Essent Module 3: Discussion Responses to 2 Colleagues
Respond to at least two of your colleagues and provide further suggestions on how their database search might be improved.
Response exhibits synthesis, critical thinking, and application to practice settings. … Responds fully to questions posed by faculty. … Provides clear, concise opinions and ideas that are supported by at least two scholarly sources. … Demonstrates synthesis and understanding of learning objectives. … Communication is professional and respectful to colleagues.
APA Format
At least 2 paragraphs
At least 2 scholarly, current sources
Response #1 to colleen E:
My clinical issue of interest is early implementation of sepsis due to life saving measures and reduced hospital stays. I utilized search engines to help develop my PICO format to guide my search for best evidence (National Library of Medicine, 2024). My PICO question is: In patients with suspected sepsis, does implementation of sepsis bundle and early recognition, compared to standard or delayed care, shorten hospital stay and reduce mortality?
P (population)- patients with suspected sepsis
I (intervention)- implementation of sepsis bundle and early recognition
C (comparison)- standard or delayed care
O (outcomes)- shortened hospital stays and reduced mortality
When searching the operator without Boolean, the search results were very vast and nonspecific. The number of articles were 354. Once I added in Boolean operator search terms, the results were much more specific to what I was searching for and fewer options of journals. As I added in specific key words to my search with Boolean opporator, I could really narrow down to the specifics. The search then resulted with 56 articles. By utilizing Boolean operators, the search can look for multiple terms such as sepsis and early recognition to yield a more precise search result (Walden, 2025).
Strategies that I made to increase the rigor and effectiveness of my database search on my PICO(T) question is entering key words and specific words like OR. I utilized Library of Congress website to search by subject and then advanced search (Library of Congress, n.d.). I had more success with CINHAL and PubMed. My results were expanded by adding the OR between sepsis and early recognition. After resulting in 16 results, I added the word OR up at the top search bar as well. Another strategy is truncation by adding a word and typing an asterisk behind it. An example of truncation in my search bar would be sepsis* OR screen* short for screening.
References
Library of Congress. (n.d.). Search/browse help: Boolean operators and nesting.
National Library of Medicine. (2024). Using PICO to Frame Clinical Questions. Www.nlm.nih.gov.
Response #2 to Almontesha J W W:
A clinical issue of interest in my practice is fall prevention in hospitalized adult patients. Falls are a common safety concern in acute care settings and can result in serious injuries, increased length of stay, and higher healthcare costs. I work on a trauma and orthopedic unit that involves me frequently caring for patients who are at high risk for falls due to mobility limitations, postoperative status, and medication effects. This makes fall prevention a critical area for evidence-based practice (EBP) and clinical inquiry (Dykes et al., 2010).
To explore this topic, I searched the Walden Library using databases such as CINAHL Plus with Full Text and MEDLINE. I initially began with a broad search term, fall prevention, which yielded thousands of results. As recommended, I refined my search using Boolean operators and additional keywords such as hospitalized adults, inpatient, and acute care. For example, using the search string (fall prevention AND hospitalized adults) significantly reduced the number of results to more relevant studies. Further narrowing the search with (fall prevention AND inpatient AND randomized controlled trial) yielded fewer but more specific results focused on intervention effectiveness. As I added more specific terms, the number of articles decreased, but the quality and relevance of the articles improved, particularly when filtering for peer-reviewed and original research studies (Schmidt & Brown, 2025).
Based on this clinical issue, my PICOT question is:
In hospitalized adult patients, how do evidence-based fall prevention interventions such as patient education and structured safety protocols, compared to standard fall precautions, affect fall rates and fall-related injuries during hospitalization? The PICOT framework supports the development of focused, searchable clinical questions that guide efficient evidence retrieval (Stillwell et al., 2010).
To increase the rigor and effectiveness of my database search, I would use several strategies. First, I would incorporate Boolean operators (AND, OR) to combine synonyms such as inpatient OR hospitalized adults to broaden the search while maintaining relevance. Second, I would apply filters such as publication date (last 5 years), peer-reviewed status, and research type to ensure high-quality evidence. Third, I would use subject headings (e.g., CINAHL headings or MeSH terms) to improve search precision. Finally, I would review reference lists of selected articles to identify additional relevant studies. These strategies support a more efficient and comprehensive search process, which is essential for developing strong evidence-based clinical decisions (Schmidt & Brown, 2025).
References
Dykes, P. C., Carroll, D. L., Hurley, A., Lipsitz, S., Benoit, A., Chang, F., Meltzer, S., Tsurikova, R., Zuyov, L., & Middleton, B. (2010). Fall prevention in acute care hospitals: A randomized trial. Journal of the American Medical Association, 304(17), 19121918.
Schmidt, N. A., & Brown, J. M. (2025). Evidence-based practice for nurses: Appraisal and application of research (6th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Stillwell, S. B., Fineout-Overholt, E., Melnyk, B. M., & Williamson, K. M. (2010). Evidence-based practice, step by step: Asking the clinical question: A key step in evidence-based practice. American Journal of Nursing, 110(3), 5861.

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