Physical Therapy Resources: Databases

This guide was developed by the Health Sciences Library in collaboration with the Division of Physical Therapy.

Created by Health Science Librarians

Ask HSL

Welcome

Physical Therapy Student Welcome Resources (8-13-23)
Welcome! Download this 1-page brochure for links to the most critical resources for Physical Therapy students new to UNC.
HMSC/Human Movement Science PhD Student Resources (9/5/23)
Welcome! Download this 1-page brochure for links to the most critical resources for HMSC PhD students.
OT-PT_Resident & Fellow Resource Brochure 9-5-23
Welcome. Download this 1-page brochure for links to the most critical resources for Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy Residents and Fellows new to UNC.

Student Welcome & Orientation Videos
Welcome & Orientation Resources: A set of 5 short videos to help you use the Health Sciences Library
• Intro to HSL
• Catalog Searching
• Using Library Databases
• Article Searching (including how to use Interlibrary Loan - free to you - to get articles we do not own)
• Advanced Searching Tips

Core Databases for Physical Therapy Students

Access Collection, including AccessPhysiotherapy (McGraw-Hill Medical)
E-books, multimedia, cases, NPTE prep, and more. See collection on E-books tab.
Includes AccessPhysiotherapy and AccessPhysiotherapy Clinical: FA Davis PT Collection

CINAHL Plus with Full Text
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
Coverage: 1982-present
Cochrane Library
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.

Embase

Google Scholar
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
PEDro: Physiotherapy Evidence Database
Database of over 33,000 randomised trials, systematic reviews and clinical practice guidelines in physiotherapy and physical therapy from the Centre for Evidence-Based Physiotherapy.
Access: No restrictions.

Database Tips - Subject Specific
Subject Specific tab on Database Tips Guide has help for PEDro and PEDro DiTA.
PEDro Partnership's DiTA (Diagnostic Test Accuracy) Database
Indexes primary studies and systematic reviews of diagnostic test accuracy studies related to physiotherapy practice.
more...less...
DiTA is produced by the PEDro Partnership (Institute for Musculoskeletal Health, School of Public Health at The University of Sydney) and is hosted by Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA).

ProQuest Nursing & Allied Health Database
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users. North Carolina residents with a borrower's card may access from off campus by visiting NCLive directly. Contact the Davis Library Service Desk for the NCLive password (instructions).
PubMed
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
Coverage: 1957-present

PubMed Clinical Queries
PubMed Clinical Queries provides specialized searches for clinicians, including Clinical Study Categories and Systematic Reviews.
For comprehensive searches, use PubMed directly.
PubMed MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) Database
MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) is the National Library of Medicine (NLM) controlled vocabulary thesaurus used for indexing articles for PubMed.

Scopus
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
SPORTDiscus with Full Text
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
Coverage: 1985 to present for full text; other indexing back to 1800

Anatomy & Physiology Databases

e-Anatomy
This anatomy reference & teaching tool displays labeled body parts using multiple imaging modalities (MRI, CT) in a sequential, slice by slice manner. Clinical cases are available.
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
Anatomy.tv
General & regional anatomical modules including 3D views, clinical text, dissection slides and videos, MRI correlations, biomechanics animations, and self-quizzes; includes focii on Head & Neck, Dental, Spine, Hand & Shoulder, Knee, Abdomen & Thorax, Clinical & Surgical Anatomy, Sports Anatomy, Anatomy Trains for massage, Pelvic Floor, Chiropractic & Acupuncture, etc.

Note: Limited to 20 simultaneous users at a time.
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.

Psychology and Education-related Resources

PsycARTICLES
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
Coverage: 1980s - Present
PsycInfo
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
Coverage: 1887 - Present
Education Full Text
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
Coverage: Indexing from 1983; Full Text from 1996
ERIC
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
Coverage: 1966-present

Additional Rehabilitation-Oriented Databases

International Rehabilitation Research Collection (formerly CIRRIE) from NARIC
CIRRIE: Center for International Rehabilitation Research Information & Exchange (CIRRIE).
Legacy site formerly housed at the U. of Buffalo Dept. of Rehabilitation Science:
• The CIRRIE Database of International Rehabilitation Research has been transferred to the National Rehabilitation Information Center (NARIC) and can be accessed at the Rehabdata by NARIC page.
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.

