For the week 2 assignment, you are asked to find two different types of evidence on your evidence-based problem from week 1. This guide will go over how to find different levels of evidence in the Library. Specifically, this guide will cover finding:

• systematic reviews
• national clinical guidelines
• qualitative peer-reviewed studies
• quantitative peer-reviewed studies

In preparation for completing your week 2 assignment, you are encouraged to view the following webinars.

The levels of evidence pyramid provides a way to visualize both the quality of evidence and the amount of evidence available. For example, systematic reviews are at the top of the pyramid, meaning they are both the highest level of evidence and the least common. As you go down the pyramid, the amount of evidence will increase as the quality of the evidence decreases.

Text alternative for Levels of Evidence Pyramid diagram

All the databases discussed on this page can be located on the Levels of Evidence Pyramid page in the Walden Library. Here are the steps for accessing the pyramid page.

1. On the Library homepage, go to the Research by Subject button:.
    

   

    
2. Click on Select a subject and choose: Nursing.
3. On the Nursing Research page, scroll down to the Research Help section. Click on Evidence-Based Practice Research.
4. Click on the link for Levels of Evidence Pyramid
5. Use navigation on the left to select the level of evidence you need to find.

Systematic reviews are considered the highest level of evidence available, and Cochrane Systematic Reviews are the gold standard.

Here is an example of how to search for a Cochrane Systematic Review using the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews:

1. On the Levels of Evidence Pyramid page select Systematic Reviews in the left navigation to be taken to that section.

Note: If you need help accessing the database, refer to the database access instructions above.

2. Click on the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews link.

Note: If you have not already logged in to the Library databases, you will be prompted to log in with your myWalden Portal user name and password.

3. Once you are in the database, go to the first search box and enter a broad keyword related to your topic, such as:

Neonatal

4. In the second search box you may consider another broad keyword related to your topic. For example, you could enter:

"Infection Control"

Note: Use quotation marks around a multi-word search term or subject to keep the words together when you search.

Here is what your search boxes should look like:

5. Then click on the Search button to run your search.

All results will be Cochrane Systematic Reviews and available in full text. If you do not find any results, adjust your keywords or terms in the search box to be broader. For instance remove one row or shorten a term.

If you do not find what you need in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, you can search using the same strategy in our other filtered databases that contain systematic reviews:

National clinical guidelines fall under the category of critically-appraised topics on the levels of evidence pyramid. They evaluate and synthesize multiple research studies and then make recommendations for practice.

Here is an example of how to search for a critically-appraised topic using the JBI EBP Database:

1. On the Levels of Evidence Pyramid page select Critically-appraised topics in the left navigation to be taken to that section.
    

   Note: If you need help accessing the database, refer to the database access instructions at the top of this page.

2. Choose the JBI EBP Database link.
3. Once you are in the database, use the search box to enter broad keywords related to your topic, such as:
    

   Neonatal and Infection

    
4. Click Limits under the search box to open other options.
    

   

   
    
5. In the Publication Types box, click on Evidence Summaries to highlight it.
    

   

   
    
6. Then click on the search icon to run your search.
    

   Note: The link to download the PDF of the article will be to the right of the record. Look for JBI Database PDF.

If you do not find what you need in the JBI EBP Database, you can search using the same strategy in other filtered databases that contain critically-appraised topics:

Quantitative studies use numbers and statistics to test their hypotheses.

Some keywords associated with quantitative research studies include:

Since not all quantitative research studies have the word quantitative in the title or abstract, it helps to link together the names of different types of quantitative research studies in your search. Here is an example of a search for quantitative research articles on anxiety in children in the CINAHL Plus with Full Text database:

1. On the Levels of Evidence Pyramid page select Unfiltered resources in the left navigation to be taken to that section.

Note: If you need help accessing the database, refer to the database access instructions above.

2. The first database listed in this box will be CINAHL Plus with Full Text. Click on the link to access the database.

Note: If you have not already logged in to the Library databases, you will be prompted to log in with your myWalden Portal user name and password.

3. Once you are in the database, go to the first search box and enter:

quantitative OR trial OR meta analysis

4. In the second search box, enter your topic:

anxiety

5. In the third search box, enter the rest of your topic, if necessary:

children

Here is what your search boxes should look like:

6. To limit your results to only peer-reviewed articles, go below the search boxes and click in the box under Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals.

Click here to see this image in context.

7. Then click on the Search button to run your search.

If you don't find what you need in the CINAHL Plus with Full Text database, you can use the same search strategy in our other nursing and health databases:

Qualitative studies seek to describe or understand an experience. They focus on the why of a situation or behavior.

Some keywords associated with qualitative research studies include:

Here is an example of a search for qualitative research articles on a topic in the CINAHL Plus with Full Text database:

1. On the Levels of Evidence Pyramid page select Unfiltered resources in the left navigation to be taken to that section.

Note: If you need help accessing the database, refer to the database access instructions above.

2. The first database listed in this box will be CINAHL Plus with Full Text. Click on the link to access the database.

Note: If you have not already logged in to the Library databases, you will be prompted to log in with your myWalden Portal user name and password.

3. Once you are in the database, go to the first search box and enter:

qualitative OR case study

Note: Connecting these terms with OR tells the database to search for either term.

4. In the second search box, enter your topic. For example, you could enter:

patient care

Here is what your search boxes should look like:

5. To limit your results to only peer-reviewed articles, go below the search boxes and click in the box under Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals.

Click here to see this image in context.

6. Then click on the Search button to run your search.

If you don't find what you need in the CINAHL Plus with Full Text database, you can use the same search strategy in our other nursing and health databases: