A DATABASE is an organised collection of information records that can be accessed electronically. In the Library this includes databases which have:

• journal article (and other) citations, where there is no full-text;
• journal article (and other) citations, where all records have the full-text attached;
• a mixture of the first two above (this is the most common);
• other types of records, eg. videos, images, or listings of people or companies.

A DATABASE PLATFORM is a company which provides access to a number of databases, via a search interface unique to that company, where the databases can be searched/browsed individually or together.

The 4 main database platforms, and examples of databases they contain

It is important to realise that, once you are in one of the database platforms, you can search across a number of databases at the same time. In some cases, the Library provides a package of subject-related databases that are in the same platform. Two examples of this are:

• EBSCOhost (Health)
• ProQuest Health and Medicine Databases.

For a full list of the databases recommended for Nursing, go to Nursing databases.

Here's a screen-shot of the full record of an article in CINAHL Plus with Full Text: