Critical Appraisal Skills for Healthcare Students is your indispensable guide to understanding research papers, mastering critical appraisal, and most importantly, succeeding in your summative assignments. While this text is written with Level 5 students in mind, you will find it is a useful text at any academic level when required to engage in evidence-based practice.
In today’s ever-evolving healthcare system, the ability to critically appraise research evidence is crucial. In pre-registration programmes, this core skill is often assessed through written assignments. However, students can struggle not only to interpret research papers and evaluate their quality, but also to write about this appraisal in an academic way. This comprehensive textbook equips healthcare students with the evidence skills they need, while also enhancing their ability to produce high-quality assignments.
Authored by experienced academics with over two decades of teaching research and evidence-based practice, this text covers core topics such as: - The significance of evidence in practice, locating and selecting appropriate literature, and navigating assignments based on the appraisal of research - Strategies for reading research papers and understanding them before appraisal - The fundamentals of critiquing research, with Key Fact sheets summarising the design issues of specific types of research - How to move beyond EBP for academic assessment, towards using evidence in everyday professional practice
Critical Appraisal Skills for Healthcare Students is an excellent core text to master the art of critical appraisal and enhance academic performance.
Table of Contents
Foreword xii
Preface xiv
Acknowledgements xvi
Part I Finding Your Way Around! 1
Chapter 1 Introduction to Using This Book 3
1.1 Introduction 3
1.2 Who Is the Book For? 4
1.3 What Is in This Book? 4
1.3.1 Part 1: Finding Your Way Around! 4
1.3.2 Part 2: Digging in the Detail! 5
1.4 Chapter Summary 8
Chapter 2 Professional Practice and the Mandate for Evidence- based Practice 9
Five Things to Learn from This Chapter 9
Five Minutes with Sara, Midwifery Student 10
2.1 Introduction 11
2.2 Relevance: Why Healthcare Programmes Have EBP Modules 12
2.3 Development: Where Did EBP Come From? 14
2.4 Definitions: What Is EBP? 17
2.5 Process: How Does EBP Work? 21
2.6 Hierarchies: What Evidence Is Best? 23
2.7 Debate: What Are the Criticisms of EBP? 25
2.8 Writing About EBP in Your Assignment 27
2.9 Assignment Examples 27
2.10 End-of-Chapter Checkpoint 28
2.11 Chapter Summary 29
References 29
Chapter 3 The Task at Hand 33
Five Things to Learn from This Chapter 33
Five Minutes with Jack, Occupational Therapy Student 34
3.1 Introduction 35
3.2 The Importance of Learning Outcomes 35
3.3 How to Follow the EBP Process for an Assignment 35
3.4 Choosing a Topic 38
3.5 Turning a Topic into a Question 41
3.6 How to Develop a ‘Good’ Question 42
3.7 Benefits of a Good Question 44
3.8 Writing About EBP Questions in Your Assignment 45
3.9 Assignment Examples 45
3.10 End-of-Chapter Checkpoint 45
3.11 Chapter Summary 46
References 46
Chapter 4 Locating and Identifying Research 48
Five Things to Learn from This Chapter 48
Five Minutes with David, Nursing Associate Student 49
4.1 Introduction 50
4.2 How Much Time Do You Have? 51
4.3 Why Are You Searching for Literature? 51
4.4 Prepare to Be Frustrated! 52
4.5 Looking for the Evidence 53
4.5.1 Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles 56
4.5.2 Types of Journal Article 57
4.6 How to Find Research 57
4.6.1 Searching for Research 57
4.6.2 Internet Searching 59
4.6.3 Subject-Specific Databases 60
4.6.4 Developing a Search Strategy 62
4.6.5 Systematic Searching 63
4.7 Transparent Reporting of Search Methods 73
4.8 Writing About Systematic Searching in Your Assignment 74
4.9 Assignment Examples 74
4.10 End-of-Chapter Checkpoint 75
4.11 Chapter Summary 76
References 76
Chapter 5 Preparing the Ground for Appraisal 78
Five Things to Learn from This Chapter 78
Five Minutes with Jade, Mental Health Nursing Student 79
5.1 Introduction 80
5.2 Finding Your Way Around a Research Paper 80
5.3 Getting to Grips with Your Primary Study 85
5.4 Gather Your Tools 88
5.4.1 Research Resources 88
5.4.2 Peers and Group Support 89
