Produced by Elsevier, Emcare is one of two key databases available at UniSA for locating nursing and allied health literature. A major advantage of Emcare is that it is available via the powerful Ovid interface, which is specifically designed for sophisticated searching such as that undertaken for systematic reviews. This means Emcare can be searched simultaneously with other major health databases, such as MEDLINE, Embase, and PsycInfo. Emcare records include Emtree thesaurus terms for improved discovery. Records are available for publications from 1995 for core nursing journals as well as publications in a range of areas including emergency services, pain medicine, public health, medical and laboratory technology, and nutrition.

Session overview:

• Discover why and when to use Emcare (Ovid)
• Practice basic searching
• Find relevant publications fast using Emcare refinement options such as age group terms, clinical queries retrieving methodologically sound studies, and pre-made search strategies for specific topics (e.g. pregnancy)
• Learn key features of the contemporary Ovid platform
• Learn about advanced search options, such as:
  • how to use the Emtree life science thesaurus (simplified in Emcare)
  • combining and editing searches using the search history
• The last part of the session will briefly outline how to use Emcare for systematic searching as part of a reportable, comprehensive search strategy

Databases in Focus

The UniSA Library Databases in Focus series showcases features of databases available to UniSA students and staff. These concise one-hour workshops provide the opportunity to explore what these powerful literature search tools can offer for study, teaching, and research.