ARTICLE REVIEW INSTRUCTIONS
One of the most important skills that we need to develop as educators and teacher leaders is the
ability to read and discern current research that is being carried out in our field. Peer-reviewed
journals represent the highest quality of research that is being conducted to help inform educators
at all levels of the best practices in their content or field. When writing a journal article review
the candidate will be asked to create a critical evaluation of literature that is relevant to his/her
given field of study. These reviews should include summaries of the given information, but
should move beyond this to also include an analysis and comparison of the given information,
and even the methods that were used to collect the information.
For each of your THREE (3) article reviews, you will be asked to select a peer-reviewed,
scholarly work from an academic database related to reading in your content area. Your
selection must reflect current research in the field and should be based on research conducted.
Blogs, websites, “Idea Bank,” etc. are not acceptable choices for this review.
Each review should be no more than 3 pages, double spaced, and include an APA formatted title
page. Your selected article must be current (no more than FIVE years old) and must relate
specifically to content reading strategies in a field outside of English/Language Arts (i.e. science,
math, social studies, health). Your journal critique should be organized to include the following
key points:
A. Summary of the Article
Write a concise overview of the article. Include the purpose for the article, any
research that may have been conducted and the methods used to do so, and any results
from the study or other important information that the researcher may have collected
or commented on relevant to our purposes. (3 paragraph maximum)
B. Conclusions and Implications
Discuss the implications for the classroom the results of the study may have. Is the
information that has been collected useful or practical? How does the information
included specifically relate to the classroom? Highlight the benefits to the classroom,
or changes that you might make personally because of the information found in the
study. Be sure to link the findings with practical classroom application. (~ 2
paragraphs)
C. Overall Assessment
Give a short overall assessment of the article. Discuss any particular strengths or
weaknesses within the study or in the writing. Did you agree with the major points of
the article or were there any areas of particular concern? Was the article well written
and easy to read, or was the information presented in a manner that made it difficult
to understand or apply to an actual classroom?
All references must be cited in a correctly formatted APA References section. Your paper will
also be evaluated for mechanics.
This assignment is due at 11:59 p.m. (ET) on the Sunday of the Module/Week that is assigned.
OUTLINE
Summary of the Article
Conclusions and Implications
Overall Assessment
Running head: ARTICLE REVIEW
Article Review:
Student’s Name:
Institution Affiliation:
Date:
ARTICLE REVIEW 2
Summary of the Article
In the article entitled Early post discharge STOP-HF-clinic reduces 30-day readmissions
in old and frail patients with heart failure, Pacho et al. (2017) explored the potential of a model
for reducing readmissions within 30 days of discharge. The authors claimed that strategies for
reducing readmissions have produced modest results. The prospective study focused on
interventions such as face-to-face visits, intravenous medication, treatment titration, and heart
failure nurse education.
The researchers were also interested in determining the burden of 30-day readmissions to
regional health care. The study found out that all-cause 30-day readmission reduced significantly
following the intervention to reach 14%. In particular, heart failure-related rehospitalization rate
reduced to 8%. The readmission rate reduced substantially in the period in the period 2014-2015
as compared to 2012-2013.
In their concluding remarks, the authors stated that the model they developed is a
valuable intervention that hospitals could use to increase job satisfaction and reduce the burden
of all early readmission among the vulnerable population and that of readmissions.
Conclusions and Implications
The results of the study have important implications for nursing students. The finding that
the STOP-HF-Clinic is effective in reducing hospital readmissions is key to understanding
initiatives that could support the intervention. It is vital for nursing students to know that
readmission is a burden to healthcare and patients and their families.
Berry et al. (2018) also ascertained that elderly HF patients are the highest risk of
readmission due to reduced functionality and inadequate self-care practices. The reduction in all-
cause 30-day readmissions, especially those related to chronic heart failure is crucial for nursing
ARTICLE REVIEW 3
students. The results could be used to increase knowledge on the causes of heart failure and
relapse following discharge. One conclusion from the results is that interventions such as face-to-
face visits, intravenous medication, treatment titration, and heart failure nurse education could be
integrated into post discharge care to prevent readmissions. Also, it could be concluded from the
results that readmissions related to heart failure are preventable. Students should have a clear
picture of the appropriate post discharge practices for elderly patients suffering from congestive
heart failure. The burden that heart failure places on patients and healthcare in terms of high
costs of treatment could help shape student perceptions, attitudes, and motivation to care for the
elderly and vulnerable populations.
Overall Assessment
The main claim advanced in the study is justified as existing interventions have not been
effective in reducing hospital readmissions. A study by Chamberlain et al. (2018) corroborate the
finding that heart failure is the leading cause of 30-day rehospitalizations in referral health care
facilities. It is crystal clear from the article that the authors stated the research objective with
clarity and reported the findings with utmost precision.
The main strength of the study is that it was conducted over a period of two years, which
allowed the researchers to incorporate the effect of time lapse into the analysis of results. Also,
the study sample of 518 patents was sufficiently large to make the findings generalizable. The
main limitation of the study is that it was majorly a population-based research and this limits the
ability to establish causality. Another limitation is that the authors could not determine the most
effective aspect of the model of care. This study could be improved by integrating the influence
of age, gender, and mental health on the likelihood of readmission within 30 days of discharge
(Pacho et al., 2017).
ARTICLE REVIEW 4
References
Berry, J. G., Gay, J. C., Maddox, K. J., Coleman, E. A., Bucholz, E. M., O’Neill, M. R., ... &
Hall, M. (2018). Age trends in 30 day hospital readmissions: US national retrospective
analysis. bmj, 360, k497.
Chamberlain, R. S., Sond, J., Mahendraraj, K., Lau, C. S., & Siracuse, B. L. (2018). Determining
30-day readmission risk for heart failure patients: the Readmission After Heart Failure
scale. International journal of general medicine, 11, 127.
Pacho, C., Domingo, M., Núñez, R., Lupón, J., Moliner, P., de Antonio, M., ... & Bayes-Genis,
A. (2017). Early postdischarge STOP-HF-clinic reduces 30-day readmissions in old and
frail patients with heart failure. Revista Española de Cardiología (English Edition),
70(8), 631-638.
