PICO question

Nursing Students Student Assist

Published

Ok guys i'm in my last class for my BSN and i'm having trouble with my PICO question. idk why i can't get it right. I want to talk about communication between nurses and patients and how it improves quality patient care. the plan is to implement bedside reporting to solve this issue. This is what I have:

PICO question?

will bedside shift report improve quality patient care when compared to shift report at the nurses' station?

P- (Patient, population, or problem): Poor communication between nurses and patients from shift to shift.

I- (Intervention): Implement the use of bedside shift report.

C- (Comparison with other treatment/current practice): Compared with report given at the nurse's station.

O- (Desired outcome): Improved communication

Someone help. My brain doesn't know what it wants to do. I think i'm making this more complicated than needed. I want to implement bedside reporting so that there is effective communication between nurses and patients. Involving the patient in their care improves communication between nurses as they are there to catch and correct misconceptions/miscommunication regarding their care. This can only happen if report is given at the bedside rather than at the nurses' station. How do i even measure "improved communication"? patient and nurse surveys? and how to i measure this "improvement"?

I never had issues with PICO question and format in my last class. I just don't know why I can't get it right this time around. Someone help.

-TIA

Specializes in RETIRED Cath Lab/Cardiology/Radiology.

Moved to Nursing Student Assistance area.

Specializes in Public Health, TB.

In your question you have improved patient care, but in your PICO breakout, you have improved communication. For improved care, you can use data that is most likely already captured like meds given on time or med errors, infection rates, falls, pressure ulcers.

For communication, yeah, surveys are probably the way to go, because its rather a subjective outcome.

Have you done your lit search yet? Some previously done research might give you some hints on measurements and tools.

Good Luck!

Specializes in Urology.
PICO question?

will bedside shift report improve quality patient care when compared to shift report at the nurses' station?

I read your question as follows:Y

P:

I: Bedside shift report

C: Report given in the nurses station

O: Improve quality patient care

Your outcome is different in what you stated and what you have in your question. Your question outcome refers to improving quality patient care and you state in yours that its improved communication. There is no mention of improved communication as an outcome. In order to meet what you want, you'll need to rewrite your question. You need to add a population such as day shift nurses on med surg or nurses working in a hospital setting, etc.

I can't believe im going to do this but it should read as follows: Of nurses who work in a hospital setting does bedside report improve nurse to nurse communication compared to that of nurse to nurse communication at the nursing station.

P: Nurses in hospital setting

I: Bedside report

C: Communication at the nurses station

O: Improve communication

good luck

+ Add a Comment