Paul Ross
Librarian & Information Specialist, ARIIA
Aged care is complex, and it's essential to draw on a wide range of evidence to ensure the delivery of high-quality care. An evidence-based approach combines the best available research with professional expertise while considering consumer preferences and values to guide and deliver effective care. While we discussed other approaches in our previous blogs, this post explores bibliographic databases and how they can empower you to find trusted, evidence-based information. If the concept of finding evidence is new to you, try out our mini course on ‘What is evidence and how can I find it?’.
Bibliographic databases are digital collections that provide access to a wide range of literature, including books, journal articles, conference papers, and reports. While many databases require a subscription or are available through libraries and educational institutions, some allow free searching and provide links to either articles for a cost or open-access (free) content. This makes it easier for users to find and access relevant research, whether through subscription services or freely available sources. Several databases are available for evidence into ageing and provide the ability to set up reminders to your email of new content added in your field of interest. Databases also enable you to gather a wide amount of information related to your inquiry and can be limited by date to manage and screen the results.
Most databases allow you to search using free-text (keywords) or thesaurus terms (a specialised vocabulary unique to each database). Start by compiling a list of key terms related to your inquiry. You can do this by finding relevant articles online and extracting terms or by using an AI tool to generate potential keywords. From this list, you can build a basic search. Many databases provide help sections to guide you through this process (some require you to combine terms into ‘search strings’ or use them in specific ways).
Once you have your search results, you can screen them for relevance and refine your results using system tools to filter by language, date, country or context, or publication type. Most databases also allow you to download citation lists in various formats for easier management outside the database. Additionally, they should indicate whether the full text of an article is freely available or if access requires a fee.
Pro-tip: Systematic reviews can be a valuable source of keywords. These reviews, often available in open-access articles, typically include detailed appendices with the search terms and strategies. You can leverage these terms to build or refine your own searches in the same database.
Pro-tip: Standard searches can yield a lot of irrelevant information, which requires extensive reading. To streamline this, use pre-existing search filters developed by librarians and researchers. These filters are designed to gather the most relevant information on specific topics, saving you time and effort in constructing searches from scratch.
Pro-tip: Finding evidence efficiently depends on both time and expertise. That's why we've developed our aged care search collection to provide quick access to relevant information using the PubMed database and other online sources. This collection also includes guidance on how to create or adjust your own searches.
Searching databases doesn’t have to be overwhelming. They can give you access to valuable evidence-based information that isn’t always available through general online searches. By combining database searches with additional online research and links to key organisations, you can ensure a comprehensive review of all relevant sources to address your inquiry.
*The views and opinions expressed in Knowledge Blogs are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of ARIIA, Flinders University and/or the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care.