Databases are a way of finding journal articles (and other material such as book chapters, conference papers, theses etc.) on a particular topic area. They are not limited to the collections at the University of Northampton library and are often international. Information contained in databases will be full text or bibliographic:
Each database may look different, but the principles of searching them are essentially the same. You will usually find that you get the option to carry out either a simple or advanced search. Use a range of keywords to help focus your search on the results that are relevant to what you are looking for.
You can access the databases by using the links below, or following the ‘A-Z Databases’ tab on the menu at the top of NELSON.
Please note: The AMED website will be migrated to a new user interface (UI) on August 5, 2025. Please visit their Help page for guidance on using the new UI.
AMED: Allied and Complementary Medicine database containing allied and complementary journals and abstracts from 1985 onwards. Produced by the British Library. Good starting point for Occupational Therapy and Podiatry searches.
Please note: The CINAHL Ultimate website will be migrated to a new user interface (UI) on August 5, 2025. Please visit their Help page for guidance on using the new UI.
CINAHL Ultimate is the definitive full-text database for nursing and allied health research covering over 50 nursing specialties. Additionally, it features full-text quick lessons, evidence-based care sheets, continuing education modules, nursing instructional videos, and more.
Access to over 200 acclaimed textbooks covering 40 medical specialties, including Gray's Anatomy for Students and Medical Physiology. You also have access to interactive tools including videos for practical demonstration and over 85,000 high resolutions images.
If this is your first time accessing ClinicalKey, you may need to register with the service.
Please register using your university student email address.
University student email address take the form: YourFirstName.YourLastName_First_enrolment_year@my.northampton.ac.uk.
So if you were Jane Smith and you started at the University of Northampton in 2019, your email address would be: jane.smith19@my.northampton.ac.uk
You will only need to register with ClinicalKey once.
Once registered choose "Sign in via my institution" and choose University of Northampton.
The Cochrane Library is the gold standard for evidence-based research to inform healthcare decision making. It is a collection of databases including the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials.
Please note: The MEDLINE website will be migrated to a new user interface (UI) on August 5, 2025. Please visit their Help page for guidance on using the new UI.
An index of 4600 biomedical journals produced by the United States National Library of Medicine, covering 1966 to the present. Useful for all medical topics.
PsycNET is an amalgamation of PsycInfo (which is an abstract database of psychological literature from the 1800s to today) and PsycArticles (which offers access to the full-text of APA journals).
Please note: The SPORTDiscuss website will be migrated to a new user interface (UI) on August 5, 2025. Please visit their Help page for guidance on using the new UI.
SPORTDiscus with Full Text is the world's most comprehensive source of full text for sports and sports medicine journals, providing full text for 380 journals.
A collection of journals and other publications covering life sciences, health sciences, physical sciences and engineering as well as social sciences, humanities, business and finance.
These short videos have been created to help you access and use the databases to search for relevant information for your assignments. Descriptions about what the databases cover and links to access them are available on the A-Z Database list.
Click on the information icon next to the title of the video, to find out more about what the video demonstrates.
