Skip to Main Content

RESP 6601 - Emerging Issues in Respiratory Care

Guidelines and Best Practices

Evidence Based Tutorials

The PICO Model

Patient or Problem - What are the characteristics of the patient? What is the condition or disease about which you are concerned?

Interventions or exposures - What do you want to do with this patient (e.g. treat, diagnose, observe)?

Comparison Interventions (if appropriate) - What is the alternative to the intervention (e.g. placebo, different drug, surgery)?

Outcomes - What do you hope to accomplish, measure, improve, or affect? What are the relevant outcomes (e.g. morbidity, death, complications)?

Structure a Search With PICO(T)

VIDEO: Using PICO to Structure Your Literature Search

(from the John W. Scott Health Sciences Library, University of Alberta)

VIDEO: Using PICO to formulate a search question