Using the PICO format helps one ask a clinical question in a way that is relevant to patient care, answerable, and searchable. Consider the PICO terms as searching key words.
| P - Patient/Population |
The patient population or disease of interest - With certain disorder (e.g., with hepatitis)- Treatment setting (e.g. inpatient/outpatient/ICU) - Age - Gender - Ethnicity |
|
I - Intervention |
The intervention or range of interventions of interest - Therapy- Exposure to disease - Prognostic factor A - Risk behavior (e.g., smoking) |
| C - Comparison/Control |
What you want to compare the intervention against - Standard of care, other therapy- No disease - Placebo or no intervention/therapy - Prognostic factor B - Absence of risk factor (e.g., non-smoking) |
| O - Outcome of interest |
The outcome you would like to see affected - Quality of life, symptom reduction- Mortality - Risk of disease - Accuracy of diagnosis |
Adapted from: Melnyk, B. M., & Fineout-Overholt, E. (2005). Evidence-based practice in nursing & healthcare : A guide to best practice. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Selecting treatments; evaluating efficacy, harm, and cost
Q. In____(P)_____, what is the effect of _____(I)_____on ____(O)_____ compared with _____(C)_____?
Evaluating preventative strategies
Q. For ____(P)____ does the use of ______(I)_____ reduce the future risk of ____(O)_____ compared with ____(C)____?
Selecting and interpreting diagnostic tests; considering precision, accuracy, acceptability, expense, safety
Q. Are (Is) ____(I)______ more accurate in diagnosing ____(P)_____ compared with ____(C)_____?
Estimating clinical courses given outside factors
Q. Does ____(I)______ influence ____(O)____ in patients who have _____(P)_____?
Identifying causes
Q. Are ____(P)______ who have ____(I)_____at risk for/of ___(O)____ compared with ____(C)____ ?
Adapted from: Melnyk BM and Fineout-Overholt E. (2011). Evidence-based practice in nursing & healthcare: A guide to best practice. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
In (Patient/Problem) does (Intervention/Exposure) or (Comparison) affect (Outcome)?
Q. Do wearable fitness trackers as part of a fitness plan lead to increased weight loss in overweight adults compared to diet and exercise alone?
Q. In adults meeting severe sepsis criteria, does lactate-clearance guided therapy reduce all-cause mortality as compared with early goal-directed therapy?
Q. In patients with atrial fibrillation treated with non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants, does the simplified ABH-score predict bleeding risk as accurately as the HAS-BLED score?
Q. In patients in a free-clinic, do automatically generated text/postcard reminders increase screening rates for STDs?
