Nursing

PICO Worksheet

What is the PICO question? In individuals with atherosclerosis, does patient education, compared to no patient education, reduce the rate of progression of the disease?

Define each element of the question below:

P- Individuals with atherosclerosis

I- Patient education

C- No education

O- Reduction in the rate of progression of the disease

What is the practice issue/problem?

Atherosclerosis is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity in the United States. It has been attributed to poor lifestyle choices, such as the consumption of high levels of cholesterol. Correspondingly, there is a need to contain the progression of the disease in the general population in order to improve patient outcomes in the treatment of the disease.

What is the practice area?

___ Clinical

__X_ Education

___ Administration

___ Other

How was the practice issue identified? (check all that apply)

___ Safety/risk management concerns

_X__ Unsatisfactory patient outcomes

___ Wide variations in practice

___ Significant financial concerns

___ Difference between hospital and community practice

__X_ Clinical practice issue is a concern

___ Procedure or process is a time waster

___ Clinical practice issue has no scientific base

___ Other:

What evidence must be gathered? (check all that apply)

_X__ Literature search

___ Guidelines

___ Expert Opinion

___ Patient Preferences

___ Clinical Expertise

___ Financial Analysis

___ Standards (Regulatory, professional, community)

___ Other

Search terms: atherosclerosis and patient education

Databases to search: Proquest, NCBI, and Ebcohost

Search Strategies: Use the aforementioned search terms to find relevant peer-reviewed articles in the databases identified above.

Evidence Appraisal Worksheet

PICO Question:

In individuals with atherosclerosis, does patient education, compared to no patient education, reduce the rate of progression of the disease?

APA Reference for Article

Give the APA-formatted reference for the article.

Type of Source

*Research: Peer-reviewed article

*Non-research systematic review, clinical practice guidelines, organizational experience, or expert opinion/case study/literature review

Strength of Research

Discuss the strength of the sources.

Report if evidence is High, Good, or Low/Major Flaw. Use the tools on page 238-244 of your text and discuss the reasons why you have assigned a particular level of quality.

Brief Description of Research

Address the questions.

*How does the information in the article apply to the project problem or proposed intervention?

*Summarize in your own words.

* Include results of the study and how these results are applicable to your project.

* What is the recommendation of the source for clinical practice?

1

Shah, P., Bajaj B., Virk, H., Bikkina, M., &amp Shamoon, F. (2015). Rapid progression of coronary atherosclerosis:&nbspA review. Thrombosis, 2015. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/634983

Research: Peer-reviewed article.

The strength of this resource is high due to the fact that it provides evidence of the current high rates of progression of atherosclerosis and the need to address the matter.

This study establishes that some of the risk factors for the rapid progression of atherosclerosis in the general population are the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and genetic mutations among others (Shah et al., 2015). Essentially, patient education can allow individuals to identify and avoid these factors in order to reduce the progression of atherosclerosis.

2

Stokes, P., &amp Urquhart, C. (2011). Profiling information behaviour of nursing students: Part 1: Quantitative findings.&nbspJournal of Documentation,&nbsp67(6), 908-932.

Research: Peer-reviewed article.

The strength of this resource is high due to the fact that it demonstrates the usefulness of patient education in the improvement of patient education in nursing.

Notably, this journal article supports Virginia Henderson’s needs theory, which holds nurses responsible for ensuring patient education in order to yield desirable care outcomes (Stokes &amp Urquhart, 2011). This resource evaluates other prevailing studies that support the same claim.

3

Aaron, C. P., Chervona, Y., Kawut, S. M., Diez Roux, A.,V., Shen, M., Bluemke, D. A., . . . R, G. B. (2016). Particulate matter exposure and cardiopulmonary differences in the multi-ethnic study of atherosclerosis.&nbspEnvironmental Health Perspectives (Online),&nbsp124(8), 1166.

Research: Peer-reviewed article

The strength of this source is good due to the fact that it demonstrates the various ways in which people can unknowingly develop atherosclerosis through exposure to particulate matter in the environment. Essentially, this suggests the need for education to mitigate the problem. Nevertheless, this study does not evaluate the need for patient education directly, making it only a good resource.

According to the article, prolonged exposure to particulate matter leads to the increase in the mass of the right ventricle, which is a risk factor for atherosclerosis (Aaron et al., 2016). It also informs that patients need to be aware of harmful particulate matter in their environment in order to keep cardiovascular disease at bay.

4

Tilley, L. (2015).&nbspTheory and practice in the bioarchaeology of care. Cham: Springer.

Non-research: Literature review

The strength of this resource is high due to the fact that it endorses the need theory by Virginia Henderson, which in turn supports patient education as a viable method for fostering patients’ independence and improving patient outcomes.

This resource establishes patient education as a perfect medium for reducing the progression of various diseases and improving the outcomes of care. In such a manner, it is applicable to the research question as it suggests that patient education could be essential to mitigating atherosclerosis.

According to the need theory, the nurse’s role is to assist the patient to acquire the knowledge or will that he/she requires to maintain health during post treatment (Tilley, 2015).