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Nursing

healthcareNursing

Nursing is a dynamic field that encompasses a wide range of responsibilities, including patient assessment, care planning, health education, and advocacy. Topics within the field of nursing include clinical practice, nursing ethics, patient safety, public health, and specialized areas such as pediatric, geriatric, and psychiatric nursing.

Start Your Research

Tools and resources

 

Where you start your research depends on what you need. Use these options to help you find your jumping off point.

Find evidence-based practice information.

Evidence-based practice is a systematic approach to clinical decision-making that integrates the best available research evidence, clinical expertise, and patient values and preferences.

Find nursing education videos.

Use databases to access high-quality, authoritative videos that enhance your understanding of nursing concepts and develop your practical skills.

 

Find a clinical decision support tool.

UpToDate is a clinical decision support tool maintained by the medical community and regularly used by health professionals. (Note that UpToDate is a patient care resource, not a database for peer-reviewed articles.)

Find peer-reviewed articles.

Peer-reviewed articles provide high-quality research that has been reviewed by experts in the field before publication, making them indispensable for evidence-based practice research.

Boost Your Research

Help and guidance

 

Need a hand? We've got you covered with easy-to-follow videos and research support from our team of librarians.

Library Videos

Ready to tackle your assignment? Our videos will guide you through researching different topics, so you're never stuck wondering where to start.

How Do I Guides

Need help figuring out how to do something in the library? Our How Do I guides walk you through how to conduct your research to find precisely what you need.

Ask Us!

Do you have a question, or are you stuck with your research? We've got your back. Just drop your question in our form, and we'll get back to you by email soon.

Elevate Your Research

Library hacks

 

If you're having trouble finding what you need, here are some tips to help you tweak your research strategies.

  • Do your background research. Before deciding on a topic, thoroughly search the research literature in library databases to ensure there is sufficient information to work with. A lack of information on your topic will make it challenging to write an essay or literature review. If you need help creating keyword strings to use in databases, use Ask Us or our How Do I  guides for more help.
  • Check your terminology. Not all organizations or researchers use the same words for the same diagnosis or procedure. As you begin searching databases, note down variations in terminology to add to your search. For example, when researching postpartum bleeding, consider adding alternate terms like lochia and postnatal bleeding.
  • Take advantage of subject headings. Some databases, such as CINAHL and Medline, use specialized headings to make your searches more effective. When using CINAHL or Medline, use Advanced Search and select "CINAHL headings" or "MeSH headings" underneath the search boxes. Type your term (e.g., hip replacement) and search. The database will suggest the best subject heading to add to your search, such as "Arthroplasty, Replacement, Hip." See this video for more guidance on using CINAHL and Medline subject headings.