Autumn at ESNEFT Libraries is all about Evidence Searches.
We wish to highlight to ESNEFT staff how an evidence search from ESNEFT Libraries can support patient care and help with research/QI projects.
Our sway bulletin below will demonstrate how an evidence search from ESNEFT Libraries could be the service you need to ask for this Autumn.
Using PICO to create answerable clinical questions
When asking clinical questions, a framework such as PICO can help formulate an answerable question and make searching for an answer easier.
PICO stands for:
Patient Problem, (or Population)
This would be the patient’s condition or disease, and could also include the population group (e.g. pregnant women, people over 75 years old)
Intervention (or exposure)
This could be the treatment, exposure or test that you want to find out about in relation to the clinical problem and could be an intervention such as a surgical procedure, drug treatment, or change in diet, or it could be an exposure to an environmental hazard, a physical feature (such as being overweight), or it could be a diagnostic test.
Comparison or Control
This might be an alternative or control strategy, exposure or test for comparison with the one you are interested in. A Comparison is not always present in a PICO framework.
Outcome
This would be what you (or the patient) wants to happen (or stop happening)
Example:
‘In infants born prematurely, compared to those born at full term, what is the subsequent lifetime prevalence of sensory deafness?'
P Population/patient = infants
I Intervention/indicator = premature
C Comparator/control = full-term
O Outcome = sensorial deafness
How to search the literature effectively from E-Learning for Health
These modules are designed to help the healthcare workforce (clinical and non-clinical) build confidence to search published literature for articles and evidence relevant to their work, study and research. The modules are short (each taking no more than 20 minutes to complete) and may be ‘dipped into’ for reference, or completed to obtain a certificate. There are seven modules suitable for novice searchers and those wishing to refresh their knowledge:
Click the link below to access the training.