Medical databases give you the power to conduct very specific or complex searches.
Use special techniques to combine search words in search boxes to effectively find the info you need:
Example scenario: What are some occupational therapy treatments or issues for aged patients after a stroke?
See below for an example search construction based on that scenario:
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To start your research, type into the database the search word(s) that describe your topic. Example: occupational therapy
Google and Google Scholar also give you the power to construct complex searches.
Use a similar same technique as constructing a search in a medical database:
(click on image to enlarge)
Note – Google generally finds variants of words by default.
Choose one scenario below and practice constructing a search from that scenario:
Use the PICOT acronym to help you create a research question:
Who is your patient? Identify a disease, health status, age, race, geographic region, sex, or a specific characteristic important to your question.
What do you plan to do for the patient? Identify a specific test, therapy, medication or management strategy.
What is the alternative to your plan? Examples may include: no treatment or a different type of treatment.
What outcome do you seek? Identify possible outcomes/results of the intervention such as less symptoms, no symptoms, or better quality of life...etc.
What is the time frame? What study types will most likely have the information you seek?
Search article databases using some of the concepts/words you generated from the PICO acronym: