1. Literature search

1.2 Source documents

a. Searching on Internet Predefined search strategies

Clinical Queriesprovides access to specialized PubMed searches. Its drawback is that relevant references may be missed.

For a specific search on a selected topic, it is best to turn to a database that specializes in the subject. For example:

  • For public health topics: BDSP (Banque de Données françaises en Santé Publique) accessible at no cost, is managed by the Ecole Nationale de Santé Publique. It references about 15,000 documents indexed with a thesaurus.
  • For medical economics:
    • EED (Economic Evaluation Database du National Health Service)
    • Ecosantéfor French statistical data
    • CRD (Center for Reviews and Dissemination de York)provides a database of economic evaluations: NHS Economic Evaluation Database and summaries of cost/benefit and cost/effectiveness analyses of medical procedures: the EED database (NHS Economic Evaluation Database) is accessible at no cost.
    • TheCODECS (COnnaissance et DECision en économie de Santé)managed by the Collège des économistes de la santé and by INSERM, provide French economic studies on health.