Initial Post: Evidence Based Practice

Deb Kanya
Initial Post Polit & Beck, (2012) describe Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) as an integration of clinical expertise, patient values, and the best research evidence. One of the more challenging aspects of EBP is the actual research on a particular topic. The fact is there is a multitude of journals and reviews etc. on any given subject; for this reason it is imperative that one knows how to conduct a proper search for pertinent information. Due to the complexity of literature searches and the amount of information available it is prudent to follow a guide while doing research. Trying to determine the credibility and importance of information is daunting. Therefore using a tool to determine the strength of resources is important.

The most crucial component of searching databases is determining which terms to use. Through trial and error, I found that using the words nausea and vomiting yielded many articles on my subject. Under the Cochran Database of Systematic Reviews, Joanna Briggs Institute and Database of Abstract of Reviews of Effects (DARE) there is a total of 472 articles 24 of which are pertinent to my research topic. Although the first level of the hierarchy yielded many articles, level two was not as successful. At the critically appraised topics portion of the pyramid, the databases are the National guideline clearing house, Annual Reviews, and Best BETs. Of the 488 articles in these three databases, none applied to my subject matter. Moving on to the next level, critically appraised individual articles the databases are: EvidenceUpdates from BMJ, ACP Journal Club, Evidence-Based Nursing. Unfortunately, this too was unproductive, of the 49 articles none was relevant to the subject of multimodal medication versus single dose or no medication for postoperative nausea and vomiting. The above databases and levels use what Walden University (2012) describes as ?filtered resources.? The bottom four levels of the evidence pyramid use ?unfiltered resources? Walden University (2012). CINHAL Plus with Full Text yielded

For example, there is specific information about each trial reviewed. The information is broken down into considerable detail. Although the articles from the CINHAL database are not as detailed, they are informative in other ways. Some of the articles may give opinions coupled with statistics from studies whereas the systematic reviews appear to have more of a mathematical component (statistics).
Tip when searching