SOM Literature Searching: Getting Started

Before starting your search, prepare the following:

• Refine your research question (view the Evidence Based Medicine tab for additional information)
• Identify which database you want to search
• Identify the major topics within your research question and make a list of key terms and synonyms for them
• Using the key terms you identified, create a search strategy using Boolean operators
• Identify limits/filters that you may want to apply (e.g. language, publication date, etc.)

• Capitalization does not matter.
• In most cases, keyword order does not matter. The exception to this is if you are creating a complex strategy that contains parentheses.
• You can use parentheses to build a search with a combination of Boolean Operators. The LibGuide from the Library at the University of Hawaii at Manoa provides a great explanation of using parentheses.
• Do not use conjunctions.
• Enclose keywords in quotation marks if you want them to be considered as a phrase.
• Use Boolean operators to create a relationship between your keywords
  • AND - Tells the database to find a reference that contains all of the terms
  • OR - Tells the database to find a reference that contains either of the terms
  • NOT - Tells the database to find a reference that does not contain a particular term(s)

Wendy Herman, MLIS, AHIP
Assistant Dean of Library Services, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell
Corporate Director of Libraries, Northwell Health