New pharmacy-specific Medical Subject Headings included in the 2017 database

The generation of a robust body of evidence starts with the identification of high-quality studies that can be subsequently synthesized in systematic reviews and meta-analyses. “Systematic reviews need systematic searchers” who use specific procedures and instruments to ensure the quality of their process to identify all relevant scientific literature to answer a research question.1 One of the key elements in building efficient search strategies is the use of keywords that are included in controlled vocabularies.2 The best example of a controlled vocabulary is the National Library of Medicine’s (NLM’s) Medical Subject Headings (MeSH). The MeSH database comprises a wide range of MeSH terms to identify medical conditions, therapeutic procedures, research methods, and drug therapy substances. However, as we have previously demonstrated, the MeSH database is deficient in terms that characterize pharmacy practice and research.3 In that study, we proposed the creation of 16 new pharmacy-specific MeSH terms, using a systematic method to identify gaps in the terminology.