OME Fellows: Medical Education Research Guide

Definition:

That which is produced on all levels of government, academics, business, and industry in print and electronic formats but which is not controlled by commercial publishers (4th International Conference on Grey Literature, 1997)

Forms of Grey Lit:

Technical and committee reports, census data, conference papers and proceedings, theses & dissertations, newsletters, preprints...

Grey Lit creators:

Universities, research institutes, industry and government institutions

Where to search for Grey Lit:

• Web search (Google & Google Scholar)

• Specific sites:

  • NIH

  • Cochrane Library

  • ProQuest Dissertations & Theses

  • Trip Database

  • Organizations and foundations websites like AAMC, AMEE, and Best Evidence for Medical Education Collaboration (see more in Table 2)

Poirier T, Behnen E. Where and How to Search for Evidence in the Education Literature: The WHEEL. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education. 2014;78(4):70. doi:10.5688/ajpe78470. (PMC4028579)