Library Guides: Nursing & Health: Primary & Secondary Sources

What is a primary source?

A primary source in science is a document or record that reports on a study, experiment, trial or research project. Primary sources are usually written by the person(s) who did the research, conducted the study, or ran the experiment, and include hypothesis, methodology, and results.

Primary Sources include:

Pilot/prospective studies
Cohort studies
Survey research
Case studies
Lab notebooks
Clinical trials and randomized controlled trials/RCTs
Dissertations

Primary Sources

PubMed This link opens in a new window
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Major index to articles covering all aspects of medicine.Finding Primary Sources: After conducting your search, check the boxes for Clinical Trial, Controlled Clinical Trial, and/or Randomized Controlled Trial under Article Type in the left sidebar.
CINAHL Complete This link opens in a new window
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Literature in nursing and allied health disciplines, 1937 to present.Finding Primary Sources: Under Publication Type, select Clinical Trial and Randomized Controlled Trial. (Hold down the CTRL key to select multiple items in the list)
MEDLINE This link opens in a new window
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Provides authoritative medical information on medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, the health care system, pre-clinical sciences, and more.Finding Primary Sources: Under Publication Type, select Clinical Trial, Controlled Clinical Trial, and Randomized Controlled Trial. (Hold down the CTRL key to select multiple items in the list)

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What is a secondary source?

Secondary sources list, summarize, compare, and evaluate primary information and studies so as to draw conclusions on or present current state of knowledge in a discipline or subject. Sources may include a bibliography which may direct you back to the primary research reported in the article.

Secondary Sources include:

Reviews, systematic reviews, meta-analysis
Newsletters and professional news sources
Practice guidelines & standards
Clinical care notes
Patient education Information
Government & legal Information
Monographs
Entries in nursing or medical encyclopedias

Secondary Sources

PubMed This link opens in a new window
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Finding Secondary Sources: After conducting your search, select the Systematic Review filter in the left sidebar on the results page.
Cochrane Library This link opens in a new window
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A collection of regularly updated, systematic reviews of the effects of health care.
Search Tip: Keep the search simple. If your topic is "Should women be given hormone replacement therapy" - search for Hormone Replacement Therapy.