The document outlines the first part of a course project focused on formulating a researchable question in nursing using the PICOT model (Patient/Population, Intervention/Issue, Comparison, Outcome). It emphasizes the importance of a clear research question in directing various aspects of the research process and guides students to develop this question based on observed nursing issues. Students are required to generate multiple questions and select the most feasible one while also creating keywords for literature searches related to their chosen topic.

1. Course Project: Part 1—Identifying a Researchable Problem
One of the most challenging aspects of EBP is to actually
identify the answerable question.
—Karen Sue Davies
Formulating a question that targets the goal of your research is
a challenging but essential task. The question plays a crucial
role in all other aspects of the research, including the
determination of the research design and theoretical perspective
to be applied, which data will be collected, and which tools will
be used for analysis. It is therefore essential to take the time to
ensure that the research question addresses what you actually
want to study. Doing so will increase your likelihood of
obtaining meaningful results.
In this first component of the Course Project, you formulate
questions to address a particular nursing issue or problem. You
use the PICOT model—patient/population, intervention/issue,
comparison, and outcome—outlined in the Learning Resources
to design your questions.
To prepare:
Review the article, “Formulating the Evidence Based Practice
Question: A Review of the Frameworks,” found in the Learning
Resources for this week. Focus on the PICOT model for guiding
the development of research questions.
Review the section beginning on page 71 of the course text,
titled, “Developing and Refining Research Problems” in the
course text, which focuses on analyzing the feasibility of a
research problem.
Reflect on an issue or problem that you have noticed in your
nursing practice. Consider the significance of this issue or
problem.

2. Generate at least five questions that relate to the issue which
you have identified. Use the criteria in your course text to select
one question that would be most appropriate in terms of
significance, feasibility, and interest. Be prepared to explain
your rationale.
Formulate a preliminary PICO question—one that is
answerable—based on your analysis. What are the PICO
variables (patient/population, intervention/issue, comparison,
and outcome) for this question?
Note: Not all of these variables may be appropriate to every
question. Be sure to analyze which are and are not relevant to
your specific question.
Using the PICOT variables that you determined for your
question, develop a list of at least 10 keywords that could be
used when conducting a literature search to investigate current
research pertaining to the question.
To complete:
Write a 3- to 4-page paper that includes the following:
A summary of your area of interest, an identification of the
problem that you have selected, and an explanation of the
significance of this problem for nursing practice
The 5 questions you have generated and a description of how
you analyzed them for feasibility
Your preliminary PICOT question and a description of each
PICOT variable relevant to your question
At least 10 possible keywords that could be used when
conducting a literature search for your PICOT question and a
rationale for your selections
Reference:

3. Davies, K. S. (2011). Formulating the evidence based practice
question: A review of the frameworks. Evidence Based Library
and Information Practice, 6(2), 75–80. Retrieved from
https://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/EBLIP/article/vie
wFile/9741/8144
Required Readings
Polit, D. F., & Beck, C. T. (2017). Nursing research: Generating
and assessing evidence for nursing practice (10th ed.).
Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer.
Chapter 2, “Evidence-Based Nursing: Translating Research
Evidence into Practice” (Review pages 14–31)
Chapter 5, “Literature Reviews: Finding and Critiquing
Evidence”
In this chapter, you focus on conducting a literature review.
Topics include how to identify the relevant literature on a given
topic and then how to critique the strengths and weaknesses of
the literature that you have found. Finally, the chapter examines
how to synthesize the research findings into a written literature
review.
Houde, S. C. (2009). The systematic review of literature: A tool
for evidence-based policy. Journal of Gerontological Nursing,
35(9), 9–12.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
This article emphasizes the importance of systematic reviews of
literature. The authors present an overview of resources that
may assist in conducting systematic reviews.
Krainovich-Miller, B., Haber, J., Yost, J., & Jacobs, S. K.
(2009). Evidence-based practice challenge: Teaching critical
appraisal of systematic reviews and clinical practice guidelines
to graduate students. Journal of Nursing Education, 48(4), 186–
195.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

4. This article reviews the features of the TREAD Evidence-Based
Practice Model. In particular, the authors of this article stress
how the model emphasizes the use of standardized critical
appraisal tools and Level I evidence.
Robeson, P., Dobbins, M., DeCorby, K., & Tirilis, D. (2010).
Facilitating access to pre-processed research evidence in public
health. BMC Public Health, 10, 95.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
This article describes a hierarchy of pre-processed evidence and
how it is adapted to the public health setting. The authors
identify a range of resources with relevant public health
content.
Walden Student Center for Success. (2012). Clinical Question
Anatomy. Retrieved July 9, 2014, from
http://academicguides.waldenu.edu/content.php?pid=183871&si
d=2950360
Barker, J. (n.d.) Basic search tips and advanced Boolean
explained. Retrieved August 3, 2012, from
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Boole
an.pdf
This resource provides a graphical representation of different
approaches to research and gives examples of each.
Davies, K. S. (2011). Formulating the evidence based practice
question: A review of the frameworks. Evidence Based Library
and Information Practice, 6(2), 75–80. Retrieved from
https://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/EBLIP/article/vie
wFile/9741/8144
This article reviews the frameworks commonly used to assist in
generating answerable research questions. The author
recommends considering the individual elements of the
frameworks as interchangeable (depending upon the situation),
rather than trying to fit a situation to a specific framework.
Walden University Library. (2012). Levels of evidence.

5. Retrieved from
http://academicguides.waldenu.edu/c.php?g=80240&p=523225
This guide provides a listing of evidence-based clinical
resources, including systematic reviews and meta-analyses,
critically appraised topics, background information and expert
opinions, and unfiltered resources.
Indiana State University. (n.d.). Database search strategies.
Retrieved July 6, 2012, from
http://libguides.indstate.edu/content.php?pid=118904&sid=1065
428
In this resource, the most common types of database searches
are highlighted. It includes topics such as nesting searches,
phrase searches, and using synonyms of key words in the
search.
Library of Congress Online Catalog. (2008). Boolean
searching. Retrieved from
http://catalog.loc.gov/help/boolean.htm
This web page provides a basic overview of Boolean searches
and provides simple examples of key search terms.
Walden University. (n.d.b.). Searching and retrieving materials
in the research databases. Retrieved August 10, 2012, from
http://academicguides.waldenu.edu/foundationscoursedocs/Sear
chingRetrieving
This resource provides tips for searching in the Walden Library.
It includes a guide to keyword searches, an explanation of
Boolean searches, and tips on locating specific journals or
articles.
Document: Course Project Overview (Word document)
Note: You will use this document to complete the Project
throughout this course.
Media

6. Laureate Education (Producer). (2012e). Finding resources for
EBP. Baltimore, MD: Author.
Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 6 minutes.
In this video, Dr. Marianne Chulay identifies sources where
nurses can find evidence to support their practices. She provides
several examples of resources that provide specific information
about best practices in health care.
Accessible player
Laureate Education (Producer). (2012f). Finding sources of
evidence. Baltimore, MD: Author.
Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 9 minutes.
Dr. Kristen Mauk explains the process of performing a literature
review in this video. She provides advice for nursing students in
browsing databases and analyzing sources of evidence.
Accessible player
Laureate Education (Producer). (2012g). Hierarchy of evidence
pyramid. Baltimore, MD: Author.
This multimedia piece explains the hierarchy of evidence
pyramid. The piece offers definitions and key information for
each level of the pyramid.
DO 4 Pages Please. Complete.