Library Homepage: Conducting a Literature Review: Finding Systematic Reviews

What is a Systematic Review?

Systematic Reviews (SR) are highly structured explorations of literature on a narrowly defined question or perspective. Their goal is to provide measurable answers concerning treatment, policy or intervention in the clinical setting or at the public policy level

Key characteristics:

a clearly defined research question and protocol (research plan)
inclusion and exclusion criteria
a rigorous and systematic search of the literature
critical appraisal and bias assessment of all included studies
analysis and interpretation of results
an in-depth report

Systematic reviews are undertaken by a research team, not an individual. The team approach facilitates rapid reviewing and reduces bias.

Meta-analysis

Are a subset of systematic reviews, a statistical technique for combining the findings from quantitative studies to come up with new statistical conclusions.

Not all systematic reviews include meta-analysis, but all meta-analyses are found in systematic reviews.
Systematic Reviews with meta-analysis are statistically more robust than the analysis of a single study, as they look at more subjects, have excellent subject diversity and have more effects and results to consider
All included studies must be sufficiently similar for a meta-analysis to be valid.

American University of Beirut A Guide to Conducting Reviews: Meta-Analysis

Finding Systematic Reviews in the Library

The library provides access to many relevant systematic reviews from a range of publishers and organizations that will cost the American Sentinel student nothing more than their time and effort to access.

CINAHL with Full Text This link opens in a new window
Pull up all systematic reviews by searching on the topic of "systematic review" and limit to the field TI Title
Add in keywords or phrases in quotes with AND
Use limiters to narrow the results further with: Scholarly, Peer-review, Date, Publisher, Subject etc.
Indexes and provides access to the Detailed Abstracts for over 6000 reviews from the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (2000-Present).
Cochrane Library This link opens in a new window
The Cochrane Library is a collection of databases that contain different types of high-quality, independent evidence to inform healthcare decision-making.

Evidence Based Nursing
A Journal that surveys a wide range of international medical journals applying strict criteria for the quality and validity of the research. Practising clinicians assess the clinical relevance of the best studies.01/01/1998 to 1 year ago in ProQuest Central

OVID Nursing & Healthcare Journals This link opens in a new window
Pull up all systematic reviews by searching on the topic of “systematic review” and limit to the field Abstract or to the field Title
Add in topic keywords or phrases in quotes with AND - limiting to All Fields – broadening the topic if necessary eg. Burnout rather than “caregiver burnout”
Use limiters to narrow the results further with: Years, Journal, Publication Type
ProQuest Central This link opens in a new window
Pull up all systematic reviews by searching on the topic of "systematic review" and limit to the field Document Title TI
Add in keywords or phrases in quotes with AND
Use limiters to narrow the results further with: Scholarly, Peer-review, Date, Publisher, Subject etc.

Conducting a Literature Review

Systematic Reviews Outside the Library

Credible systematic reviews are also available through open access (free) providers of SRs, such as the Campbell Collaboration and The EPPI-Centre.

What is a Systematic Review?

Meta-analysis

Are a subset of systematic reviews, a statistical technique for combining the findings from quantitative studies to come up with new statistical conclusions.

Finding Systematic Reviews in the Library