A former DNAP student, who was working on their capstone, posed the following question, "How do I know if found everything?". I sent the student a list of suggestions:
1. Search multiple databases (e.g. PubMed, CINAHL Complete, Cochrane, Web of Science). I consider Google Scholar to be a supplementary source to search. There will be overlap between all of these databases, but they all search differently.
2. Create search strategies for each database searched. The search strategies may be slightly different in each database because each database searches differently and there may be different controlled vocabulary terms. Identify the major concepts and compile a list of search terms for each concept. As you read articles, you may come across slightly different terms or additional terms. You can keep modifying the search strategy. If you save the search strategy in each database, it is easy to modify the search strategy.
3. When searching Google Scholar, you will not be able to create a detailed search strategy. You can use advanced search, but it isn’t possible to create a complex search strategy.
4. Are there any systematic reviews or review articles related to the topic? These can be a good starting point. Review articles are great places to “harvest” additional terms.
5. For the articles that fit the criteria for the project, review the list of references in each article to identify other relevant research. (searching backwards in time)
6. For each article that fit the criteria for the project, use the Web of Science to see how many times the article has been cited. (searching forward in time)
7. PubMed has a “Similar articles” feature. You can look at related articles based on shared references or similar articles based on author or keywords.
8. Save the search strategy in each database and create a search alert. In PubMed, create a MyNCBI account; create an account in CINAHL Complete.