Pick That PICO
What does each letter in PICO stand for?
Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome
A randomized controlled trial is a what kind of evidence source?
What is Primary
What type of bias occurs when researchers only report favorable results and leave out negative findings?
Reporting bias or publication bias
What Boolean operator should you use to narrow a search by combining terms?
AND
What is the primary research database for occupational therapy?
OTseeker or AJOT (OTseeker is more database-style, AJOT is a journal)
Identify the Intervention: A study investigates if sensory integration therapy improves classroom behavior in children with autism.
Sensory integration therapy
What type of source is a systematic review?
What is Secondary?
A drug company funds a study on its own medication. What bias should you look out for?
Conflict of interest or sponsorship bias
What is truncation, and what symbol is commonly used?
A search technique that retrieves word variants using a symbol like * (e.g., “occup*” finds “occupation,” “occupational,” etc.)
Which South College platform gives access to library resources and databases?
South College Library Portal or EBSCOhost
Form a PICO question: You want to compare virtual reality vs traditional balance training in stroke rehab.
In adults post-stroke (P), does virtual reality training (I) compared to traditional balance training (C) improve balance outcomes (O)?
Which of the following is NOT peer-reviewed: A) AJOT article, B) Personal blog post, C) Scoping review in OTJR?
Personal blog post
Identify the assumption: "Since Group A showed improvement, we know the therapy works for everyone."
Overgeneralization or selection bias
Which of these is a more effective search phrase:
A) "OT AND Stroke AND Balance"
B) "Occupational Therapy Stroke Balance Outcomes Therapy"
A) "OT AND Stroke AND Balance"
Name two scholarly databases where you can find peer-reviewed OT articles.
CINAHL, PubMed, Cochrane Library, Scopus (any two are acceptable)
Which part of the PICO question is missing: "In elderly patients with arthritis, does aquatic therapy compared to no therapy improve joint mobility?"
Outcome (joint mobility is present, so none are missing – trick question!) or Alternate acceptable: "None, all elements are present."
Name a tertiary source used in evidence-based practice.
Textbooks, clinical guidelines, encyclopedias
What is confirmation bias in research?
When researchers or readers focus on information that supports their preexisting beliefs and ignore contradictory evidence.
Why should you use quotation marks around phrases like "occupational therapy" in a search?
It keeps the words together as an exact phrase
What feature in a database helps you keep searches organized and easy to repeat later?
Search history or saved searches
Why is the Comparison element sometimes optional in a PICO question?
Some clinical questions focus on intervention effectiveness without needing a direct comparison, especially in exploratory or single-treatment studies.
You read an article that summarizes findings from 10 RCTs without analyzing them statistically. Is it a meta-analysis or a systematic review?
Systematic review (meta-analysis includes statistical synthesis)
A study reports statistically significant results, but the difference is so small it's not meaningful in real life. What’s the issue?
Lack of clinical significance
You find too many irrelevant results. Name two ways to improve your search.
Add more keywords with AND, apply filters (date, subject), or use more specific terms
You need full-text access to an article. What should you do if the database only shows an abstract?
Use interlibrary loan, check another database, or contact the librarian