Conducting a 10-Minute Search for Evidence to Aid in Clinical Decision-Making

Authors

Mark MacEachern MLIS, Taubman Health Sciences Library at the University of Michigan, and the Medical Library Association Research Training InstituteFollow

Abstract

This article is a continuation of the Journal’s series on implementing EBD process into clinical practice. The abundance of scientific literature can make it difficult to find the best evidence to answer a clinical question. This article presents strategies for conducting a 10-minute search for the best evidence, including:

• Developing a PICO question to focus the search.
• Using free search engines such as PubMed, Google Scholar, TRIP, PubMed Clinical Queries, Medline-Plus.gov, Epistemonikos, and other online resources such as published ADA Clinical Practice Guidelines.
• Using keywords with search properties, such as Boolean Operators and filters, to discover specific types of articles, such as systematic reviews and randomized control studies.
• Assessing the quality of the evidence using established criteria

The article provides examples to demonstrate how these strategies can be used to conduct a 10-minute search for the best evidence.

Recommended Citation

MacEachern, Mark MLIS (2020) "Conducting a 10-Minute Search for Evidence to Aid in Clinical Decision-Making," The Journal of the Michigan Dental Association: Vol. 102: No. 3, Article 6.
Available at: https://commons.ada.org/journalmichigandentalassociation/vol102/iss3/6