NARIC (National Rehabilitation Information Center) Knowledgebase
The NARIC Knowledgebase contains more than 3,000 resources ranging from organizations and agencies to periodicals and Web resources.

REHABDATA from NARIC
One of the most comprehensive libraries in the country on disability and rehabilitation information. All documents in the library are cataloged in the REHABDATA literature database, spanning 50 years of disability and rehabilitation research. Includes international research. Features:
(1) reports, studies, and papers submitted by projects funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR)
(2) articles published in rehabilitation-related periodicals, including over 115,000 abstracts for
Center for International Rehabilitation Research Information and Exchange (CIRRIE).
Access: No restrictions.
Rehabilitation Therapy in Video
Streaming video from world-renowned occupational, physical, speech, respiratory, and vision therapists on the physical treatment of patients with congenital disorders, chronic health issues, traumatic injuries.
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.

Additional Medical & Interdisciplinary Resources

Academic Search Premier
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.
Coverage: Indexing, 1975-present; Full-text, 1975-present
Facts & Comparisons e-Answers
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.

DynaMed
Access: Off Campus Access is available for: UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, and staff; UNC Hospitals employees; UNC-Chapel Hill affiliated AHEC users.

Why use multiple databases?

Different databases focus on different areas of the literature, particularly so in physical therapy. Two recent studies point to the need to use multiple databases for, "comprehensive coverage of the physical therapy discipline. "(Fell, et al., p. 202)

Michaleff, ZA, et al. CENTRAL, PEDro, PubMed, and EMBASE are the Most Comprehensive Databases Indexing Randomized Controlled Trials of Physical Therapy Interventions. Physical Therapy, 91 (2), February, 2011, pp. 190-197
Fell, DW, et al. Mapping the Core Journals of the Physical Therapy Literature. J Med Libr Assoc, 99 (3), July, 2011, pp. 202-207

Other Useful guides

All databases by subject (University Libraries)
Allied Health Sciences Scholarships, Fellowships, Grants, & Awards
Anatomy Resources
Evidence-based Physical Therapy
Exercise & Sport Science: Library Resources for Research
Exercise & Sport Science e-Resources (Davis)
Geriatric Practice
Global Health The Global Health guide provides resources and services to support the global health research of UNC-Chapel Hill faculty and students working on campus and in the field. The guide also addresses the research needs of non-UNC-Chapel Hill users with links to free or low-cost resources.
Health Literacy & Patient Education
Psychology & Neurosciences Resources (Davis)
Test Instruments and Measures (HSL)
Tests and Measures (Davis)

Citing: AMA Manual of Style, 10th edition

AMA Style Guide (HSL)

AMA Manual of Style, 10th ed.
Call Number: WZ 345 B244m 2007
ISBN: 9780195176339

Learn How to Use Library Databases

Database Tips Guide
Learn how to search effectively for citations and links to the full text of articles using library databases such as PubMed.

Find @ UNC

Click on the button in database results to:

Go directly to most online articles
Export article citations to Endnote or to formats for other reference managers
Use Google Scholar or the Google Scholar Button browser add-in to find free full text.
Search the UNC-CH Library Catalog to find the print journal
Send an Interlibrary Loan (ILL) request if the journal is not owned by UNC-CH

A to Z Databases

All campus databases

browse by title
browse by subject
search by database name

Aids for Organizing Your Search

Use this guide to help visualize and plan your search:

From Purdue Libraries Creating a Search Strategy Guide: Constructing a Search Statement Worksheet (.pdf download).

Use this log to keep your search organized and to document your search strategy for reporting:

Barbara Renner's Database Search Log Sheet

Disability Search Tips and Resources - Nancy Schaefer (2015)

Nancy Schaefer (2015) Disability Search Tips and Resources, Medical Reference Services Quarterly, 34:1, 60-74, DOI: 10.1080/02763869.2015.986792

For UNC Chapel Hill Users FIND@UNC link for Full Text.

Implicit Bias Resources Guide

Implicit Bias Resources Guide

"Implicit biases are discriminatory biases based on implicit attitudes or implicit stereotypes. Implicit biases are especially intriguing, and also especially problematic, because they can produce behavior that diverges from a person's avowed or endorsed beliefs or principles."

Greenwald, Anthony G., and Linda Hamilton Krieger. "Implicit Bias: Scientific Foundations." California Law Review 94, no. 4 (2006): 945-67. doi:10.2307/20439056.