Physician Assistant Studies Resources: Practice/Research
Created by Health Science Librarians
Systematic Review Resources
- CovidenceA systematic reviews production tool for title/abstract screening, full-text screening, data abstraction, and quality assessment designed by researchers familiar with the systematic review process in order to make conducting reviews more efficient.
Evidence Based Practice: Multidisciplinary Resources
- PICOPICO clarifies and focuses questions that arise during a patient assessment. It identifies and organizes the key aspects of a complex patient presentation to help you brainstorm keywords for your literature search, refine your search for the best results, and save time.
Databases and EBP Content Collections
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)AHRQ is the health services research arm of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, complementing the biomedical research mission of the National Institutes of Health. The Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers & Systems (CAHPS) program is a public-private initiative to develop standardized surveys of patients experiences with ambulatory and facility-level care. The surveys offer national benchmarks for quality measures that are of interest to researchers and individual hospitals.
- Cochrane LibraryLeading source for full-text systematic reviews in health care. Searches a collection of databases that includes the CDSR, CENTRAL, Clinical Answers, and selected reviews from Epistemonikos. RCTs are from Medline, Embase, ClinicalTrials.gov, the WHO ICTRP, CINAHL (since 2020) and more. Click on "Search Limits" or the Browse tab to select content from a specific database.
- The Campbell CollaborationHelps people make well-informed decisions by preparing, maintaining and disseminating systematic reviews in education, crime and justice, and social welfare.An international research network based on voluntary cooperation among researchers of a variety of backgrounds.
- ECRI Guidelines TrustECRI Institute, an independent, nonprofit patient safety organization, has launched the ECRI Guidelines Trust™, a portal to expertly vetted, evidence-based guideline briefs and scorecards.
ECRI Institute developed the new resource in response to urgent pleas from healthcare professionals after substantial federal funding cuts forced the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to shut down the National Guideline Clearinghouse™ (NGC). ECRI had developed and maintained the NGC website for 20 years.
- TRIP Database : the Search Engine for Evidence-Based MedicineOpen access clinical search engine designed to allow users to quickly and easily find and use high-quality research evidence to support their practice and/or care.
- What Works Clearinghouse: Publications and ReviewsRigorous and relevant evidence on which to ground education practice and policy from the Institute of Education Sciences' (IES), research arm of the US Department of Education.
- DynaMedDynaMed Plus is a clinical reference tool created by physicians for physicians and other health care professionals for use at the point-of-care. Content is written by a team of physicians and researchers who synthesize the evidence and provide objective analysis
EBP Tutorials and Tools
- Introduction to Evidence-Based PracticeThis tutorial is intended for any health care practitioner or student who needs a basic introduction to the principles of Evidence Based Medicine. Developed by Duke University Medical Center Library and the Health Sciences Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
- Evidence-Based Practice: Methods, Models, & Tools for Mental Health ProfessionalsDetailed guidance discuss how to understand, evaluate, and implement and implement evidence-based practice from psychologists and psychiatrists. By Stout, C.E. & R.A. Hayes. John Wiley & Sons. 2005
- Evidence-Based Medicine Toolkit (U Alberta)From the University of Alberta, this is a collection of tools for identifying, assessing and applying relevant evidence for better health care decision-making.
- JAMAevidenceProvides tools for students and clinicians to evaluate and interpret medical literature and better understand the principles of Evidence Based Practice/Medicine, including the books Users' Guides to Medical Literature, The Rational Clinical Examination , etc.
- CASP (Critical Appraisal Skills Program) Knowledge HubIncludes critical appraisal checklists for key study designs; glossary of key research terms; key links related to evidence based healthcare, statistics, and research; a bibliography of articles and research papers about CASP and other critical appraisal tools and approaches 1993-2012.
- CEBM/Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine, University of Oxford ResourcesScroll down resources page EBM guides and practice how-to's for researchers, clinicians, students and teachers.
- Introduction to Evidence-Based Practice Tutorial (UNC & Duke)From UNC and Duke University, this tutorial is intended for any health care practitioner or student who needs a basic introduction to the principles of Evidence-Based Medicine
- SUMSearch2SUMSearch 2 simultaneoulsy searches for studies(original studies and systematic reviews), and practice guidelines.
History of the Profession
- UNC PA History Exhibit (Health Sciences Library): History of the ProfessionAlthough this website, an outgrowth of the Spring 2016 Health Sciences Library exhibit, is still under development, the History of the Profession page has much information and a number of links.
