EBP & PICOT Questions

• PICOT is a common search framework to help us create a searchable clinical question. 
• Select the most important components of your clinical question.
  That is, not all PICOT components may be necessary in a search (e.g., outcome, time).
• Before searching, it is good practice to construct a PICOT question based on a clinical scenario.

Most EPB questions fall into one of these clinical categories:

• Intervention, therapy or screening test or prognostic factor OR risk factor
• Diagnosis
• Harm or etiology
• Prognosis
• Meaning

These templates can be used to frame questions:

Intervention or Therapy

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?

Etiology or Harm (Causation)

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