5.4.3 Make a Plan 89
5.5 Writing About the Type of Research and Its Layout in Your Assignment 90
5.6 Assignment Examples 90
5.7 End-of-Chapter Checkpoint 91
5.8 Chapter Summary 92
References 92
Part II Digging in the Detail! 95
Chapter 6 Critical Appraisal 97
Five Things to Learn from This Chapter 97
Five Minutes with Tom, Radiography Student 98
6.1 Introduction 99
6.2 How to Use Part 2 99
6.3 Introducing the Quantitative Researcher 100
6.4 Introducing the Qualitative Researcher 103
6.5 Introducing the Mixed-Methods Researcher 105
6.6 Decision Time 108
6.7 The Final Decision 108
6.8 Preparing for Appraisal 109
6.9 Focusing in on Appraisal 110
6.10 Critical Appraisal 111
6.11 What Does Being ‘Critical’ Mean? 113
6.12 ‘Am I Doing It Right?’ 115
6.13 Writing About Critical Appraisal in Your Assignment 115
6.14 Assignment Examples 115
6.15 End-of-Chapter Checkpoint 116
6.16 Chapter Summary 117
References 117
Chapter 7 Appraising Quantitative Research 120
Five Things to Learn from This Chapter 120
Five Minutes with Arjan, Assistant Practitioner Student 121
7.1 Introduction 122
7.2 Characteristics of Quantitative Research 123
7.2.1 Typical Quantitative Aims 123
7.2.2 Typical Quantitative Data Types and Typical Data Collection Methods 125
7.2.3 Typical Quantitative Samples 126
7.2.4 Typical Quantitative Data Analysis Methods 130
7.2.4.1 Descriptive Analysis 131
7.2.4.2 Inferential Analysis 133
7.2.5 Typical Quantitative Findings 134
7.2.6 Examples 138
7.3 Typical Quality Markers for Quantitative Research 140
7.3.1 Objectivity, Validity, Reliability, Generalisability 140
7.3.2 The Overarching Concern in Quantitative Research: Bias 143
7.4 Quantitative Designs Key Facts Sheets 144
7.4.1 Surveys 146
7.4.2 Experimental Designs 151
7.4.3 Cohort Studies 156
7.4.4 Case-Control Studies 161
7.4.5 Other Designs 165
7.5 Your Turn! 165
7.6 Writing About Quantitative Research in Your Assignments 166
7.7 Assignment Examples 166
7.8 End-of-Chapter Checkpoint 167
7.9 Chapter Summary 168
References 168
Chapter 8 Appraising Qualitative Research 172
Five Things to Learn from This Chapter 172
Five Minutes with Jessica, Adult Nursing Student 173
8.1 Introduction 174
8.2 Characteristics of Qualitative Research 175
8.2.1 Typical Qualitative Aims 175
8.2.2 Typical Qualitative Data Collection Methods 177
8.2.3 Typical Qualitative Samples 177
8.2.4 Typical Qualitative Data Analysis Methods 179
8.2.5 Typical Qualitative Findings 184
8.2.6 Examples 184
8.3 Typical Quality Markers for Qualitative Research 188
8.3.1 Subjectivity, Credibility, Confirmability, Transferability 188
8.3.2 The Overarching Concern in Qualitative Research: Reflexivity 191
8.4 Qualitative Designs Key Facts Sheets 194
8.4.1 Qualitative Descriptive Designs 194
8.4.2 Phenomenology 198
8.4.3 Grounded Theory 202
8.4.4 Ethnography 206
8.4.5 Narrative Inquiry 210
8.4.6 Case Study 214
8.4.7 Other Designs 218
8.5 Your Turn! 218
8.6 Writing About Qualitative Research in Your Assignment 219
8.7 Assignment Examples 219
8.8 End-of-Chapter Checkpoint 220
8.9 Chapter Summary 221
References 221
Chapter 9 Writing Up Your Research Appraisal 227
Five Things to Learn from This Chapter 227
Five Minutes with Asha, Paramedic Student 228
9.1 Introduction 230
9.2 Writing Analytically 230
9.3 Preparing to Write Using the DJES Tool 234
9.4 Using DJES to Build Analytical Points 236
9.5 Examples Using DJES 237
9.6 Appraisal Outcome 246
9.7 End-of-Chapter Checkpoint 247
9.8 Chapter Summary 248
References 248
Chapter 10 Appraisal in Context 250
Five Things to Learn from This Chapter 250
Five Minutes with Abigail, Operating Department Practice Student 251
10.1 Introduction 252
10.2 The Relationship Between Primary Research and EBP 253
10.3 Evidence Synthesis 255
10.4 Evidence Implementation 259
10.4.1 Translating Evidence into Practice 259
10.4.2 Barriers to Implementing Evidence 261
10.4.2.1 Implementation Barrier: The Evidence 261
10.4.2.2 Implementation Barrier: The Organisation 262
10.4.2.3 Implementation Barrier: Healthcare Professionals 263
10.5 Writing About Evidence Implementation in Your Assignment 264
10.6 Assignment Examples 265
10.7 End-of-Chapter Checkpoint 266
10.8 You Made It to the End. . . Or Is It? 267
10.9 Final Words of Wisdom 267
References 268
Appendix 272
Index 282
