By Grace DeBerardino, Writing Consultant
As a nursing student, I have had to write a handful of systemic reviews, which is just a fancy way of saying I wrote papers analyzing several research articles. When it comes to writing any type of research paper, the most helpful tool I have learned is to use the UDM library’s online research database.
Any student can use the database, but for nursing and health professions students, the most useful platforms are CINAHL and PubMed. Both of these databases provide excellent academic research articles. One beneficial research tool is utilizing the PICOT formula in your search.
Photo courtesy of National Cancer Institute on Unsplash.
The PICOT formula can be utilized across all university disciplines. In nursing, a PICOT question is utilized to reformulate research questions for evidence-based practices. PICOT is an acronym that stands for problem/population/patient, intervention/issue, comparison, outcome, and time. Formulating a research question using the PICOT formula helps generate more specific articles. An example of a formal research question would be “In patients with central lines, is chlorhexidine more effective in preventing central line associated bloodstream infections than soap and water during intensive care unit stays?” When finding articles for this specific question, the PICOT formula would be extremely beneficial. Instead of inserting the whole research question, utilizing the PICOT formula helps simplify the wording for databases to better process and pull more specific results.
The basic formula would look like this: (patient OR problem OR population) AND (intervention OR issue) AND (comparison) AND (outcome) AND (time). For the example provided, the formula would be: (ICU patients OR central lines) AND (chlorhexidine) AND (soap AND water) AND (CLABSI) AND (ICU admission). You can enter this exact formula into the search generator. When establishing your formula, using “AND” tells the research engine to look articles including both aspects together. Using “OR” tells the search engine to look for articles using either criteria, but not typically both.
Research databases like CINAHL also allow you to narrow or expand your search criteria utilizing the provided embedded inclusions. This could include adding specifications for articles published within the last 5 years, articles from academic journals, countries the article is about, or articles that have been peer reviewed. The foundation of a substantial research paper starts at the very beginning; by finding credible and relevant articles to base research on.
Adding the University’s online research database and the PICOT formula to your writing arsenal is an academic advantage every student should take advantage of.