# Welcome to SMIRK Unit
2 - SPICE

- SPICE
- Some pointers
- Finding the evidence
- Some final points
- Back to main index

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SMIRK - Developing a practice based question by Jamie Frankis, Lesley Price, Ima Jackson SHLS modified by Marion Kelt, Glasgow Caledonian University is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

# SPICE

If you are studying the social sciences, a more appropriate system may be SPICE:

- SETTING (Where? in what context?)
- POPULATION or PERSPECTIVE (For whom?)
- INTERVENTION (What?)
- COMPARISON (What else?)
- EVALUATION (how well? What result?)

Here is an example of how it works:

Setting | Scotland
Population or Perspective | Teenagers
Intervention | Provision of Quit Kits to support smoking cessation
Comparison | No support or "cold turkey"
Evaluation | Number of successful attempts to give up smoking with Quit Kits compared to number of successful attempts with no support.

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SMIRK - Developing a practice based question by Jamie Frankis, Lesley Price, Ima Jackson SHLS modified by Marion Kelt, Glasgow Caledonian University is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

# Some pointers

- You should develop one practice-based question, all group papers must address this question
- Make sure you focus in on a specific issue, for example ‘Breast cancer treatment’ is too wide!
- Clear, concise and unambiguous questions
- If you find it difficult to select enough papers to address your question, try modifying or widening it a bit.
- Avoid a double barrelled question
  - ‘For women diagnosed with breast cancer, what is the emotional impact of diagnosis and what treatments provide the best long term outcomes’. Here you are really asking two completely different questions;
  - 1. What is the emotional impact of breast cancer diagnosis and
  - 2. What treatments provide the best long term outcomes for breast cancer. This question should also be more focused in terms of population, intervention and outcome.
- Make sure all your papers all answer the question!

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SMIRK - Developing a practice based question by Jamie Frankis, Lesley Price, Ima Jackson SHLS modified by Marion Kelt, Glasgow Caledonian University is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

# Finding the evidence

Here is a summary of the process you’ll use to find evidence for your group project. Remember that you will usually be looking for primary research evidence. There is lots of ‘pre-appraised evidence’ out there. As a practitioner this will often be your first port of call (Cochrane, CRD, SIGN, NHSQIS, NICE, - look in your library subject guide gateways section for links). If you need help in using these resources, come to a library drop in session or contact your librarian for help.

- Choose your topic of interest
- Brainstorm words to find issues
- Develop a practice-based question - PICO or SPICE.
- Understand what type of question it is.
- Consider which type of study would be the strongest one to answer question?
- Write list of types of evidence that would answer question
- Establish what resources are needed to access this evidence

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SMIRK - Developing a practice based question by Jamie Frankis, Lesley Price, Ima Jackson SHLS modified by Marion Kelt, Glasgow Caledonian University is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

# Some final points

- There are a range of situations where evidence is needed to enhance practice
- There are different types of questions to yield different information
- It is important to focus questions
- Use the PICO or SPICE framework to assist question development

References

###### Craig, J.V., & Smyth, R.L., (2002) The Evidence-Based Practice Manual, Churchill Livingston: Edinburgh 610.73 EVI Level 2, Saltire Centre
Critical Appraisal Skills Programme. (CASP) (2002) Evidence-based Health Care, CASP: Milton Keynes
Melnyk, B.M. & Fineout-Overholt, E. (2005) Evidence-based practice in nursing and health care: A guide to best practice, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins: Philadelphia 610.73 MEL Level 2, Saltire Centre
Heddle, N.M. (2007) The research question. Transfusion. Vol. 47 (1): 15-17

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SMIRK - Developing a practice based question by Jamie Frankis, Lesley Price, Ima Jackson SHLS modified by Marion Kelt, Glasgow Caledonian University is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.