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Evidence-Based Practice in Rehabilitation

Tools for Finding MeSH

Quick Tips on Smart Searching

If you're running into trouble with your search, watch this fast mini-tutorial from the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine:

Once you have your terms, try to broaden or limit your search.

  • Use a set of quotation marks around phrases such as “cerebral palsy" to prevent Google or other search engines from inserting an AND between the terms.

  • Truncate search terms with an * to increase the number of results.

  • Limit your search by domains to increase the chances of retrieving pertinent results, i.e. site:rehab, site:gov, site:cms

Visit Phrase, Boolean, and Wildcard Searching for more information.

Plan the Search

Before you start:

  1. Clarify and state your question
  2. List the keywords/terms for:
    1. Population or patient/client group
    2. Intervention (or assessment)
    3. Comparison intervention (or assessment)
    4. Desired outcome(s)
  3. List the years and languages you wish to include
  4. Identify the databases most appropriate for your search
To find scientific data based on your topic, select a database from the list to the right (or others). Additionally, talking about your ideas with a librarian will help you make good choices, such as selecting and combining subject terms.The tools for finding MeSH (in the left sidebar) will help you select search terms. Find resources about searching clinical data here.

Document the Search

For each database you use, complete a table such as this:

Databases & date Searched

Search Terms or Phrases

Yield

Obtained

Reviewed

 

List at least three biomedical databases used for your search.

 

 

List the specific search terms or phrases that you used to identify articles in each database.  Include Boolean operators and wildcards as appropriate. 

List the number of articles identified by the database.

List the number of articles deemed relevant based on the title or abstract.

List the number of articles deemed relevant based on your review of the full article.

Database 2

Terms/phrases for database 2

# of articles identified in search of database 2

# of articles obtained from database 2

# of articles reviewed from database 2

Database 3

Terms/phrases for database 3

# of articles identified in search of database 3

# of articles obtained from database 3

# of articles reviewed from database 3

Summary 

List total number of unique articles deemed relevant based on the title or abstract.

List total number of unique articles deemed relevant based on your review of the full article.

Alternatively, consider using the Concept Table developed by the Whitney/Cushing Library at Yale University

Getting Your Article

In most databases, if the full text of the article is not readily available, you will see a Check for Full Text button. 

Clicking on the button will do one of the following:

a) take you to the article - look for PDF full text,
b) take you to the catalog - click on the link next to Content Available
c) link you to Interlibrary Loan so you can request a copy of the article.

There are several ways go about finding an article via the UW Libraries website. However, the process is easiest when you have the article's citation handy -- which identifies the article's full title, journal, and author name. 

Start by searching the article title in quotes in UW Libraries Search.

If searching with the full article title doesn't work, try searching with the journal title or DOI instead.

View the article by choosing one of the links under "View Online" or click "Log in for all services" on the banner for more access options.

Tip: If the article is not available through an online source, a "Request Article" button may appear instead. Follow the prompts to request the article through other services. See What does the “Request Article” button mean?

Show Me 

Learn More

Content above from EdD- Education Leadership: Articles.

  1. On the Health Sciences Library homepage, hover over the Services option in the top menu. Select Interlibrary Loan. If you are not already logged in, follow the log-in prompts. Select the My ILL Account link.
    Link image for Your ILL Account
  2. Click a New Request option based on the type of resource you need.
    ILL New Requests menu
  3. Fill in all required fields for your request.
  4. Click Submit Request

NOTE: You will receive an email with a link to your requested materials when they are available.

 

Show Me IconWatch: How do I request materials using Interlibrary Loan?

Content above from EdD- Education Leadership: Articles.