In health/medical research, and particularly in the process of Evidence-Based Practice, it can be useful to express your research topic as a clinical question. That way you can focus clearly on exactly what you need to know and work out the concepts you need to search for.

The clinical question should be:

• relevant to the patient or the problem
• formulated in such a way as to help with the search for an answer.   

Search frameworks are mnemonics that can help you focus your research question. They are also useful in helping you to identify the concepts and terms you will use in your literature search.

The PICO framework is commonly used to formulate clinical questions around interventions and their efficacy. The PICO letters each stand for a key concept that you'll be looking for in the literature to help you answer the question:

The PCC framework is often used for mixed methods (either qualitative or quantitative) research:

For more information on the PCC framework please see JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis 11.2.4 Inclusion criteria

Other frameworks include:

Other frameworks may be helpful, depending on your question and your field of interest. PICO can be adapted to PICOT (which adds Time) or PICOS (which adds Study design), or PICOC (adding Context).

• SPIDER: Sample, Phenomenon of Interest, Design, Evaluation, Research type  

• PEO: Population, Exposure, Outcomes

James Cook University Library provides examples of some of these frameworks, including PCC: Scoping Reviews / Define the question

You can also try some PICO examples in the National Library of Medicine's PubMed training site: Using PICO to frame clinical questions.

TIP:  If you use all the elements of your search framework to combine terms, you may find you have narrowed the search too much and will struggle to find relevant studies. Try using only the most critical elements from the mnemonic for concepts to search. For example, in a PICO search, you would sometimes exclude the O (outcome) terms in your search strategy as the outcomes may come from combining the other terms. If the C (comparison) is the status quo, you wouldn't use those terms either. Try to avoid concepts that have vague or broad meanings, such as benefits or health effects.

Example Topic - Dose Reduction Strategies Report

In this assessment, you will create an evidence-informed report that examines current and emerging dose reduction strategies in CT.  Write this report in the context that is relevant to you and include radiation risks, international best practice, statutory requirements and evidence of efficacy.  You also need to link to MRPBA domain 4 (Evidence-informed practitioner) and domain 5.4 (Maintain safety of the workplace and associated environments) and 1A.3 (Perform diagnostic CT imaging) /1B.4 (Perform CT imaging) / 1C.5 (Perform CT imaging).   

Following this, you will reflect on your learning experience in a meaningful way to identify new knowledge and any gaps that require action.

Example PICO framework:

The question has now been narrowed to its key elements and includes words that can be used as search terms: CT, radiation dose, dose reduction strategies. After placing all your concepts into the PICO framework you can then use this information to develop your clinical question.

If you want to learn more about PICO and other question formulation techniques take a look at Evidence-Based Practice Step 1 Ask

Please note: the information provided in this guide is for demonstration purposes. Please refer to your subject outline for full details and requirements of your assessment task.

The use of synonyms as alternate search terms for your topic's main concepts will help to broaden your search.

Dictionaries and encyclopaedias can help you get an overview of a concept and help to identify synonyms/additional keywords, such as those listed below: