Finding the Evidence

1
Finding the Evidence

• Shrewsbury and Telford Health Libraries

2
Formulating a search strategy

• Clinical scenario
• A patient is suffering from irritable bowel
  syndrome. She has read somewhere that
  hypnotherapy might be of some relief to her
  symptoms and asks for your advice.

3
PICO Framework

• P Patient, population or problem
• I Intervention (treatment), prognostic factor
  or exposure
• C Comparison (if any)
• O Outcome(s) of interest (if any)
• The PICO Framework will help you to work out
• how to structure your search

4
PICO Example

• P irritable bowel syndrome
• I hypnotherapy
• C none
• O effectiveness of treatment
• For a therapeutic intervention, searching for
  specific outcome is often not necessary

5
Synonyms

• Dont forget to consider synonyms
• Irritable bowel syndrome / IBS
• Hypnotherapy / Hypnosis / Hypnotism
• Flu / influenza
• Albuterol / salbutamol / ventolin

6
Resources

• NHS Evidence
• TRIP Database
• NHS healthcare databases

7
NHS Evidence

• Provided by NICE
• Google-style search feature
• Searches a wide range of evidence-based
  information resources
• Most items in full-text
• No Athens account required

8
What does it cover?

• Covers all areas of health and social care and
  includes
• Systematic reviews
• Health Technology Assessments
• Guidelines (mainly UK)
• Drug information
• Statistics
• Selected primary research

9
Demonstration

• www.evidence.nhs.uk

10
TRIP Database

• Turning Research into Practice
• Google-style search feature
• Searches a wide range of evidence-based
  information resources
• Most items in full-text
• No Athens account required
• www.tripdatabase.com

11
TRIP Database

• Searches more resources than NHS Evidence
  currently does, including
• Evidence synopses (CATs)
• Clinical answers
• E-textbooks
• Non-UK guidelines

12
Demonstration

• www.tripdatabase.com

13
NHS Healthcare Databases

• MEDLINE
• EMBASE
• Allied Complimentary Medicine (AMED)
• HMIC
• Health Business Elite
• CINAHL
• PsycINFO
• British Nursing Index

14
Demonstration

• Simple search demonstration
• www.library.nhs.uk
• How effective is methotrexate at treating ectopic
  pregnancy?

15
Getting full text articles

• To check whether the NHS has access, visit NHS My
  Journals at http//journals.library.nhs.uk

16
Literature Searching Services

• We offer a literature searching service, so if
  you are
• Finding too much or too little information
• Have a complex enquiry
• Feel free to request one
• www.sath.nhs.uk/library/services/search.asp

17
Team Knowledge Update

• View the latest articles and news from a range of
  sources in one place
• Sign up for emails if preferred
• www.sath.nhs.uk/library/news.asp

18
And finally.

• Please fill out the evaluation form
• Book for more training if required
• Visit the library website at
• www.sath.nhs.uk/library
• Thank you for attending!