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Health Sciences Research : Choose Your Search Interface
Choose Your Search Interface: sub-module 3 of 4 of prepare to search
Once you know what type of material you need, you can determine what interface to use to find this material. This module explains three types of search interfaces (databases, discovery layers, and search engines) and helps you determine which database(s) or tool to use to find the type of material you need.
Tips
- A search interface is where you perform your search.
It may be a database, a discovery layer, or a search engine like Google. - Choose a search interface based on the type of resource you want.
A specific database is the best place to look for some types of resources, such as scholarly articles, whereas a discovery layer or Google Scholar are preferable for other types of resources. - Databases have more robust search options for finding articles.
You can find journal articles in a discovery layer, but going to a specific database will give you more powerful search options.
It may be a database, a discovery layer, or a search engine like Google.
A specific database is the best place to look for some types of resources, such as scholarly articles, whereas a discovery layer or Google Scholar are preferable for other types of resources.
You can find journal articles in a discovery layer, but going to a specific database will give you more powerful search options.Find Your College Library Database List
Open your college library’s list of databases. Where possible, the links below will bring you to the databases for health sciences.
Where to Search
When you search for material, there are three main ways that you can search: in a database, through a discovery layer, or through a search engine. Read more about these three choices below.
Databases are searchable collections of resources on a variety of subjects. Databases are subscription-based; college libraries pay the subscription fees so that you, as a student, can access the information. Watch this video and read the information below to find out more about library databases.
Libraries buy database subscriptions from vendors, like EBSCO, ProQuest, Gale, and Ovid, to name a few. You can think of vendors like cable company providers: Bells, Rogers, Shaw - and their content packages. We sometimes use the term platform when referring to a vendor’s search interface.
You can find the following types of material in a database:
- newspaper articles
- journal articles
- encyclopedia articles
- streaming media
- scholarly, or peer-reviewed academic articles
A discovery layer is a multidisciplinary search tool. Discovery layers are like search engines (think: Google) for library content. Watch this video and read the information below to find out more about discovery layers.
Using your library’s discovery layer, you will be able to find the following types of material:
- articles in databases
- e-content (ebooks, audiobooks, streaming media)
- physical library resources (e.g. books, DVDs, magazines)
Note on magazine articles: a discovery layer is usually the best place to search for articles from trade magazines and popular magazines. Although these may also be available in specific databases, some databases are limited to scholarly journal articles.
Differences Between Discovery Layers and Databases
There are some differences to searching with a discovery layer instead of in a database:
- Discovery layers cover a broad range of subjects, so your search results will likely include materials not related to the health sciences, as opposed to health science databases, which will have only health sciences results.
- Discovery layers have a lot of search tools and filters, but not as many health sciences-specific advanced search options as databases like PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane, and other health sciences databases that may be available through your library.
If you are looking for physical library resources such as books, or e-content such as ebooks and streaming videos, the discovery layer is an excellent tool. If you are looking for journal articles, you can always start with the discovery layer, but you will likely need to move to a database to use the more powerful search interface.
A search engine, such as Google (or Google Scholar), is an interface for searching the web. You probably use search engines in your everyday life. Although Google should not be your only tool for finding information for your course assignments, it is a good choice for some types of materials.
Search engines are a good place to search for the following types of information:
- Grey literature, including standards and guidelines from the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) and Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO)
- Scholarly articles (Google Scholar)
What Search Interface to Choose
Introduction
Choosing a search interface will depend on your topic and the type of material you’re looking for. Explore the tabs to see some of the most common databases and other search interfaces that you may have access to through your college library or that are available on the web. There are many excellent databases not listed here, so please consult your institution’s library for more options. The search interfaces are categorized by the following types of material you can find in them:
- Journal articles, systematic reviews, scoping reviews, narrative reviews
- Drug information
- Grey literature
- Books, eBooks, streaming media
Journal articles, systematic reviews, scoping reviews, narrative reviews
Below are some of the most common databases that are recommended for finding journal articles, systematic reviews, scoping reviews, and narrative reviews.
PubMed is a very large database, containing more than 32 million citations and abstracts, all focused on the health sciences. It is also a free database, meaning that even when you are no longer a student, you will still be able to access it. PubMed contains many open access articles, which anyone can access for free, in addition to journals your library may provide access to. PubMed is an excellent source for all health-related topics; however, if you find your search returns too many results not directly relevant to Nursing, you may want to try a more specialized database, such as CINAHL.
