The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR), a specific database within the Cochrane Library where we will be searching, is the gold standard in regards to meta-analytic and systematic review content available. Cochrane is the producer and publisher of all these systematic reviews. The Cochrane Library, as a broader service, has access to a collection of databases related to evidence-based practice.
This resource also provides information from the top of the evidence pyramid in the form of systematic reviews.
The Cochrane Library is free to search after you leave Drexel University. This means you can still discover systematic reviews that Cochrane has written. However, you will only be able to access the text of some of those articles while you are affiliated with Drexel University. Fortunately, some of the reviews will be free to read even after you are no longer affiliated with Drexel. Cochrane chooses to make some publicly available, especially those related to broad public health topics.
Now, watch the video below to learn how to perform a basic search for reviews in the Cochrane Library.
Now that you've seen how to conduct a basic search in the Cochrane Library, open up a new tab, navigate to Cochrane via the REFRESH library guide, and try a search of your own. Then, come back and continue the module.