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CINAHL is the primary index for nursing literature.  

    Searching    Better Searching   Viewing Results   Finding Full Text   Additional Help

Searching    top

The default screen is the Advanced Search screen.

1.  Type a word or phrase in one or more of the search boxes and click Search. 

2.  Combine two words or phrases by placing them in separate search boxes and combining with AND, OR, or NOT.

(More about Boolean operators)

Author, Title, or Journal Search
  • Use the pull down menus to the right of the search boxes to look for a known Author, Title or Journal Title.
  • When searching for an author, enter the last name and then first or first and middle initial
    • Example: Brown JT
    • If you are not sure whether or not the middle initial is used, replace it with *
      • Example: Brown, J*
  • An author, title, and journal search can be combined using AND to look for a specific article. 

Better Searching   top

There are a number of ways to optimize a search.

Use the CINAHL Subject Headings

It is very important to use official subject headings in CINAHL. Using the wrong terms will produce inferior results.   The CINAHL Headings Browser allows a searcher to use common terms to find official subject headings.

  • Click the button at the top of the page
  • Enter a term or phrase and click Browse

  • If you use an unofficial term, a CINAHL Heading will be suggested 

  • Click on the Heading to view broader and narrower concepts

  • You may also select subheadings 

  • If no subheading is desired, click Add.  If one or more subheadings is desired, check them and click Add.  
  • The search string will be placed in the search box. Click Search.

Click here for a video of this process (must have Windows Media Player or Real Player).

Refine the search
  • You may limit your results before or after performing a search by clicking the tab below the search boxes.
  • You may limit by:
    • Date of Publication: useful for weeding out old information
    • Source:  to search within a particular journal or book
    • Journal Subset:  All of the journals in CINAHL relate to nursing or allied health. You may select a particular aspect of the fields by selecting a subset such as Alternative Medicine, Consumer Health, or many others. To retrieve ONLY nursing journals, select Nursing or Core Nursing. 
    • Publication Type: Use this feature to search for specific types of articles, such as Clinical Trials, Case Studies, Practice Guidelines, etc.
    • Language:
    • Gender: To limit the article by male or female
    • Age Group: Choices ranging from Fetus to Aged 80 or Over
    • Special Interest: 30 choices including Chiropractice, Dental, Geriatric, etc
Search hyperlinked terms within records
  • View the Complete Record of a citation. 
  • Click on one of the hyperlinked terms in the record to reveal all records with the same term in the same field.
    • Fields with hyperlinks include Author, Source, Headings, and many more.

    *hint*  Many of the hyperlinked words are CINAHL Headings. An easy way to perform a quality search is to do a quick keyword search, find a relevant record, and then use the hyperlinked words to perform a more sophisticated search.  

Combine searches using Search History
  • Select the View Search History / Alerts tab from the middle of the search page.  
    • Previous searches are displayed with the search string used and the number of results. Results can be viewed by clicking the number of results.
  • To combine previous searches, select two or more lines and click Add. Then click Search. 
 

Viewing Results   top

  • Use the scroll bar to move through records.
    • If more than 10 records are available, use arrow at the bottom of the page to move to the next page.
  • Click Complete Record to view the abstract and additional  information.
  • Select records to Save, Print, or Email by clicking Add to foldernext to the record.
Save, print, or email results
  • After selecting  records, click  Items added to the folder may be printed, e-mailed or saved from the View Folder screen.
  • Select one of the following:
To return to results hit the browser back button. To start and new search, select the Advanced search tab.

Finding Full Text  top

DO NOT select Full text from the Refine Search screen. This will always result in no hits in this database.

  • Linkfinder: This utility searches other databases (such as Infotrac and Project Muse) to see if full text is available.  To use it, click LinkFinder.  Full text options will appear in a new window.
  • Voyager Catalog: The library may own print copies of the resource. If a Linkfinder search yields no full text results, click Voyager: check Walker Library holdings (ISSN) from within the Linkfinder box.  Voyager will automatically search for the periodical and tell you where it is located in the library.
  • Interlibrary Loan: If MTSU does not have a digital or print copy of the resource you need, you may borrow it from another library.  Select  ILLiadfrom the results list.  Follow directions to set up an account if you are a new user.  

Additional Help  top

Click Help at the top right corner of the screen for more assistance.  

Library Research Guide (ACY 12/03)
James E Walker Library
Middle Tennessee State University
Murfreesboro, TN 37132

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