NUR 5213 - Teaching & Learning Principles of Nursing Education

The third step in the Evidence-Based Practice process is to critically appraise the research. This means that you want to take an in-depth look at the research available on your topic and determine what research responds best to your research question and if it adequately supports making a change. 

When appraising research, keep in mind the following three criteria:

Quality 
Look for trials that are randomised and double blind (to avoid selection and observer bias) and where we know what happened to most of the subjects in the trial.

Validity
Look for trials that mimic clinical practice, or could be used in clinical practice, and with outcomes that make sense. For instance, in chronic disorders we want long-term, not short-term trials. We are also interested in outcomes that are large, useful, and statistically very significant (p < 0.01, a 1 in 100 chance of being wrong).

Size
Look for trials (or collections of trials) that have large numbers of patients, to avoid being wrong because of the random play of chance. For instance, to be sure that a number needed to treat (NNT) of 2.5 is really between 2 and 3, we need results from about 500 patients. If that NNT is above 5, we need data from thousands of patients.

For an article to be strong evidence, it has to fulfil the requirements of all three criteria.

Source:  Critical Appraisal. Bandolier Journal. 

Tools to help you to interpret the clinical and statistical significance of data that is reported in research:

Our books are shelved in the Dewey Decimal Classification System.  Click on the "text item location" on each item record to send the call number to your phone for easy searching. eBooks in the SBU Libraries can be found by searching the library catalog. For assistance in locating and downloading eBooks, please visit the How To.... eBook help page. 

Are you having trouble accessing articles? Consult the “Accessing Articles” tab under “Conducting Research” on the left side of this guide for information on how to access articles.