Getting the Most Out of CINAHL: CINAHL Headings

CINAHL Headings is a controlled vocabulary of subject terms. These terms are used to describe the content of the materials indexed in CINAHL. Using CINAHL Headings in searches saves you, the searcher, time and effort by bringing together multiple ways to refer to a disease, condition, anatomical part, or concept under a single term.

For example, using the CINAHL heading "Stroke" will also get articles on cerebral vascular accident(s), cerebrovascular accident(s), CVA(s), and strokes.

Click on the CINAHL Headings link located below the search boxes to begin incorporating subject terms in your search.

"Explode" broadens your search and gets you more results. Selecting "Explode" retrieves all citations about the CINAHL Heading, as well as all citations about more narrower (or specific) term(s).

In the example to the right, selecting "Explode" for "Patient Safety" will retrieve articles on patient safety and on all of the different types of patient safety issues listed below it.

"Major Concept" narrows your search and gets you less results. Selecting "Major Concept" retrieves citations for articles and publications where the CINAHL Heading is a main focus.

CINAHL typically assign three to four major concept headings to each publication.

Subheadings narrow your search and gets you less results. Subheadings allow you to indicate specific aspects of the CINAHL heading that are of interest. For example: the economic aspects of patient safety.

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