus medicine, psychiatry, education, social work, criminology, social science, business, & organizational behavior.
- SocINDEX with Full Text
Scholarly journal articles about sociology and other social and behavioral sciences. Includes culture & social structure; economic development; evaluation research; family & social welfare; management and complex organizations; policy planning.
- SPORTDiscus
Scholarly journal articles about sport, fitness, and physical education topics including both practical and research literature.
- Cochrane LibraryCollection of various evidence based medicine databases providing information on treatments and medical interventions to support effective decision making in practice.
- Merative MicromedexDrug and dosage information, toxicological substances, patient information databases, and other data to support clinical care decisions.
- ProQuest Dissertations & Theses GlobalIndexes doctoral dissertations completed in the U.S. Includes some master's theses and foreign language dissertations.
Evidence Based Practice "Filtered" Databases
Filtered databases, such as the Cochrane Library means that someone has already appraised the quality of studies and often make a recommendation for practice. Filtered information can also be found in other research databases (i.e. PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO), but you must use the limits associated with each databases to find filtered information like systematic reviews, meta-analysis, etc.
- Cochrane LibraryCollection of various evidence based medicine databases providing information on treatments and medical interventions to support effective decision making in practice.
- PubMed Clinical QueriesA subset of PubMed that retrieves targeted results to clinical questions. Filters limit your search in three clinical research areas: Clinical Study Categories (Diagnosis, Therapy, etc.), Systematic Reviews, and Medical Genetics.
- DynaMedAccess to scientific literature, clinical practice guidelines, and evidence-based content for practicing clinicians.
- TRIP (free version)Clinical search engine that searches a number of sites for evidence-based healthcare information to support clinical practice and/or care.
- PEDro: The Physiotherapy Evidence DatabaseAccess to over 50,000 randomized controlled trials, systematic reviews and evidence-based clinical practice guidelines relevant to physical therapy.
Sometimes health associations create gold standards for treating conditions called Clinical Practice Guidelines. Clinical Practice guidelines are statements that include recommendations intended to optimize patient care that are informed by a systematic review of evidence and an assessment of the benefits and harms of alternative care options.
- PubMedSearch by keyword, then browse the Article Types option (located on the left side of the screen) for Practice Guideline. Selecting an Article Type is a 3-step process: 1) Click "More" under Article Types; 2) Check the box for "Practice Guideline" and click [Show]; "Practice Guideline" will now show on left column; 3) Click it once more to limit results to practice guidelines.
- ECRI Guidelines TrustThe ECRI Guidelines Trust is a new database intended to replace the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) National Guidelines Clearinghouse (NGC). The ECRI Guidelines Trust is a free resource, although an account must be created to save searches and previously browsed topics.
- TRIPSearch by keyword, then click the link for Guidelines on the results page.
- DynaMedSearch by keyword, appending the word guidelines. E.g. mammography guidelines.
- ACSM's Guidelines for Exercise Testing & PrescriptionShelved on the 2nd floor of the Babbidge Library. Call number: Call Number: RM725 .A48 2014
- ACSM's Resource Manual for Guidelines for Exercise Testing and PrescriptionCompanion to ACSM's Guidelines. Shelved on the 2nd floor of the Babbidge Library. Call number: RM725 .A27 2014
- Diagnosis and Treatment of Adults with Community-acquired Pneumonia.An Official Clinical Practice Guideline of the American Thoracic Society and Infectious Diseases Society of America.
Health information is full of scientific jargon and difficult for most people to understand. Consumer health information is written so that people with no medical knowledge can understand it. These sources provide quality information written by professionals.
See also Consumer Health databases.
- MedlinePlusConsumer health information, including extensive information about drugs, an illustrated medical encyclopedia, interactive patient tutorials, and latest health news.
- MedscapeComprehensive clinical overviews of over 10,000 conditions, procedures and drugs also contains images and interactive clinical tools.
- MentalHealth.govInformation about mental illness signs, how individuals can seek help, and how communities can host conversations.
- Healthy People 2030Provides science-based, 10-year national objectives for improving the health of Americans. Established benchmarks monitor progress.
- AIDSource - HIV/AIDS InformationHIV/AIDS-related resources reviewed and selected by expert information specialists and librarians. English and Spanish language.
- Health DatabasesDatabases offering information about diseases, conditions, and wellness issues, useful to consumers and/or patients.
- Drug Information PortalDrug Information Portal gives users a gateway to selected drug information from the U.S. National Library of Medicine and other key U.S. Government agencies. DIP covers 73,556 drugs from the time they are in clinical trials, through their U.S. FDA approval, and then on to the marketplace. There is some coverage of drugs from other countries.
For a more comprehensive list of databases by subject check the links below:
- Tests & MeasurementsAll databases for locating tests and measurements.
These tutorials may help you get a start with your searching.
- PubMed TutorialOfficial PubMed Tutorial from the National Library of Medicine (NLM).
- Learn to Search PubMedTips for effective searching, created by UConn.
- PubMed Clinical Queries TutorialSimple instructions and videos to help navigate Clinical Queries.
- Scopus TutorialHelpful tutorials, especially, "Searching for Documents", "Searching for Cited References", and "Browsing and Analyzing Sources".
- SPORTDiscusSearch tips.
These are brief tutorials on searching PsycINFO produced by the American Psychological Association (APA).
- Sample PsycINFO SearchHow to use the elements of a question to build a search with the thesaurus.
- Find Peer-Reviewed Journal ArticlesHow to find three peer-reviewed empirical journal articles in PsycINFO via EBSCOhost.
- Using the APA ThesaurusHow (and why) to use the thesaurus when searching PsycINFO via EBSCOhost.
- Searching for Tests & MeasuresHow to use the Test & Measures field of the PsycINFO database to find a particular test or measure.
