It is not always easy to search for the best answer to a question simply by typing it into a search engine. 

1. Define the question clearly using a framework (PICO or similar) helps to find evidence that can answer the question.
2. Brainstorm ideas by searching Primo Search and Google Scholar. 
3. Can the population be better defined to improve our search? 

By carefully defining the PICO elements of our clinical question, we can more effectively search the literature, and find articles that will answer our specific question.

The PICO framework is commonly used to formulate the clinical question. Each of the 4 letters identifies a key component of the question:

PICO is commonly used when one intervention is being compared with another, or with no intervention at all.

Sometimes this is expanded to PICOTT, which adds on extra letters for:

T        Type of  Question - Such as a diagnosis, prognosis, therapy, aetiology/harm, or prevention question

T        Type of Study - Includes the study design that would best answer the question: randomised controlled trial; cohort study; case controlled study; case series; case report etc. See also Levels of Evidence.

There's a good outline of this, including some self-testing, on the National Library of Medicine's PubMed information site: Using PICO to frame clinical questions.

You won't need to use every element of the PICO as concepts to search. Often there is no C (Comparison) and the Outcome will come out of the results of your search.

There are many other frameworks that can be used for different types of questions e.g. PCC and SPIDER. You should use the framework that best suits your type of question. Discussion and examples are in the other frameworks section.

JBI recommends the PCC (Population (or Participants), Concept, and Context) search framework to develop the research question of a scoping review. In some instances, just the concept and context are used in the search. It is useful for both qualitative and quantitative (mixed methods) topics.

Research question: Does handwashing reduce hospital acquired infections in elderly people?

See the JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis, Chapter 10: Scoping Reviews: 10.2.2 - Developing the title and question. This section includes recommendations for structuring the review title and question/s, incorporating the PCC elements.