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Evidence Based Literature Searching

The first step toward performing an effective literature search is to ensure that you have a well defined question. A PICO question is clear, patient-focused, and can be answered with primary literature. 

✅ Tip: Use the Literature Search Concept Map to guide your PICO construction.

✅ Tip: Treat each PICO element as a puzzle piece. When combined, they form a clear picture of your research goal.

💡 Why It Matters

Thinking carefully about what you're asking (and framing it clearly) helps you:

  • Focus your search
  • Identify relevant information
  • Advance your project with confidence

Breaking your question into PICO components helps you:

  • Ensure all elements of your question are considered
  • Visualize how each part fits together
  • Translate your topic into a searchable strategy

 

🧠 Building a Well-Defined Clinical Question with PICO

A PICO question is a structured way to formulate a clinical inquiry. It helps ensure you're asking the right question by breaking it down into four essential components:

🔍 What Does PICO Stand For?

Letter            Component Description                                      
P Patient / Population / Problem                 Who is the patient or population? What is the problem?
I Intervention / Exposure What is the treatment, test, or exposure being considered?
C Comparison What is the alternative to compare with the intervention? (Optional)         
O Outcome What are the expected results or effects?

📌 Example PICO Question

Scenario:
A school nurse wants to know if zinc lozenges help shorten cold symptoms in grade school children.

PICO Breakdown:

  • P (Population): School-aged child with a cold
  • I (Intervention): Zinc lozenges
  • C (Comparison): Standard care
  • O (Outcome): Duration of symptoms

PICO Question:

Among school-aged children with colds, do zinc lozenges compared to standard care reduce the duration of symptoms?