When nurses have a question about a clinical practiceissue that they can turn to the literature to see what scientific evidence is available that addresses their question.

In the Appraisal Guide: Findings of a Quantitative Study provided in this week’s resources, the questions identified in the article reviewed during the webinar under the Credibility section include whether the study clearly defined the population and setting, the sample size was appropriate, the data collection methods were reliable and valid, the data analysis was appropriate, and whether the study addressed limitations and biases.

One of the most serious flaws in the study reviewed during the webinar was the lack of randomization in the assignment of participants to the intervention and control groups. The study only used convenience sampling, which means that the participants in the study were selected based on their availability and willingness to participate, rather than being randomly selected. This could have introduced bias and limited the generalizability of the study’s findings. Additionally, there was no blinding of the intervention, which could have influenced the outcome of the study.

This flaw leaves me wondering whether the study findings should be used as evidence in an assessment of patient handoff because the lack of randomization and blinding could have influenced the results of the study. This means that the study may not accurately represent the impact of the intervention on patient handoff. As such, it is important to consider other studies that have addressed this issue to get a more comprehensive understanding of the effectiveness of interventions for improving patient handoff.