Nursing Evidence-Based Practice: Research Evidence Appraisal Tool
Evidence Level and Quality:_______________________
Article Title:
Number:
Author(s):
PublicationDate:
Journal:
Setting:
Sample
(Composition&size):
Does this evidence address my EBP question?
£Yes
£No
Do not proceed with appraisal of this evidence
Level of Evidence (Study Design)
A. Is this a report of a single research study?
If No, go to B
.
1. Was there manipulation of an independent variable?
Was there a control group?
Were study participants randomly assigned to the interventionand control groups?
If Yes to all three, this is a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) or Experimental Study
If Yes to #1and #2 and No to #3, OR Yes to #1 and No to #2and#3, this is Quasi Experimental
(some degree of investigator control, some manipulation of
an independent variable, lacks random assignment to groups, may have a control group)
If No to #1, #2, and #3, this is Non-Experimental
(no manipulation of independent variable, can be descriptive, comparative, or correlational, often uses secondary data)
or Qualitative
(exploratory in naturesuch as interviews or focus groups, a starting point for studies for which little research currently exists, has small sample sizes, may use results to design empirical studies)
NEXT, complete THE bOTTOM SECTION ON THE Following PAGE
, “
STUDY FINDINGS THAT HELP YOU ANSWER THE EBP QUESTION”
£ LEVEL I
£LEVEL II
£ LEVEL III
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£No
£No
£No
£No
B. Is this a summary of multiple research studies?
If No, go to Non-Research Evidence Appraisal Form.
1. Does it employ a comprehensive search strategy and rigorous appraisal method (
Systematic Review)?
If No, use Non-Research Evidence Appraisal Tool; if Yes:
a. Does it combine and analyze results from the studies to generate a new statistic (effect size)? (
Systematic review with meta-analysis
)
b. Does it analyze and synthesize concepts from qualitative studies? (
Systematic review with meta-synthesis
)
If Yes to either a or b, go to #2B below.
2. For Systematic Reviews and Systematic Reviews with meta-analysis or meta-synthesis:
a. Are all studies included RCTs?
b. Are the studies a combination of RCTs and quasi-experimental or
quasi-experimental only?
c. Are the studies a combination of RCTs, quasi-experimental and
non-experimental or non-experimental only?
d. Are any or all of the included studies qualitative?
complete THE
NEXT SECTION,
“
STUDY FINDINGS THAT HELP YOU ANSWER THE EBP QUESTION”
£ LEVEL I
£ LEVEL II
£ LEVEL IIl
£ LEVEL IIl
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£No
£No
£No
£No
Study findings that help you answer the EBP question
:
ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER NOW
NOW COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING PAGE, “QUALITY APPRAISAL OF RESEARCH STUDIES”, AND ASSIGN A QUALITY SCORE TO YOUR ARTICLE
Quality Appraisal of Research Studies
· Does the researcher identify what is known and not known about the problem and how the study will address any gaps in knowledge?
· Was the purpose of the study clearly presented?
· Was the literature review current (most sources within last 5 years or classic)?
· Was sample size sufficient based on study design and rationale?
· If there is a control group:
o Were the characteristics and/or demographics similar in both the control and intervention groups?
o If multiple settings were used, were the settings similar?
o Were all groups equally treated except for the interventiongroup(s)?
· Are data collection methods described clearly?
· Were the instruments reliable (Cronbach’s α [
alpha
]
>
0.70)?
· Was instrument validity discussed?
· If surveys/questionnaires were used, was the response rate
>
25%?
· Were the results presented clearly?
· If tables were presented, was the narrative consistent with the table content?
· Were study limitations identified and addressed?
· Were conclusions based on results?
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£NA
£NA
£NA
£NA
£NA
£NA
£NA
Quality Appraisal of Systematic Review with or without Meta-Analysis or Meta-Synthesis
· Was the purpose of the systematic review clearly stated?
· Were reports comprehensive, with reproducible search strategy?
o Key search terms stated
o Multiple databases searchedand identified
o Inclusion and exclusion criteria stated
· Was there a flow diagram showing the number of studies eliminated at each level of review?
· Were details of included studies presented (design, sample, methods, results, outcomes, strengths and limitations)?
· Were methods for appraising the strength of evidence (level and quality) described?
· Were conclusions based on results?
o Results were interpreted
o Conclusions flowed logically from the interpretation and systematic review question
· Did the systematic review include both a section addressing limitations and how they were addressed?
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£Yes
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
£No
Quality Rating Based on quality appraisal
A
High quality:
consistent, generalizable results; sufficient sample size for the study design; adequate control; definitive conclusions; consistent recommendations based on comprehensiveliterature review that includes thorough reference to scientific evidence
B
Good quality:
reasonably consistent results; sufficient sample size for the study design; some control, and fairly definitive conclusions; reasonably consistent recommendations based on fairly comprehensive literature review that includes some reference to scientific evidence
C
Low quality or major flaws
:
little evidence with inconsistent results; insufficient sample size for the study design; conclusions cannot be drawn