Searching CINAHL with Full Text

(EBSCO) using CINAHL Headings

for topics relating to Paramedic
Practice
About this guide
This guide is for you if you are already familiar with keyword searching and want to
take your search skills to the next level using more of the features of provided by
CINAHL with Full Text from EBSCO. Find CINAHL with Full Text on the NWAS Library
& Information Service webpage.

Before you read on ...

It helps to know a bit about how databases are put together. Here are a few
definitions:
Databases - comprise records of individual journal articles and sometimes
conference papers. CINAHL has just over 1 million records.
Record - each record comprises a number of fields which contain information
relating one journal article or conference paper.
Field - each field contains an individual piece of information, for example
Title, Author, Journal Title and Abstract.

What is searched
When you login to CINAHL with Full Text you are offered, among other searches,
Basic Search and Advanced Search. The Basic Search in CINHAL searches a limited
number of fields known as Basic Fields, these fields are the Title, Abstract and
Subject Heading fields.

Basic Search

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Searching specific fields

You can search individual fields by specifying the field you want to search using
field name or tag, for example, searching for the word paramedic* in the Title
search for TI paramedic*

A complete list of field names/tags can be found in the CINAHL with Full Text
database Help.
Note that searching for a word(s) in one field will narrow your search, reducing the
number of records you find because you have excluded fields where the word(s)
might also appear. On the other hand using this technique can improve the precision
of your search. If you search for the word paramedic* in the Title (TI) of the journal
article you can be reasonably certain that the journal articles you find are about
paramedics.

Before you read on ...

There is another way of searching using what are called controlled vocabularies and
thesauri.
Controlled Vocabularies are collections of words from which human indexes choose
terms that describe the subject of any journal article/conference paper and add
them to each record. For example all the records for articles that are substantially
about Prehospital Care will have the term Prehospital Care applied to them. They
are controlled because individual terms are carefully chosen, defined and managed.
Thesuari are published collections of controlled vocabulary terms which direct you
to related terms which may be broader, narrower or similar (synonyms) to terms you
may be interested in. Terms are in a hierarchy with the broadest terms at the top
and the most specific terms lower down. Transportation of Patients would be higher
than the more specific term Ambulances or Air Ambulances. Thesauri published
online are searchable, which enables you to find the most appropriate or useful term
for your search.
For CINAHL the thesaurus is known as CINAHL Headings. This is how it will be
referred to in the rest of this guide.

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CINAHL Headings
The CINAHL Headings are available to search online, under the CINAHL Headings tab.

There is no CINAHL Heading for paramedic, the preferred term which includes
paramedics is Emergency Medical Technicians. Other useful CINAHL Headings are
included here together with their Scope Note (defines how the term is used in a
database), which describes how each term is used in CINAHL. Ambulances is the
most specific term with 1250 articles retrieved, Emergency Services the broadest
term with 11300 articles retrieved.
CINAHL Subject
Heading
Ambulances
Emergency Medical
Technicians

Prehospital Care

Scope Note
No Scope Note
Paramedical personnel trained to provide
basic emergency care and life support under
the supervision of physicians and/or nurses.
These services may be carried out at the site
of the emergency, in the ambulance, or in a
health care institution. May use /education
for staff development or further education;
otherwise, prefer pre-coordinated heading
EDUCATION, EMERGENCY MEDICAL
SERVICES.
Emergency care provided prior to hospital
arrival. Providers may include paramedics,
EMTs, emergency nurses, aeromedical
personnel, etc.

Hits CINAHL
Heading (Jan 2012)
1250
4000

5650

Emergency Medical
Services

Do not use/education: prefer precoordinated

heading EDUCATION, EMERGENCY MEDICAL
SERVICES. For further education or staff
development of emergency medical technicians
or paramedics use EMERGENCY MEDICAL
TECHNICIANS/education.

10700

Emergency Services

A facility that provides emergency care,

either the emergency room of a hospital or a
freestanding emergicenter.

11300

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Using CINAHL Headings

The value of using CINAHL Subject Headings can be illustrated by comparing the
number of relevant articles retrieved with the term paramedic* and the relevant
CINAHL Subject Heading, Emergency Medical Technicians.

There are about 1800 articles retrieved by the term paramedic* searched in
Basic Fields/Basic Search.

c4000 articles are retrieved by the CINAHL Heading Emergency Medical

Technicians. Of these 4000 about 1000 contain the word paramedic*.

Searching just of the term paramedic* misses 75% of the potentially relevant
articles. Using the thesaural term Emergency Medical Technicians finds more
of the relevant articles whether they contain the term paramedic* or not.

Building a comprehensive set of records that includes all articles in CINAHL on

emergency and prehospital care could include all these CINAHL Headings.

Ambulances
Emergency Medical Technicians
Prehospital Care
Emergency Medical Services
Emergency Services

How to build Subject Headings into your search

To include Subject Headings into your search click on CINAHL Headings

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Type in the CINAHL Heading you know, or the keywords for the topic you are
searching for e.g. paramedic*

Choose the CINAHL Heading you want (click in the check box) and Search Database
for it as a Major Concept.
Articles containing the CINAHL Headings are displayed on the results page.

Searches can be combined with OR or AND to enable you to build searches using
CINAHL Headings and keywords you have chosen.
Matt Holland
September 2013
Contact: Matt.Holland@nwas.nhs.uk

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