CINAHL Plus with Full Text (EBSCO): Basic Searching

Searching CINAHL will be much easier if you have established your research question beforehand. Once you have determined your question, do the following:

1. Identify the keywords that represent the main concepts of your research question. Here are some types of keywords that you may want to include:

• Diseases or problems being addressed
• Diagnostic or therapeutic interventions being considered
• Outcomes that should happen

2. Identify other ways to state your keywords. For example, "high blood pressure" can also be referred to as "hypertension."

When to use the basic search:

• You aren't sure what information is available
• You aren't sure how you would like to focus your general topic