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Evidence-Based Nursing - Retiring SP 23

This research guide will help you find resources for evidence-based practice assignments in nursing.

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What is PICO?

PICO is a format for developing a good clinical research question prior to doing research. It is a mnemonic used to describe the four elements of a good clinical foreground question (This explanation taken from Yale University's Cushing/Whitney Medical Library)

P--Patient
I--Intervention
C--Comparison
O--Outcome

Element of the clinical question

Patient

Describe as accurately as possible the patient or group of patients of interest

Intervention (or cause, prognosis)

What is the main intervention or therapy you wish to consider?
Including an exposure to disease, a diagnostic test, a prognostic factor, a treatment, a patient perception, a risk factor, etc.

Comparison (optional)

Is there an alternative treatment to compare?
Including no disease, placebo, a different prognotic factor, absence of risk factor, etc.

Outcome

What is the clincial outcome, including a time horizon if relevant?

Example In patients with acute bronchitis, do antibiotics none reduce sputum production, cough or days off.?
Example In children with cancer what are the current treatments in the management of fever and infection?
Example Among family-members of patients undergoing diagnostic procedures does standard care, listening to tranquil music, or audiotaped comedy routines

make a difference in the reduction of reported anxiety.

PICO tutorial