Evidence Based Healthcare Databases

BestBETS – BETs (Best Evidence Topics)  were developed in the Emergency Department of Manchester Royal Infirmary, UK, to provide rapid evidence-based answers to real-life clinical questions, using a systematic approach to reviewing the literature. BETs take into account the shortcomings of much current evidence, allowing physicians to make the best of what there is. Although BETs initially had an emergency medicine focus, there are a significant number of BETs covering cardiothoracics, nursing, primary care and paediatrics (Text from the BestBETS website)

TRIP –   A key resource, begun in 1997, pulling together EBM resources from across the web. The TRIP Database has evolved into a sophisticated tool for locating the highest possible evidence with which to inform clinical decisions (text from the Trip website).

ACP Journal Club – This Web site comprises the cumulative electronic contents of ACP Journal Club's bimonthly print edition since its inception in 1991, with recurrent weeding of out-of-date articles. The content is carefully selected from over 100 clinical journals through reliable application of explicit criteria for scientific merit, followed by assessment of relevance to medical practice by clinical specialists (text from the ACPJC Website)

Cochrane Collaboration – The Cochrane Collaboration publish the Cochrane Library of Databases. These are:

o      The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews: Evidence based systematic reviews prepared by the Cochrane Collaboration which are regularly updated and less biased than other reviews. There are empirical studies, which demonstrate that Cochrane reviews are more likely to be valid than reviews published in major medical journals. *These reviews are available in full text on the Cochrane Library, and are NOT published elsewhere*

o      Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effectiveness (Dare):Critical appraisals of systematic reviews published elsewhere. Prepared by reviewers at the NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination at the University of York, England.

o      The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials:The largest register of controlled trials in the world, and including hand-searched information from unpublished reports and conference proceedings as well as records from MEDLINE, EMBASE and other bibliographic databases.

o      The Cochrane Database of Methodology Reviews: Full Text systematic reviews of methodological studies. Each review covers a specific well designed area of methodology.

o      HTA: Produced by the NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination, gives information on the Health Technology  Assessments (these cover prevention, rehabilitation, vaccines, pharmaceuticals & devices, medical & surgical procedures, health systems

o      NHS EED: Structured abstracts of articles describing economic evaluations of health care interventions

PEDro– The Physiotherapy Evidence Database. It has been developed to give rapid access to bibliographic details and abstracts of randomised controlled trials, systematic reviews and evidence-based clinical practice guidelines in physiotherapy. Most trials on the database have been rated for quality to help you quickly discriminate between trials which are likely to be valid and interpretable and those which are not (text from the PEDro website).