Nursing

Now use Boolean operators to connect your search terms. 

Use OR to combine all the terms for the same concept: mental health OR wellbeing

Use AND to combine terms from different concepts: mental health AND support

Use quotation marks to search for a phrase: "mental health"

Use brackets to group all terms from the same concept together

Watch the following video to learn more about Boolean operators

When you put it together:

("registered nurse") AND (leadership OR mentor) AND (barrier OR difficulty)

Please note, this example is intended only to demonstrate a search strategy. It does not include all possible search terms.

You will probably need to alter your search terms as you go.

Suggested databases for this assignment are:

The following are direct links to nursing codes and standards. Some may require you to find the relevant link and download a document.

• NMBS code of conduct for nurses
• Registered nurse standards for practice
• International code of ethics for nurses (This document is in effect in Australia from 2018)
• National safety and quality health standards
• NMBA decision making framework

Is this information relevant to your assignment? Is there likely to be better information? This will depend on what you are trying to find out. Often you will need to read the abstract to find out.

Is this aimed at the correct audience? Articles for this assessment should be peer reviewed. If you are not sure, you can copy and paste the title into Quicksearch to see if the purple peer review icon shows in the result:

Alternatively, you can check the journal title in Ulrichs. If it has a small black icon that looks like a book next to the title, it is peer reviewed (called refereed in Ulrichs).

For more information on evaluating specific study types, please see the Appraise tab on the Evidence Based Practice page of this guide.

Who wrote it? What are their qualifications? Are the qualifications relevant to the topic? Most peer reviewed articles will have information about the authors, often at the end or hyperlinked, with their qualifications listed. 

Where do they work? Who do they work for? Generally, authors should be working for a university or a research centre of some kind. 

Are they likely to have a good understanding of this field?

For more information on evaluating specific study types, please see the Appraise tab on the Evidence Based Practice page of this guide.

What is the study population size and characteristics? Keep in mind this is dependent on the study type, for example qualitative studies usually have smaller study populations than quantitative. The population does need to be fairly similar however, to enable accurate results and to make sure any effects reported are due to the treatment. For example, a treatment for back pain may look more effective if the group receiving the treatment is much younger than the group that doesn't.

Is there a control group? This is a group that does not receive the treatment, and allows the researchers to compare them to the group getting the treatment to see if it works.

Is there blinding? This is where the control and treatment groups do not know whether they are getting the intervention or not. Remember though that this might not be possible for some interventions, for example researchers testing a new vaccine can give the control group a saline solution instead of the vaccine, but if they are testing a new massage technique it is almost impossible for the participants to be unaware if they received a massage or not!

Do the statistics make sense and match the authors' claims? 

For more information on evaluating specific study types, please see the Appraise tab on the Evidence Based Practice page of this guide.

Who funded the study? Is it a company, university or research organisation? If it is a company, do they manufacture a product being tested? If you are not sure, can always search for them on the internet. If the URL ends in .com, it is a company.

Is there any obvious bias where the authors or their employers are likely to benefit from the study recommendations? For example, if the authors work for a particular company and recommend the use of one of their products, this could indicate a risk of bias.

Does it state what the authors' were trying to find out? The research aims or questions should be clearly stated in the beginning of the article, and the conclusions should describe what they found out.

For more information on evaluating specific study types, please see the Appraise tab on the Evidence Based Practice page of this guide.