PICOT Formula
The PICOT structure is used to create a strong clinical question. The structure highlights all the crucial components that should be present in a clinical investigation. The patient or the problem is denoted by the letter P in the abbreviation. It highlights the issue the patient is experiencing (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2018). I in the format stands for the nursing care interventions that are necessary to solve the issue. C – Displays a comparison. O stands for the interventions’ results. T is the amount of time it will take for the treatments to produce the desired effects (Walden University Library). Thus, PICOT is a formula that aids in the development of a clinical question.
PICO (T) Question
How much less frequently do catheter-associated urinary tract infections occur in high-risk patients when silicone catheters with silver alloy coating are used instead of latex indwelling catheters?
Search Terms
In this scenario, the search terminologies entail locating the key components of the inquiry and converting them into plain language. High-risk patients, silver-alloy coated silicone catheters, latex indwelling catheters, and catheter-associated urinary tract infections are a few of the PICOT question’s main topics. Numerous helpful publications related to the issue covered in the PICOT inquiry were found using these keywords. Various articles on the value of silver-alloy coated silicone catheters were found when these phrases were searched in the databases. For instance, one of the searches on the importance of SACC showed that the use of urinary catheters made of silver alloy is one method thought to lower CAUTI. Due to its broad spectrum antibacterial capabilities, silver has been employed in medicine for ages. By dispersing silver ions into the urinary system, it decreases biofilm formation and colonization (Bonfill et al., 2017). Bacteria and antibiotic resistance were some other search phrases.
Databases
One of the essential databases that are highly helpful in healthcare issues is Sage Database. In this database, the search term “Hospital infection” produced 7660 items, of which half were relevant to the PICOT Question. Consequently, another helpful database for researching healthcare-related topics is CINAHL Plus (Walden University Library). 78 articles were discovered after particular keywords were used, with at least half of them being pertinent to this PICOT topic. Another often utilized database to aid with healthcare-related research is MEDLINE (Walden University Library). The same important search terms turned up 164 articles. Numerous of these items were also discovered in the PubMed database. Numerous publications relating to antibiotic resistance were discovered in this database. After altering search words, another 173 articles were found through this database.
Boolean Operators
Boolean operators help a researcher by producing more narrowly focused and useful results. Simple terms called Boolean operators are employed in conjunction with other words to combine or omit particular keywords from a search. According to (Library of Congress) these search operators help to focus search results to cut down on the time spent reading through databases and conducting research.
Strategies
The ProQuest database may have been used as a tactic that produced positive outcomes. During study, filtered reviews are obtained using ProQuest, a filtered database. It comprises of journal-published, systematic reviews. With this approach, the researcher can extract more pertinent information from a single document. This method summarizes the healthcare choices and inquiries in light of the specified criteria (Walden University Library). The tactic is crucial for finding publications that directly address the PICOT question.
References
Bonfill, X., Rigau, D., Esteban-Fuertes, M., Barrera-Chacón, J. M., Jáuregui-Abrisqueta, M. L., Salvador, S., & Seguel, M. (2017). Efficacy and safety of urinary catheters with silver alloy coating in patients with spinal cord injury: a multicentric pragmatic randomized controlled trial. The ESCALE trial. The Spine Journal, 17(11), 1650-1657. Web.
Library of Congress. (n.d.). Search/browse help- Boolean operators and nesting. Web.
Melnyk, B. M., & Fineout-Overholt, E. (2018). Evidence-based practice in nursing & healthcare: A guide to best practice (4th Ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer.
Walden University Library. (n.d). Evidence-Based practice research: ProQuest search help. Web.
Walden University Library. (n.d). Evidence-Based practice research: PubMed search help. Web.
Walden University Library. (n.d.). Quick Answers: How do I find a systematic review article related to health, medicine, or nursing? Web.
Walden University Library. (n.d.-c.). Evidence-Based practice research: Sage search help. Web.