LibGuides: Database Search Tips: Additional Search Tools

Additional Search Tools

Search Strategies Concept Mapping Worksheet
Use this worksheet to help you conceptualize your search, and organize your subject headings and keywords.
Search Strategies Concept Mapping Worksheet WITH ACUPUNCTURE QUESTION EXAMPLE
Use this example PICO question to understand how to utilize the Search Strategies Concept Mapping Worksheet
Search Strategies Checklist
This checklist is helpful for those newer to database searching. It is to assist with conceptualizing the search and organizing both subject headings and keywords. It assists with keeping your search organized.
Search 101
This cheat sheet was developed by Michigan State Library and has the syntax commands, codes, and subject headings lists of Health Sciences databases. This cheat sheet helps you translate your research concepts into search strategies. This is for advanced level searching for systematic and scoping review searches.

Search Smart
There are dozens of academic databases, each offering unique coverages and features. To identify the ones most suitable for you, researchers can use the tool Search Smart to identify the databases you should use. This tool does NOT search databases.

Grossetta Nardini, H. K., & Wang, L. (2023). The Yale MeSH Analyzer. Retrieved from http://mesh.med.yale.edu/

Use the Link here to use the tool!

When would I use this tool?

If you are "working backwards." Working backwards is when you have a collection of articles without a literature search. You can use these seed articles and analyze them with the Yale MeSH tool to find the common MeSH headings and create a literature search based on those seed articles.

You are doing a systematic review and you have to ensure you use all relevant MeSH headings. Most researchers have seed or test articles that they know will need to be in their list of results and will be eligible for final analysis in the review. Use these articles to ensure you are using all relevant MeSH heaadings in your search strategy since the goal of a systematic or scoping review is to retrieve all relevant resources in possible existence.