The most current research on any academic topic is usually found in journal articles.

Step 1

Use databases to find articles on a particular topic.

Databases relevant to nursing include:

CINAHL (1982- )
CINAHL is the database equivalent to the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, the major indexing resource for nursing literature covering the English language nursing journals as well as the primary journals for the allied health disciplines from 1982 to the present. 

Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (1956 - 1995)
The print version is shelved with the Indexes on the Main Level.

Medline (1966- )
Produced by the U.S. National Library of Medicine, this database provides indexing and abstracts for over 4,500 biomedical journals published in over 70 countries in the area of medicine and related disciplines such as nursing, veterinary medicine, and dentistry.

PubMed (1950’s - )
Coverage includes bibliographic information from MEDLINE, OLDMEDLINE, and in-process citations. See the US National Library of Medicine tutorial PubMed for Nurses.

PubMed Health 
Provides information for both consumers and health professionals on the prevention and treatment of disease, based on systematic reviews of clinical trials. The reviews were published or updated since 2003. Contents include: a glossary and consumer medical information, executive summaries, clinical guides and full text reviews.

Cochrane Library
Contains information on systematic reviews of research on the effectiveness of health care interventions/therapies. It includes the fulltext for both the completed reviews and the reviews in progress. Also contains a register of controlled trials with citations to journal articles about those trials.

Other databases of interest:

PsycINFO (p1887- )
Indexes journal articles, books, book chapters, dissertations, and technical reports in the area of psychology and related disciplines.

Academic Search Complete
Contains indexing and abstracts for over 12,500 journals, of which more than 7,300 are peer reviewed. Provides fulltext for over 8,500 journals in the areas of social sciences, humanities, general science, and education.

CBCA Business, Current Events, and Reference (1982- )
Indexes Canadian academic, general interest and industry journals, newspapers, and selected electronic sources. Includes selected fulltext from 1993 to the present.

ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) (1966- )
This major database for education indexes journal articles, ERIC documents, and other resources. Includes links to free fulltext ERIC documents from 1993 to the present.

SocINDEX
Indexes articles, books, conference proceedings, and theses in sociology and related disciplines. Examples of topics include: family and social welfare; health, medicine and law; substance abuse and addiction.

LexisNexis Academic
Full text of hundreds of world newspapers, wire services, tv new transcripts, business and medical magazines, and US and Canadian laws and court cases.

Step 2

Locate the specific articles.

To find the article, you need to determine if the Library has the journal containing the article.

Many of our databases contain either a link to the full text or  a link.

Use this Check link to:

• determine if the article is available fulltext indicated by a “Get Fulltext” link
• request the article through Interlibrary Loan if the article is not available in the Library

Print journals are shelved alphabetically by title on the Upper Level. Those in microfilm or microfiche format are located in Special Collections on the Main Level.

Please contact the Library’s Information Desk, 566-0696, for assistance.

Compiled by: Dawn Hooper, B.Sc., M.L.S.
Former Data & Research Services Librarian
Date Revised: 16-June-2017