Health Databases   Tags: cinahl, cochrane, health, health_databases, medline, nursing, ot, ovid, physiotherapy  

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You will need to use journal articles and other research  for the most specific and current information for your assignment. Search for journal articles using La Trobe Library Databases.

Before you begin your search, you will need to develop a clear search strategy. Follow the steps below to create a concept map to base your search on in your selected databases.

• Formulate a clear, focused research question.
  
  
• Deconstruct the question into concepts.
  
  
• Compile a list of Keywords for the concepts, including as many synonyms as necessary.
  
  
• Create a Concept Map, with as many columns as required. The PICO format can be used for clinical questions, if you have a more qualitative research question just think Concept 1, Concept 2 etc.
  
  
• The concept map helps with articulating your research question and with maintaining the logic of the search (where to use AND, where to use OR - the Boolean linking terms for your keywords)
  
  
• Consider the Levels of Evidence required for your question, this may form another column in your concept map representing the research design e.g. Systematic Review, RCT's etc.

A PICO map may help:

Watch the video below for more information about using PICO.

Find more videos in this series.