- How to access Visit the PubMed website - open link in a new tab. Your college library website may also link directly to PubMed - open link in a new tab. Your library may provide a special link to PubMed that will provide full-text access to articles from journals for which your institution has a subscription.
- Best for Finding as many health sciences articles as possible
The Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), is a large database that focuses on topics related to Nursing and Allied Health. It provides access to hundreds of journals, many of which are peer-reviewed. A search in CINAHL will typically return fewer results than a similar search in PubMed, but the results will likely be more relevant; although there is a great deal of overlap, CINAHL contains some material not in PubMed.
- How to access View your library’s list of digital resources to access CINAHL if available.
- Best for Finding articles that are specific to nursing and allied health
The Cochrane Library is an excellent source for systematic reviews on all health sciences topics. Please note that Cochrane contains other types of materials as well, including trials; if you are looking for systematic reviews, you should focus on the results labelled Cochrane Reviews. A search in Cochrane will almost always return fewer results than the same search in PubMed or CINAHL, but if you are looking for systematic reviews, Cochrane is the best place to search.
- How to access View your library’s list of digital resources to access Cochrane if available.
If you don’t see Cochrane on your library’s list of databases, you may have access via EBM Reviews or through Ovid. For information on if and how Cochrane Library is available at your college, ask your librarian. - Best for Finding systematic reviews
Google Scholar is another information source for scholarly materials, especially journal articles. If you want to conduct a broad search that covers various subject areas, Google Scholar may be a good choice; however, it has significant limitations. First of all, it covers a broad range of subjects, so your search results will likely include materials not related to the health sciences. Second, it does not have as many advanced search options as databases like PubMed, CINAHL, and Cochrane, so you may not be able to focus your search as well (this is particularly challenging when you consider that a Google Scholar search may return millions of results).
- How to access Visit scholar.google.com - open link in a new tab
- Best for Finding as many articles as possible, across a range of subject areas
Your library may provide access to other useful health sciences databases that you can access for your search. Explore your college library’s list of databases, filtered to show only health sciences databases. Check the box with the list of health sciences databases at your library.
Drug Information
You can typically find the most detailed drug information in a specialized database. Your institution’s library may provide access to additional drug information databases beyond the ones listed here, so please consult your librarian. Here are two of the most commonly used databases for drug information.
Drugs, Herbs and Supplements from MedlinePlus
- This freely accessible database is published by the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
- How to access: Visit Drugs, Herbs and Supplements from MedlinePlus. - open in a new tab
CPS
- This database provides Canadian drug and therapeutic information, including monographs for drugs, vaccines, natural health products and medical devices.
- How to access: View your library’s list of digital resources to access CPS if available. This database was previously known as eCPS, RXTX, and RXTX3, so it may appear under those names.
Grey literature
Grey literature is typically not included in library databases or discovery layers, so you will have to search the web using a search engine such as Google. Here are some tips for finding grey literature:
- If you are looking for content from Canadian websites, add “site:.ca” at the end of your search to limit to only information from sites with a URL ending in .ca.
- Since grey literature is often posted in PDF form, add “filetype:.pdf” at the end of your search to limit to only information from PDF documents.
If you are looking for grey literature published by a particular organization, you may want to go directly to their website. For example, you could go straight to the Canadian Institute for Health Information’s (CIHI) Access Data and Reports page. - opens in a new tab
Keep in mind that grey literature is not peer-reviewed, nor is it considered a “scholarly” source. If your professor asks you to find six peer-reviewed articles for your literature review, grey literature would not count towards the six articles; however, high-quality grey literature would usually be acceptable to include as additional sources. If you’re not sure, check with your professor.
Standards and Guidelines from CNO, RNAO, etc.
Documents such as Practice Standards and Practice Guidelines from regulatory bodies such as CNO and RNAO are considered grey literature. These documents have been written by experts in the field, and they are considered an essential form of evidence. They are freely available on the organization’s website. Here are some examples:
Books, eBooks, streaming media
- How to access: Your library’s discovery layer is the best source for these materials. Find your library from the list of college library websites.
Match the Search Interface
Attribution
This page was created by College Libraries Ontario and is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA Opens in a new window . It was created using information from Search Library Resources Opens in a new window by The Learning Portal, licensed under CC BY-NC Opens in a new window .