Research in

Week 2 Reading assignment

Week 2: The Clinical Issue and Research Questions Developed Using PICOT

PICOT is an acronym used to help develop clinical research questions and guide you in your search for evidence:

P = Patient population

I = Intervention or issue of interest

C = Comparison of interventions or comparison of interests

O = Outcome

T = Time frame

For example, you may wish to research the effects of interrupted sleep on cognition of ICU patients 65 or older.

Using this PICOT model,

In _________(P), how does __________ (I) compared to _________ (C) influence _________ (O) over ________ (T)?

In ICU patients who are 65 or older, how does interrupted sleep (awakened one time or more in four hours) as compared to uninterrupted sleep influence the patient’s cognitive ability over 5 days?

Assignment Directions

Begin by selecting a topic in nursing that is of interest to you. Next, use PICOT to format possible research questions about that topic. Provide 3 possible PICOT research questions.

Include the following:

· Title page

· Provide a brief description of the topic and background information.

· Explain the significance of the topic to nursing practice.

· Provide 3 clearly stated PICOT questions.

Your paper should: 

· Be 2–3 pages (not including the title page and reference page)

· Use current APA format to style your paper and to cite your sources. 

Review the rubric for further information on how your assignment will be graded.

In Week 2, you’ll see that you need to submit a paper, which lists and describes your PICOT questions.  Having these PICOT questions right will impact your ability to do the other assignments in the course.  What I’ve found in previous classes, is that students struggle with the PICOT questions.

Here is the reason I say this:  This is NOT as simple as you might think, and getting the PICOT questions right makes your future assignments MUCH easier.  As well,  the grading rubric for this assignment has only 3 elements, so if you don’t have the questions in the right format, it is hard to get a passing grade on the first paper. 

It is in your best interest for me to approve your PICOT questions prior to submission in Week 2.  This gives you the best chance to be successful in this course.  
Submit your PICOT questions to me via Course Messaging. If you do not get the questions to me before the weekend, I cannot insure that you will get feedback on your PICOT questions prior to the submission deadline for the paper and this may impact your future assignments.  I will try, so submit when you can. Before submitting to me, read the materials under the Week 2 tab about how to write a PICOT question.  They must be in that format.

These must be APPLICABLE TO NURSING, meaning that they involve a NURSING intervention. The prescription of medications is not a nursing intervention. PLEASE do not choose topics, such as medications, that nurses cannot influence.  I’m going to give you a list of potential topics, because I have found that in previous classes, students struggle with this.  Here are some potential PICOT topics:
Chlorhexidine for daily bathing of hospital patients
Bedside shift report vs. nurses station shift report
DVT occurence – SCD’s vs. compression stockings
Heat/cold, imagery, mobility for pain management
Frequent mobility vs. bedrest for delirium management
Hourly rounding and fall incidences
Early mobility and fall incidences

Sleep breaks for night nurses and retention of nurses, satisfaction of nurses, occurrence of medical errors

PLEASE DO NOT choose a topic that has some personal interest for you outside of nursing – like use of marijuana, medications for diabetes, medications for hyperactivity, benefits of breastfeeding, etc.  
I’ve found that many students in this course are also in OB and want to use an OB topic.  My experience is that this is VERY difficult.  
It is optimal to choose from the list I’ve provided for you – I’m giving this advice because 
I want you to be successful!