Mount Carmel LibGuides: EBPGuide: PICO Resources

Helpful PICOT Resources

PICO Video: Formulating Your Question Using PICO

In evidence-based nursing, it's important to have an answerable question. The PICO framework can help you identify the major elements of your topic so that you can translate them into an effective literature search.

"Nursing Research: Formulating Your Question Using PICO" by Carrie Price, MLS, Albert S. Cook Library, Towson University is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

Click on the Retry Button below to reset the puzzle.

Use these worksheets to create a researchable question using the P.I.C.O.T. formula

PICO Worksheet and Search Strategy (Adapted from: Miller. 2001. National Center for Dental Hygiene Research)

Completed PICO Worksheet and Search Strategy

PICO Worksheet with examples

7 Steps to the Perfect PICO Search
Searching for high-quality clinical research evidence – whether you are a nurse or a researcher – can be a daunting task, yet it is an integral part of the evidence-based practice process. One way to streamline the nursing research process for nurses and researchers of all backgrounds is to utilize the PICO search strategy. PICO is a format for developing a good clinical research question prior to starting one’s research. It is a mnemonic used to describe the four elements of a sound clinical foreground question. (Yale University’s Cushing/Whitney Medical Library).

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