Most EPB questions fall into one of these clinical categories:
These templates can be used to frame questions:
In ___[P]___, do/does ___[I]___ result in ___[O]____ when compared with ___[C]___ over ___[T]____?
In_____[P]__________, what is the effect of ____________on ___________ compared with ___________?
Example:
In nursing home residents with osteoporosis, do hip protectors result in fewer injuries from slips, trips, and falls when compared with standard osteoporosis drug therapy over the course of their stay?
Are ___[P]___ with ___[I]___ over ____[T]____ more likely to ___[O]____ when compared with ___[C]___ ?
Are ___________ who have ___________ at ________ risk for/of _________ compared with _______
with/without_________?
Example:
Are female non-smokers with daily exposure to second-hand smoke over a period of ten years or greater more likely to develop breast cancer when compared with female non-smokers without daily exposure to second-hand smoke?
Diagnosis or Diagnostic Test
Is/are ___[I]___ performed on ___[P]___ more effective than ___[C]___ over ___[T]____in ___[O]____?
Are (Is) ________________ more accurate in diagnosing _______________ compared with ____________?
Example:
Are self-reporting interviews and parent reports performed on children aged 5-10 more effective than parent reports alone over a four-week consultation process in diagnosing depression?
Prevention
In ___[P]___, do/does ___[I]___ result in ___[O]____ when compared with ___[C]___ over ___[T]____?
For ___________ does the use of _________________ reduce the future risk of ____________ compared with ______________?
Example:
In emergency room visitors, do hand sanitizing stations result in fewer in-hospital infections when compared with no hand sanitizing stations over a year-long pilot period?
Prognosis (Natural History)
Do/does ___[I]___ performed on ___[P]___ lead to ___[O]___ over ___[T]____compared with ___[C]____?
Does ____________ influence ______________ in patients who have _____________?
Example: forthcoming
Meaning
How do _______________ diagnosed with _______________ perceive __________________?
Adapted from 2021 McMaster University Health Sciences Library, Resources for Evidence-Based Practice: Forming Questions, https://hslmcmaster.libguides.com/ebm
AJN article: https://journals.lww.com/ajnonline/fulltext/2010/03000/evidence_based_practice,_step_by_step__asking_the.28.aspx
Melnyk, B. M., & Fineout-Overholt, E. (2011). Evidence-based practice in nursing & healthcare: A guide to best practice. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Most EBP questions fall into one of these categories: therapy/intervention, prevention, diagnosis, harm/etiology, or prognosis.
Adapted from McMaster University. (2021, November 23). Resources for evidence-based practice: Forming questions. https://hslmcmaster.libguides.com/c.php?g=306765&p=2044787