Searching for Evidence

1. Searching for Evidence Name: Helen Robinson Position: Librarian Australian College of Nursing

2. Searching for Evidence

3. The problem • Health care professionals are concerned about hand washing compliance as staff in their hospital complain of being overworked and unable to get to the sinks to regularly wash their hands. They wonder whether alcohol based solutions placed frequently around the ward might solve this problem. They need to find evidence that hand washing with alcohol is as effective as hand washing with soap and water.

4. The question • Health care professionals in a hospital want to know if hand washing with alcohol solution is as effective as hand washing with soap and water in infection control.

5. Applying PICO • Population • Health care professionals in a hospital want to know if hand washing with alcohol solution is as effective as hand washing with soap and water in infection control. • Keywords: hospital personnel • doctors • nurses

6. Applying PICO • Intervention • Health care professionals in a hospital want to know if hand washing with alcohol solution is as effective as hand washing with soap and water in infection control. • Keyword: alcohol

7. Applying PICO • Comparison • Health care professionals in a hospital want to know if hand washing with alcohol solution is as effective as hand washing with soap and water in infection control. • Keywords: hand washing • liquid soaps • soaps

8. Applying PICO • Outcome • Health care professionals in a hospital want to know if hand washing with alcohol solution is as effective as hand washing with soap and water in infection control. • Keywords: infection control • bacteria • hand

9. Summary • Health care professionals in a hospital want to know if hand washing with alcohol solution is as effective as hand washing with soap and water in infection control.

10. Searching electronic databases • CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature) • COCHRANE (collection of databases that brings together rigorous and up-to-date research on the effectiveness of healthcare treatments and interventions…) • JOANNA BRIGGS INSTITUTE (evidence-based database for nursing based in Adelaide)

11. Evidence in CINAHL • Can search by keywords • Can search by subject • Can combine searches • Can limit searches to evidence-based practice

12. Suggest subject terms 1. Enter the term ‘handwashing 2.Click on ‘Search’

13. Subject term 1.Tick both boxes’ 2.Click on ‘Search Database’

14. 1. Enter the term ‘alcohols’ 2.Click on ‘Search’ First set of results

15. Subject term 2.Click on ‘Search Database’ 1.Tick both boxes’

16. 1.Tick both boxes’ 2.Click on ’Search with AND’ Second set of results

17. Refine your results Click on ’Show More’ Combined set of results

18. 3.Click on ‘Search’ 2.Tick ‘English Language’ 1.Tick ‘Evidence-Based Practice’

19. Combined set of results limited to Evidence-Based Practice & English Language

20. 1. Enter the term ‘health personnel’ 2.Click on ‘Search’

21. 2.Click on ‘Search Database’ Subject term Subject terms 1.Tick boxes for each subject 1.Tick boxes for each subject

22. 1.Tick both boxes’ 2.Click on ’Search with AND’

24. Extract from the article • “Alcohol-based hand rubs were found to be more effective at removing an assortment of microorganisms ••(e.g., bacteria, viruses, fungi, and multidrug-resistant organisms) from the hands of healthcare workers than washing with non-medicated soap and/or other antiseptic agents and water” • Schub, T., Caple, C. and Pravikoff, D 2012 Hand hygiene. Cinahl Information Systems Aug 3, (2p).

25. And now that you have the evidence…Answering the question is no longer ‘Mission Impossible’