Finding Health Data & Statistics
- Health Data & Statistics includes NC, US, global; finding articles, where to start, tutorials
- All Data & Statistics Guides includes finding data sets, finding health statistics, how to cite data, medical coding, research data, tests & instruments, and more
Resources for Residents
- Residents ResourcesIncludes guides for anesthesiology, medicine, OB/GYN, pediatrics, surgery, and more.
Patient and Client Resource Sources
North Carolina Government Resources
Researching Military Mental Health Topics
- Military & Government CollectionDesigned to offer current news pertaining to all branches of the military, this resource indexes periodicals, academic journals, and pamphlets relevant to military studies.
Note: Minimum browser requirements: Explorer 5.5, Firefox 1.0, Netscape 7.x, Safari 1.2x
- ProQuest Military DatabaseArticles from topics across all government and military branches, including international relations, political science, criminology, defense, aeronautics and space flight, communications, civil engineering, and more.
- PTSDpubsVia ProQuest: PTSDpubs database (formerly PILOTS) is a freely available, online database providing access to the worldwide literature on PTSD and other mental health consequences of exposure to traumatic events. It is produced by the National Center for PTSD at the US Department of Veterans Affairs.
- PTSDpubs (formerly PILOTS) via VA.gov National Center for PTSDVia VA.gov includes additional information about the database and an FAQ tab with information to aid in use. PTSDpubs database (formerly PILOTS) is a freely available, online database providing access to the worldwide literature on PTSD and other mental health consequences of exposure to traumatic events. It is produced by the National Center for PTSD at the US Department of Veterans Affairs. .
- Veterans and Military Health Resource Guide (Georgetown University Dahlgren Memorial Library)Lists military relevant terms to consider in searching common databases. Note that UNC provides access to PubMed Medline (not OVID Medline) and that you will need to connect to each database listed via the UNC Libraries website.
Defense Technical Information Center/DTIC
- Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC)The central resource for DoD- and government-funded scientific, technical, engineering and business related information for the DoD community.
- DTIC Products & Services Page• Products & Services page includes access to:
o DTIC Publicly Available Collections
o Access-Controlled Collections requiring DoD-issued CAC, PIV card, or ECA.
o DTIC Thesaurus
- A few search hints and examples for using the DTIC Thesaurus -
The Thesaurus provides a broad, multi-disciplinary subject-term vocabulary that aids in information search and retrieval. Subject terms, called Descriptors, are organized into hierarchies, where series of narrower terms are linked to broader terms.
o BT=broader term; NT=narrower term
o Hazing: BT=Violence
o Violence: NT=Hazing
o MILITARY FORCES (UNITED STATES)
UF ARMED FORCES (UNITED STATES)
BT MILITARY ORGANIZATIONS
NT AIR FORCE
NT ARMY
NT COAST GUARD
NT MARINE CORPS
NT NAVY
NT SPACE FORCE
NT SPECIAL OPERATIONS FORCES
NT UNIFIED COMBATANT COMMANDS
NT UNIT TYPE CODES
• Subject categories: Behavioral and Social Sciences (5): https://discover.dtic.mil/thesaurus/subject-categories/05behavioral/
- Peace, War, & Defense Databases (e-research by discipline from UNC University Libraries)Additional, potentially relevant databases depending upon your topic.
Some resources for government statistics on military participation, veterans, and drug use in the armed forces:
Browse or search the following for topic ideas:
A Few Relevant Journals Available via UNC University Libraries (remember that you can use our free InterLibrary Loan service for articles, books, and other materials that we do not own). In addition to your usual counseling, psychology, and behavioral health journal, consider these, depending upon your topic:
- Armed Forces & Society
- BMJ Military Health
- Disaster & Military Medicine
- Journal of Military Ethics
- Journal of Military & Strategic Studies
- Journal of Military & Veterans Health (Australia)
- Journal of Military Social Work and Behavioral Health Services [formerly known as Military Behavioral Health (2013 - 2023)]
- Journal of Political & Military Sociology
- Military Medicine
- Military Psychology
- Military Review
- Military Telemedicine On-Line Today, 'Research, Practice, and Opportunities'., Proceedings of the National Forum
Selected additional, specialized journals with content related to psychological trauma to consider, depending upon your topic:
- European Journal of Trauma & Dissociation (French & English)
- Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation
- Journal of Loss & Trauma
- Psychological Trauma
- Trauma (London, England)
- Trauma Care (Basel)
- Trauma, Violence, & Abuse
Additional Resources
- Naval War College Psychological Health Awareness ResourcesThis Guide provides links to sources related to problems faced by returning troops, research being done to understand/treat war-related psychological issues, and efforts being made for veterans so they can cope with stress and adapting to civilian life. Note: Links to licensed resources (not open access) should be searched on the UNC Libraries website and, if not available, ordered via InterLibrary Loan.