Evidence-Based Practice

Primary research, also known as primary literature or primary sources, refers to the original, first-hand reports of research studies and experiments conducted by researchers themselves. It presents new, previously unpublished data, findings, and conclusions directly from the source. Primary literature in medicine includes:

• Journal articles reporting original research studies, experiments, and clinical trials.These articles describe the research methods, data collection, analysis, results, and conclusions.
• Conference papers or proceedings presenting new, previously unpublished research findings.
• Dissertations and theses describing novel research projects conducted by graduate students.
• Technical reports detailing the methodologies, data, and outcomes of original research studies

A systematic review (secondary research) is a type of literature review that aims to comprehensively identify, appraise, and synthesize all the empirical evidence that meets pre-specified eligibility criteria to answer a specific research question.The systematic and rigorous approach of a systematic review distinguishes it from traditional narrative reviews, which may be more subjective and selective in their inclusion of studies.

• Explicit, systematic methods to search for, identify, and select relevant research studies from various sources (e.g., databases, grey literature) on a clearly defined topic or research question.
• Critical appraisal of the quality and risk of bias of the included studies using standardized criteria or tools.
• Synthesis of the findings from the included studies, often using statistical techniques (meta-analysis) to combine the results quantitatively.
• Pre-defined protocol that outlines the objectives, methods, and analysis plan to minimize bias and ensure transparency.
• Comprehensive, unbiased summary of the current evidence on a specific research question or topic.

Systematic reviews are generally ranked among the highest levels of evidence for informing evidence-based practice and decision-making.

Searching almost all of University Libraries' databases will give you a series of results that will allow you access to the full-text of the articles that you find. You can also print the articles or email them to yourself. 

Below is a link to all nursing-specific databases which can help you focus your search results. Your search will probably result in hundreds of articles, so remember that you will need to narrow your topic. Each database has its own method for doing this, so look carefully. 

PubMed provides indexing for all areas of medicine, including over 17 million citations from MEDLINE and other life science journals. Most of the content includes citations and abstracts, although there are several full-text articles as well.

Publisher: National Library of Medicine.

Coverage: 1950- present.

If you are citing an article and can't find the DOI from the database you downloaded it from, try the link below. Cross Ref is a free service that has a number of ways for you to locate a DOI.

Why should I use articles in researching health-care topics?

1. A large proportion of information in the health-care field is communicated via journal articles
2. On average, journal articles are published rather quickly (9-20 months) as opposed to books which often take years
3. Information is frequently reviewed by other experts (scholarly/peer-reviewed).

If you are citing an article and can't find the DOI from the database you downloaded it from, try the link below. Cross Ref is a free service that has a number of ways for you to locate a DOI.

• Cross Ref

  Here is a website that helps you figure out a DOI of an article.