Assignment This is an independent activity which requires submission of a scholarly paper, according to the instructions below. The scholarly paper will be graded based on the Evaluation of Undergraduate Scholarly Paper rubric, which is included in this syllabus. Scholarly Paper: Using the PICOT process, analyze a current nursing practice-related legislative issue and present it in a scholarly paper. The legislative issue will be of your own choosing. The scholarly paper should be typed, double spaced, 12 point, Times New Roman using APA format, and limited to 6 pages including title and reference pages. Support your position with references from at least two peer reviewed journal reference articles.
PICOT is an acronym to help you formulate a clinical question and guide your search for evidence. Using this format can help you find the best evidence available in a quicker, more efficient manner. Take a look:
P = patient population
I = intervention or issue of interest
C = comparison intervention or issue of interest
O = outcome
T = time frame
Try using the PICOT format to help you formulate your next clinical question and search for relevant studies and publications. For example, if you wanted to know the effect of flu vaccination on the development of pneumonia in older adults, you could fill in the blanks like this:
In _________(P), how does __________ (I) compared to _________ (C) influence _________ (O) over ________ (T)?
In patients ages 65 and older, how does the use of an influenza vaccine compared to not receiving the vaccine influence their risk of developing pneumonia during the flu season?
What’s your question? Try using the PICOT format and see how it affects your search results! You can find more information, including other templates to help you formulate your question in Asking the Clinical Question: A Key Step in Evidence-Based Practice.