Improving Search Filters for Palliative Care Literature
Author Information
Author(s): Ruth M Sladek, Jennifer Tieman, David C Currow
Primary Institution: Flinders University
Hypothesis
Can the sensitivity of a search filter for palliative care literature be improved by analyzing incorrectly excluded citations?
Conclusion
The sensitivity of the search filter was successfully increased from 46.3% to 64.7%, but this came at the cost of decreased precision.
Supporting Evidence
- The original search filter had a sensitivity of only 45.4%, meaning many relevant articles were missed.
- Adding six new MeSH terms improved the sensitivity to 64.7%, but precision dropped significantly.
- The thematic analysis revealed that none of the themes were intrinsically palliative, indicating a need for better definitions in search strategies.
Takeaway
The study found a way to make it easier to find important palliative care articles by changing the search terms used, but it also made some irrelevant articles show up.
Methodology
The study involved thematic and frequency analysis of MeSH terms from incorrectly excluded citations to improve the search filter's sensitivity.
Potential Biases
The study may have overestimated sensitivity and underestimated precision due to database limitations.
Limitations
The study's findings may be affected by changes in the OVID Medline database over time, which could impact the accuracy of MeSH term frequencies.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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