Overview

In this assessment task students are required to conduct a review of the current literature using a systematic approach. There will be several key sections to this assessment task, including creation of a flow chart that represents how the literature search was conducted including the inclusion / exclusion criteria, the final selected papers (10-12) represented in a table format highlighting the following aspects: author/year/country, methodology, participants, key findings, and a detailed description of the key findings of the selected papers.

Description: Students will be required to choose a clinical research topic of interest and conduct a review of the literature. Students are required to complete a written piece of work with the following headings:

1. Introduction:

• 1-2 paragraphs that introduces the reader to the topic of interest.
• Provide background information of the research topic in a global and/or Australian context
• Explain the significance of the research. Why is this research topic important to the nursing profession?
• Historical references may be used here to give context to the topic. Systematic reviews/meta-analyses may be utilized and referenced here to give context to the topic.

2. Research Aim:

• 1-2 sentences that succinctly gives the aim of the literature review. Identification of your PICO approach should be included.

3. Method:

• 2-3 paragraphs that includes a summary of the Search Strategy undertaken including information such as the databases searched, date range searched, key search terms, any limiters applied to the search and the inclusion/exclusion criteria.
• A description of the quality appraisal tool (CASP tool) should be included and referenced.
• A flow chart of the literature search should be included. Examples of flow charts are provided in the Moodle content. The literature flow chart should match the described search strategy.

4. Results:

• A Summary Table of selected literature (10-12 articles published in the past ten years) should be presented in a landscape format. Column headings for the summary table include: Authors/Year of publication, Country of origin, Aim/Purpose of Study, Methodology, Participants/sample size, Data collection procedure, Data Analysis, Limitations, Key findings, Quality appraisal scores (CASP tool).
• Only primary or original peer-reviewed articles should be considered for this literature review. Marks will be deducted if a systematic review or evidence synthesis of any type is included.
• 1-2 paragraphs summarising the key findings. This may include elements such as the result of the literature search, article characteristics, types of articles selected, demographic information and qualities of the selected articles. 5. Discussion (600 words):
• 3-4 paragraphs discussing the findings of the articles and any themes identified between them. Subheadings may be used to organise this section.
• The discussion should include recommendations for clinical practice and/or future research.
• A limitations section should be provided at the end of the discussion section. Limitations may refer to either the literature review process e.g. “The search strategy only considered articles published in the English language” or limitations identified from the selected articles e.g. “The findings from these studies are applicable to an acute care setting only and therefore may not be generalisable to alternative settings.”