Discussion: Reviewing the current body of literature

Discussion: Reviewing the current body of literature

An important step in the EBP process is reviewing the current body of literature to better understand the subject or topic in which you are interested. By conducting a review of the literature, you are building foundational knowledge about the topic; later, you can use this background to build new insights. Developing a strong grasp of a topic can only be garnered by taking the time to thoroughly search for relevant information and resources.

For this Discussion, you will practice searching the literature to find evidence on a specific topic.

To prepare:

• Choose a simple search term(s) relating to a topic of your PICOT question.
• Review the information on the evidence hierarchy discussed in Chapter 2 of the course text, in the article, “Facilitating Access to Pre-Processed Research Evidence in Public Health,” and in the multimedia presentation “Hierarchy of Evidence Pyramid,” found in this week’s Learning Resources.
• Review the information on the Walden Library’s website, “Levels of evidence.” Take a few minutes to explore the different types of databases available for each level of evidence and focus on the meaning of filtered and non-filtered resources.
• Conduct a literature search in the Walden Library on your selected topic using the databases that you reviewed. Use at least one database for each of the three levels of filtered information and at least one unfiltered database. Record the number of hits that you find at each level of the hierarchy of evidence.
• Select one article from the results at each level of the hierarchy. Compare the articles based on the quality and depth of information. What would be the value of each resource if you were determining an evidence-based practice?

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You must proofread your paper. But do not strictly rely on your computer’s spell-checker and grammar-checker; failure to do so indicates a lack of effort on your part and you can expect your grade to suffer accordingly. Papers with numerous misspelled words and grammatical mistakes will be penalized. Read over your paper – in silence and then aloud – before handing it in and make corrections as necessary. Often it is advantageous to have a friend proofread your paper for obvious errors. Handwritten corrections are preferable to uncorrected mistakes.

Use a standard 10 to 12 point (10 to 12 characters per inch) typeface. Smaller or compressed type and papers with small margins or single-spacing are hard to read. It is better to let your essay run over the recommended number of pages than to try to compress it into fewer pages.

Likewise, large type, large margins, large indentations, triple-spacing, increased leading (space between lines), increased kerning (space between letters), and any other such attempts at “padding” to increase the length of a paper are unacceptable, wasteful of trees, and will not fool your professor.

The paper must be neatly formatted, double-spaced with a one-inch margin on the top, bottom, and sides of each page. When submitting hard copy, be sure to use white paper and print out using dark ink. If it is hard to read your essay, it will also be hard to follow your argument.