LITERATURE REVIEW

Purpose: This form guides the EBP team in developing an answerable EBP question. It is meant to be fluid and dynamic as the team engages in the question development process. As the team becomes familiar with the evidence base for the topic of interest, they revisit, revise, and refine the question, search terms, search strategy, and sources of evidence.

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What is the local problem? (the response can be a bulleted list or phrases)

Enter text

Why is this problem important and relevant? What would happen if it was not addressed?

Enter text

What is the current practice in the EBP team’s setting?

Enter text

What data from the EBP team’s setting indicates there is a problem?

Enter text

Considering all of the information above, create a concise problem statement below.

Enter text.

Will this be a broad or intervention EBP question?

☐ Broad

☐ Intervention

Identify the relevant elements of the EBP question (some items may not be used)

Population

Setting

Topic (for broad questions) or Intervention(s) (for intervention questions)

Outcomes (as needed)

Use the information above, and the sentence templates below, to construct the EBP question.

For Broad EBP Questions:

In/among Enter population and /or setting what are best practices/strategies/interventions

for/regarding Enter topic ?

For Intervention EBP Questions:

According to the evidence, in/among Enter population and /or setting, what is the impact of

Enter intervention* on Enter outcome?

*if comparing more than one intervention, provide the interventions, separated with the phrase “as compared to”.

Record the completed EBP question below.

Enter text

If needed after a preliminary evidence search/review, record an updated or revised EBP question here.

What is the local problem? (The response can be a bulleted list or phrases)

Describe the topic or problem that needs to be addressed in the team’s local setting. This can be a quick and informal report of what is happening or the results of the group’s brainstorming session.

Why is this problem important and relevant? What would happen if it was not addressed?

Establish a sense of importance and urgency for a practice problem to help build support for the EBP project and on-board other stakeholders. Emphasize why the problem must be addressed and the potential consequences of not doing so. This is the place to establish your “burning platform” for practice change.

What is the current practice in the EBP team’s setting?

Define the current practice in the team’s local setting, as it relates to the problem by identifying the gap or performance issue. Think about current unit or departmental policies and procedures as well as adherence to these guidelines. What is commonly considered acceptable among the staff related to their daily practice? Do policy and practice align? What do you see?

What data from the EBP team’s setting indicates there is a problem?

Confirm the problem with concrete, rather than anecdotal, information from the team’s specific setting. Concrete information exists in the form of staff or patient safety concerns, data demonstrating unsatisfactory process or outcome measures on the unit level, financial reports, identification of the lack of evidence for current organizational practice, or unsatisfactory quality indicators. Formal information or observations may demonstrate variations within the practice setting or the community. These elements are not mutually exclusive, and the problem may be evidenced in multiple areas.

Consider the following (provide actual data or examples, if available):

· Safety and risk management concerns

· Financial information

· Lack of evidence for current practice

· Quality indicators

· Practice observations

· Other data

Considering all of the information above, create a concise problem statement below.

Write a short paragraph to capture the problem. It should be succinct (one or two concise sentences) and robust (strongly constructed. Articulating a well-developed problem statement provides a comprehensive understanding of the population of interest (e.g., patients, families, staff, and their characteristics), how they are affected (e.g., morbidity, mortality, satisfaction), and why it matters.

Will this be a broad or intervention EBP question?

|_| Broad

|_| Intervention

Select if you intend to write a broad or an intervention best practice question. Broad questions are expansive and produce a wide range of evidence to establish best practices when the team has little knowledge, experience, or expertise in the area of interest. Broad questions do not include any interventions or outcomes. Intervention questions are focused and may include a specific comparison of two or more ideas or interventions, as well as an outcome of interest. Intervention questions often flow from an initial broad question and evidence review.

Identify the relevant elements of the EBP question (some items may not be used)

Population

Who is the group of interest? What types of patients, clients, healthcare providers, or people? Consider attributes such as age, gender, symptoms, diagnosis, or roles (e.g. pediatric, adult, nurses, pharmacists, post-operative patients, patients with congestive heart failure).

Setting

Where does the problem need to be addressed? What are the characteristics of the environment? Consider factors such as general location (e.g. in-patient, out-patient, home-based) and specific care areas (e.g. oncology, peri-operative, surgical, critical care).

Topic (for broad questions) or Intervention(s) (for intervention questions)

What is the problem or issue? Provide the general topic or the specific intervention(s) under investigation.

Outcomes (as needed)

Why is there a problem? What is the metric the team is hoping to address (e.g. fall rates, infection rates, length of stay)?

Use the information above, and the sentence templates below, to construct the EBP question.

For Broad EBP Questions:

In/among ______________________ , what are best practices/strategies/interventions for/regarding __________?

(population and/or setting)

(topic)

For Intervention EBP Questions:

According to the evidence, in/among ___________________ , what is the impact of __________ on ___________?

(intervention*)

(outcome)

(population and/or setting)

*if comparing more than one intervention, provide the interventions and separate them with the phrase “as compared to”

Enter the EBP Question below.

Write the EBP question. Use the information you identified in the above section to complete the fill-in-the-blank sentence structure. Ensure you are using the correct format, depending on if you are writing a broad or intervention EBP question. You will also need to select if you would like to use the word “in” or among.” Additionally, for broad questions, select “practices,” “strategies” or “interventions” and “for” or “regarding,” depending on that makes the sentence easiest to read.

After a preliminary evidence search/review, a revised EBP question can be developed if necessary.

Often the question that you start with will not be the final EBP question. Needed revisions to the EBP question may not be evident until after the initial evidence review, which may indicate a need to focus or broaden the question, update terminology, and/or consider additional measures of success.